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Ñ What is a personal brand?
Ñ How can you build a better brand and reputation?
Ñ How do you promote your reputation inside and outside of your organization?
Ñ What changes can you make today to improve your brand?



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Ñ The term, coined in 1997 by Tom Peters, meaning the marketing of people and their careers like brands
 
  



Ñ cc !Professional branding and personal branding are closely related.
Instead of marketing a product or service, a person is being promoted and sold to a recruiter/employer
ë c"The process by which individuals differentiate themselves and stand out from a crowd by
identifying and articulating their unique value proposition, then leveraging it with a consistent message and image
to achieve a specific goal (e.g., a job). A personal brand enhances their recognition as experts in their field,
establishes reputation and credibility, advances their careers, and builds self-confidence.
Ñ c##$#" A summary of your unique value proposition that tells what are you the best at and
who you serve.
Ñ c%#c!Steps that must be taken to develop and promote your brand. Should include
specific tasks that need to be accomplished and timelines of when will it be done.
Ñ cc%& "Marketing collateral that supports your personal brand. It could include a website,
blog, and profiles on social media sites and even web portfolio with resumes, biographies, references, case
studies of success stories, etc.
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Ñ We are all commodities now!
Ñ Superior skills, creativity, and drive once is no longer a competitive advantage. It¶s a pre-requisite!
Ñ We must differentiate and position ourselves from the competition
Ñ Our audience is the hiring managers and recruiters that deal with thousands of resumes each day
Ñ Today career advancement depends on self-packaging.
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Ñ What are the strengths and weaknesses in your brand?
Ñ Is your brand consistent?
Ñ Is your brand well-known?
Ñ How do your work fans describe you?
Ñ How do your work detractors describe you?
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Ñ Write out a very honest description of your current brand
Ñ Write out your ideal brand
Ñ Define the gaps between the two brands
Ñ Create an action plan for each brand attribute you¶ve identified through the gap analysis
Ñ Expect resistance ± even from yourself!
Ñ Put together a Brand Statement


 

 
' 
Ñ Hiring managers in your field
Ñ Recruiters
Ñ New networking contacts
Ñ Former colleagues/ references
Ñ Friends
(  'c 


Ñ What are your target companies¶ needs and pains?
Ñ How do you compare and differentiate the value that you deliver from the value other candidates deliver?
Ñ How do you substantiate your ability to deliver on your value promise (e.g., track record, references, etc.)?



* Courtesy of Scott Gleason for the ³Professional Branding´ workshop sponsored by Career Care at St. Andrew UMC
Scott Gleason can be contacted at scottgleason@sbcglobal.net Page 1
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(  ( 
Ñ How do you create value? Be able to articulate your goals and strengths
Ñ What are your core competencies (skills) and how do you differentiate yourself from the competition?
Ñ What capabilities (experiences) can you bring to bear to execute against your value promise?
Ñ Why should your ³value target´ accept your particular offer (e.g., more experienced, can hit ground running, solve
a specific problem)?





   
Ñ ##$#)*:
— Reflect your brand¶s unique value proposition
ë what makes you standout
ë What makes you the best choice
— Be clear, engaging, and relevant to your target audience
— Reflect who you are, what you do and the experiences you bring to bear
— State clearly what are you the best at and who you serve (audience)

+c 

  
Ñ ³Sitting at the intersection of technology and business, I use my passion for communication to help IT
professionals in Fortune 100 companies express themselves in ways that are understood by business people´.
Ñ ³As an experienced Retail Operations Executive, I have engaged cutting±edge technologies that helped global
retail companies achieve aggressive revenue growth and improve operating cost objectives. Some of the top
companies I have worked with include ABC Stores, NewCo Retailing, and Auction Corporation, and online auction
site.´
Ñ ³I inspire and activate high achieving sales people in health care organizations through my focus on motivation,
positivity, empathy and competition´
Ñ ³A focused and determined business leader, I drive bottom line growth, inspire peak employee performance, and
cultivate profitable business relationships built on respect, loyalty, and trust.´
Ñ ³An internal management consultant, I lead mission critical strategic initiatives and transformational projects for
executive management in the financial services industry.´
  

 
Ñ c,,%"Clothing, Attractiveness, Hygiene
Ñ c#-"alues, Goals, Identity and Behavior
Ñ '$,#%"Business, Communication and Technical Skills
Ñ ##"our Unique alue Proposition
Ñ '$$#$## .%%!High Quality Work and Outstanding Work Behaviors
Ñ *#/#)"Positive Interactions with Colleagues, Consistency in your respect, composure, thoroughness
and thoughtfulness.
Ñ (0#-"Organizational and External
 

)%-*0$ 1#).#.$#)
Ñ ##0  'be brave and go for it! A well-written blog focused on your area of expertise is another good
addition to your personal branding package.
Ñ */0# ± Consider a web site to create and showcase your brand. Create a ³webfolio´ with your
resume, bio, in depth briefs for success stories, etc.
Ñ '#,%± Comment on other people blogs, write some articles, speak at events, go to industry
meetings, conventions
Ñ (*# ± Join a committee and volunteer diligently
Ñ #-*$*##)± Meet people in your field either on-line or in person. Use tools like LinkedIn to make
connection?

* Courtesy of Scott Gleason for the ³Professional Branding´ workshop sponsored by Career Care at St. Andrew UMC
Scott Gleason can be contacted at scottgleason@sbcglobal.net Page 2