PERSONAL BRANDING AND WHY IT MATTERS
We leave an impression on everyone we meet—whether it’s just walking into the room, chatting for a few minutes, connecting with someone on LinkedIn, exchanging emails, or being old friends. We can think of that overall impression as our brand. Everyone has a personal brand, whether they recognize it or not; that brand needs to be managed strategically and authentically.
“
- Tom Peters, Business Author
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.”
WHAT IS A PERSONAL BRAND?
In business, people can confuse brands with logos, slogans, or other recognizable marks. But the Nike swoosh isn’t Nike, and the Disneyland castle isn’t Disney. Instead, a brand is an intangible bundle of meaning that helps people identify a company, product, or individual. Is it the shape of a bottle, the color of the box, or the smell of the fries? Yes. Is it the way you dress, the way you talk, the way you listen? Yes. A brand can be all these things and more; it is a bundle of what you believe to be true about a person, place, or thing.
Your personal brand is the bundle of meaning created by your personality, your combination of skills and experiences, how you interact with others, and how you present yourself to the world. As Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, said, “your brand is what people say about you when you are not in the room.” Company and product branding differentiates products from the competition, connects with customers emotionally, and tells consumers what to expect. Personal branding does the same for us as individuals.
WHY IS A PERSONAL BRAND IMPORTANT?
Your personal brand is the first impression you make.
Your personal brand can communicate your values.
Employers look for more than just skill in employees—they seek workers that share their values. If you communicate your values with your personal brand and the actions you take, you can gain a leg up on the competition to secure your dream job.
In turn, your personal brand determines how others will categorize and treat you
Your personal brand establishes you as an asset.
Ice cream expensive & sold in pints premium & good to eat
If you can curate your personal brand to efficiently showcase your skill, expertise, and values, employers will see you as a valuable resource. Effectively conveying your personal brand on your resume and social platforms encourages employers to seek out your talent.
of job recruiters use social media to screen
As humans, we categorize everything around us to make our choices easier, including people. When we experience something new, we place it in a category that seems fit, and react differently based on experiences with that category in the past. Branding helps categorize the world—and people—around us. For example:
67%
In addition to daily interactions, personal branding plays a crucial role in your job search and career. While there are many ways your personal brand can impact career success, here are some of the most common and influential:
Person gossips & spreads rumors should be avoided
How you carry yourself in person and on social media in accordance to your personal brand gives off a strong first impression; 67% of job recruiters check your social media before meeting you in person.
In business, companies build their brands from scratch; they create products engineered to provide specific benefits and fulfill certain needs while forming a brand to support these products. Personal branding is different. We already have personality traits, skills and weaknesses, experiences, and more. While it’s possible to gain skills and grow, we can’t “create” ourselves like a company does a product. Likewise, we can’t just create a personal brand that represents someone we are not. Instead, we can manage and develop our brand to best portray our unique value to the world
Self Analysis
After determining the traits, strengths, and weaknesses that best represent you, they should be mapped to specific benefits they can provide. For example, if one of your strengths is predicting and solving issues before they become major problems, you can deliver the benefit of saving coworkers and clients headaches when you are on the team. In doing this, you can turn your answers to the self-analysis questions above into distinct, measurable value that you bring to the table. This value is a critical part of what defines your personal brand.
HOW TO MANAGE YOUR PERSONAL BRAND
Managing a personal brand begins with understanding ourselves and determining what we value. Ask yourself: What am I good at? What do I struggle with? What experience do I have? What are my core values? What do I enjoy and what do I dislike? What makes me unique? Why do people come to me?
During the self-analysis process, it is helpful to ask friends and colleagues some of these questions.
Finding Your Value
Provide examples of experiences and credentials that demonstrate your value. Whether this be a degree or former job title, your examples should be specific.
Once you discover the specific value you bring to the table, your brand should be shared with employers, colleagues, clients, and virtual networks. In an introductory context, people typically have four questions about you:
In addition to conveying personal brand through conversation, the same branding should be present throughout written, digital, and nonverbal communication. How you build your resume, write emails and cover letters, post on LinkedIn, dress, and react to stressful situations are all part of your brand.
While many don’t realize it, your name can affect the perception others have of your brand. For example, a nickname of “Jimmy” may be better suited for some groups, while “James” would serve better for another.
1. Who are you?
Support your personal brand with an MBA
Explain your specific attributes and skills that can provide value for the person you are talking to or the market in general. This is the core of personal branding and the impression you create.
Learn More
The answer to this question greatly influences how others categorize us; quickly and clearly articulate what you do in your career.
3. Are you valuable to me?
4. Why should I believe you?
SHARE YOUR BRAND WITH THE WORLD
2. What do you do?
Your brand is about you; use your strengths to convey it to the world. If you’re good at public speaking, speak at a conference. If you enjoy writing, start a blog or write a column for your company’s site. If you work to actively manage your brand, you’re bound to take the market for success by storm.
MBA@Utah.edu (801) 581-5577 MBA.Utah.edu