"Regardless of age, regardless of position, regardless of the business
we happen to be in, all of us need to understand the importance of branding.
We are CEOs of our own companies: Me, Inc. To be in business today, our
most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called 'You,'"
said business guru Tom Peters in a 1997 essay that kick-started the personal
branding movement.
Personal branding is becoming even more important because your brand now
has more permanence and it is easier for others to find out about it thanks
to the Internet. If you have a blog, your brand is really hanging out
there for everyone to see.
Branding is not - I repeat - is not a thin veneer of calculated actions
or communications designed to fool people into thinking a certain way
about you. This may work for a short while but your true brand always
emerges. So, when building your personal brand it must firmly sit atop
your core beliefs and actions. It's determining who you really are at
the core, rather than inventing a brand that is not based on the truth.
If you want your brand to reflect honesty, you must first be honest. Duh!
The first step in personal branding is learning how others perceive you.
Once you know this, then you can start building on the current perception
or changing your behavior to help create a new one.
What is the Harry Hoover brand? I have always valued honesty, creativity,
hard work, and I try to do the right thing.
Ten colleagues responded to my request to give me their view of my brand.
Based on their responses, I believe I'm communicating my brand - and those
values - effectively.
It's like any other kind of branding: if you don't first position yourself
and then communicate your brand message, others will position you based
upon their perceptions.
It is a new brand world for the individual. You need to get on board and
build your personal brand.
Harry Hoover is managing principal of Hoover ink PR. He has 30 years
of experience in crafting and delivering bottom line messages that ensure
success for serious businesses like Brent Dees Financial Planning, Focus
Four, Levolor, New World Mortgage, North Carolina Tourism, TeamHeidi,
Ty Boyd Executive Learning Systems, VELUX, Verbatim and Wicked Choppers.
