Personal Branding Interview | Alexia Leachman & Hung Lee

Here is an interview I did recently with Hung Lee aka Wise Man Say.

Some of the things we talk about include

  • Brand Creation vs Brand Discovery
  • Brand Values = inflexibility? Or does it allow for inconsistency in life?
  • Brands get ossified as they mature – harder to change as you go on – implications for young people?
  • Transparency of social media – effect on personal brands
  • Language – and the need to do better. Bring in your ‘personal capital’

Share

No Comments

Personal Branding: Reputation management is YOUR responsibility

The current debate on privacy here in the UK is an interesting one. A well-known footballer has been caught with his pants down. Literally. And so, in order to protect his reputation he paid in excess of £200k to lawyers for a super-injunction to keep this mess out of the press. Unfortunately, this didn’t keep it off the social networks and now it’s public knowledge. So, now not only has his misdemeanour come out, but it’s a hot topic on all media. Surely not what he had in mind when he coughed up his £200k.

This situation is quite complex so rather than get distracted in the privacy part of this debate I’d like to focus on the reputation angle.

If you are going to do something that damages your reputation, then you need to be mindful of the consequences. The transparency of social media has forced many of us to be more mindful of our behaviour. Whether it’s flirting around the boundaries of a relationship or showing a side of us that only alcohol reveals, we are all only too aware of the chaos that can ensue once it appears on Facebook.

So, to use the argument that a super-injunction is required to protect his reputation is a very weak one. The responsibility for reputation damage only lies with him! If he hadn’t acted like an idiot in the first place then he wouldn’t have anything to hide. And that is a lesson to us all.

If you do happen to act in a way that betrays your reputation, then surely on a personal level you need to learn from this. One of the first lessons of crisis management is to own up. Once you admit that you have made a mistake and that you are sorry, you are showing a human side. And that alone may gain you respect, merely for your honesty despite what you may have done. But trying to hide it, suggests that you are ashamed of your behaviour and that you know it was wrong. That is fuel for gossip and will only make things worse.

If we act is a way that is in line with our view of ourselves and reinforces what we want people to think about us, then there is no story.

So, has the transparency of social media affected how you behave? Are you more mindful of what you’re doing BECAUSE others have a window in on your life? Leave a comment below.

Share

No Comments

My Favourite 4 Personal Branding Quotes

The term “Personal branding” is massively misunderstood. Even in marketing circles, branding is not understood, so the likelyhood of the masses getting their heads around personal branding is slim. So, to help out I’ve collated my personal favourite top 4 quotes that attempt to define what personal branding is all about.

Quote 1.

“Your brand is what people say about you when you are not in the room” Jeff Bezos. Founder of Amazon

What I like about this quote is the fact that Jeff captures the idea that your brand is what people THINK. After all, people tend to say what they think. And this goes back to what a brand IS; it’s the place occupied in the mind of others. It’s the associations and feelings people have about an brand entity (product, company, service or person). So here, Jeff really is drawing a comparison to the world of business branding.

Also, people like shortcuts and will try to pigeon hole you for sake of ease. Understanding how people choose to file you in their mind is incredibly insightful and worth finding out.

Quote 2.

“Personal branding is about managing your name — even if you don’t own a business — in a world of misinformation, disinformation, and semi-permanent Google records.

Going on a date? Chances are that your “blind” date has Googled your name.

Going to a job interview? Ditto.”

Tim Ferriss. 4 hour work week & 4 hour body

Here Tim reminds us of the importance of the digital world on our reputation and how Google can be our downfall if we don’t use it correctly.

Quote 3.

“It’s important to build a personal brand because it’s the only thing you’re going to have. Your reputation online, and in the new business world is pretty much the game, so you’ve got to be a good person. You can’t hide anything, and more importantly, you’ve got to be out there at some level.”

Gary Vaynerchuk Wine Library TV & Crush it!

This is fab quote because Gary highlights the importance of transparency and authenticity for a strong personal brand. You’ve essentially got to work out WHO you are and BE that person. Forget about managing different personas or trying to be someone else. You’ll fail. You’ve also got to be nice. People like nice people. If people are on your side, you’ll go much further than if they’re not. Helpfully, he also reminds us that you’ve got get out there… reminds me of one of my favourite Winnie the Pooh quotes “You can’t stay in your corner of forest waiting for others to come to you. You’ve got to go to them sometimes” ;-)

But, my favourite quote …

Quote 4.

“Personal branding is about figuring who you are and what turns you on and then monetising it”

Kelly Cutrone. PR Maven & Publicist. People’s Revolution

Not only does Kelly keep it nice and simple, but she manges to capture what I believe are 3 really important points whe it comes to defining personal branding;

1. Knowing WHO you are 2. Doing something that you LOVE!  3. Making money from it.

If you can find the sweet spot here, you’re rolling in it!

What do you think? Have you got any quotes that should be added to my list? Pop your favourite quote in the comment section below.

Share

No Comments

7 ways that social media can damage your personal brand

A report out today has highlighted just how careful employees and job-seekers need to be in their use of social media.

With more than half of recruiters saying that they check social networking sites as part of their research.

Interestingly, 43% stated that they had information that had caused them NOT to hire the candidate. Top reasons include:

  • no_jobLying about qualifications – 38%
  • Demonstration of poor communication skills – 31%
  • Making discriminatory comments – 13%
  • Posting content about them drinking or using drugs – 10%
  • Candidate posted provocative or inappropriate photographs or information – 9%
  • Bad-mouthed their previous employer, co-workers or clients – 9%
  • Sharing confidential information from previous employer – 8%

Glancing through this list, it’s easy to see why employers would react in this way. The transparency of social media means that you need to be very clear as what you stand for and what you want to be known for. If you choose to undertake questionable and unethical behaviour (lying, bad-mouthing, leaking confidential information) and live your life in the open, then you need to accept the consequences.

bothways

Social media can be incredibly powerful in helping you to build a strong personal brand, but it works both ways.

So, if you’re an employee or a job-seeker, here are some top tips for avoiding personal brand meltdown online:

  • Be honest about your achievements and your experience. The truth is easier to remember.
  • Decide who your audiences are for your personal brand and ensure that what you project to those audiences is consistent.
  • Don’t be negative, deliberately provocative or discriminatory in public. This is just bad form wherever you are, online or offline.
  • Seek out testimonials for work that you’ve done and show them off. LinkedIn is great for this.
  • Check your public photos! Make sure that all the embarrassing ones are removed, hidden or private.
Share

1 Comment

King – A Branding Genius?

shaving bond home pageYou would have been hard pressed to get through the weekend papers without escaping any reference to the King. And, I’m not talking about Michael Jackson. Instead, I’m referring to Will King, founder and CEO of King of Shaves. The reason for this is that last week, he launched the Shaving Bond. This is a corporate bond that aims to attract funds for their marketing war chest in their fight against Gillette.

This brand building idea is ingenious on so many levels. So many levels that I’m not quite sure where to start, so in no real order…

A brand you can trust

In the current climate of dishonest and untrustworthy politicians and banks, choosing where to put your money is tricky business. And yet, here is an opportunity to put your money behind one of the fastest growing brands around. Not only that, but Will King is proven when it comes to building assets. After all, he knows how to manage money as he’s built a hugely successful business over the last 16 years. Politicians and banks can’t claim that one very easily. So, in terms of trust, he’s got that one nailed. That’s no mean feat; give the guy some credit.

It’s a win-win!

Will King is predicting that his business will double in the next year. For those of you that struggle with percentages, that’s +100%. So, to offer a +6% return on an investment means that he is going to be quids in. But so are the investors. The majority of investors out there would be hard pressed to find a better return than 6%. Especially one that comes with free King of Shaves products. The free product bit is so neat. For KoS, giving away free product is nothing, but the perceived value to the consumer is massive. Consumers love a bit of FREE.

willI saw King speak recently at the British Library and he was asked how he measured his marketing spend on advertising. The response quite simply was “Sales! We sell loads of product”. King knows that lack of awareness is their biggest barrier. He calls it their “biggest competitor”. So, King knows that if he could just spend more on advertising, then sales will follow. The problem is, he needs to the cash. So, what are his options?

Get your customers to pay for it!

Well why not? Most brands pay for their marketing through their premium prices. Taking this route allows King of Shaves to keep their prices competitive during these “tough times” while offering consumers a return in more ways than one. I also think that the transparency is going to be respected. They’re quite blatant in telling us that they’ll spend the money on marketing and advertising. And so, consumers get to choose as to whether they take part in this. You don’t get that choice with many other brands. You pay or go elsewhere.

Now, back to the lack of awareness issue. What better way round this than to get your name out there? Mmmm… now let’s think, how could he do this. Well, you could try and pull a big PR stunt that gets you into all the papers.

A PR stunt?

the-sun-230609The press coverage for the Shaving Bond has been pretty impressive. Oh sure, it helps that they’ve been spending a little cash on advertising, but nonetheless. To secure coverage in wide ranging publications like The Sun, The Times, Brand Republic, Management Today and Marketing Week makes for a great PR stunt. The value of the PR alone will make this exercise worth it, even if no-one signs up. But, the reach achieved with this coverage would probably surpass anything they could hope to pull off with any ad campaign. And that coverage was despite the other “King” that hit the news this week.

Consistency of message

I can’t help admire the PR aspect of this initiative. Having worked on PR stunt campaigns, I know how hard it can be to ensure that when your story gets out there, the journalists are saying the right thing, consistently. After all, you have no editorial control. But, for this campaign, the message that keeps coming through is “It’s not just a better way to shave, it’s a better way to save”. And that comes straight from King himself. Great brands are built on consistency, and these guys clearly know what they’re doing.

And finally…

What a great name!

This name is a marketer’s dream. It’s just so perfect! I won’t go on as Shaving Bond speaks for itself.

Share

2 Comments

The 5 perils of personal branding

We can safely say that when the topic of personal branding comes up that most people would agree that it’s a good thing, and if they had the time or inclination, they would probably get round to sorting out their personal brand.

But, is it? Are there any perils with starting such a journey? There are a lot of things in life that start out as a good idea that turn out to be a monumental disaster. Like putting up your party pics on facebook, only to discover that a director at work has seen them and now you’re not getting that promotion. Doh! Now I’m not saying that developing your personal brand is in that league, far from it. But what I am saying is that there are considerations, and you should be aware of them before you jump in.

High visibility high_vis_jacket

Remember the whole point behind personal branding. It’s to stand out and be noticed. You want work to come to you, and not vice versa. But, raising your visibility stakes means, you guessed it – you’re going to get noticed! So, are you happy with that? You may be some quiet shrew who’s damn good at what you do, but you prefer to hide behind your desk. Imagine spending the day wearing a high-vis jacket, does that sit well with you? And, more importantly, can you keep it up?

Transparency

glass-of-water

Developing your personal brand is a beautiful process of self-discovery. For a truly authentic personal brand, you’ll need to work out who you are and what you stand for. Then, you’ll need to be that and stand for it consistently. If you don’t, you’ll be betraying your brand (otherwise known as brand suicide). Some personal branders talk about persona being a crucial part of the personal branding equation. I think this wrongly creates the impression that you have a “persona” and a “real you”. By the way, if you look up persona you’ll get words like role, character, mask, actor etc. These are not words that talk about transparency and authenticity.

Accountability

Devising and launching your personal brand is a big step. It’s a sign you mean business. As a part of the process you would have identified personal goals and ambitions. After all, your brand will be there to support you in achieving these. So, now you’ve put your stake in the sand, you’ve got to be seen to be delivering. You’re accountable. Are you ready to be accountable?

Keeping it up

man_lift_weightsThe need for consistency cannot be underestimated. As with business brands, a personal brand needs to be reinforced and maintained. Consistently, both in terms of the message that you’re putting out there and the regularity by which you deliver that message. It’s hard work. It’s called brand management not brand laissez faire for a reason.

Conflict with employer

Now, for some this is not relevant. But for bundles of you it is. How does your brand fit your employer’s brand. If you’re all about the outdoors, high energy, risk taking, and you work in an accountant’s firm, there might be a slight mismatch. Some companies will only be interested in you being an employee if you reflect the corporate brand. While other businesses may be up for allowing you to be YOU. So, beware of being authentic too soon as it might put you out of a job!

Share

No Comments