Quintessential Careers: Building Your Personal Brand: Tactics for Successful Career Branding

by Randall S. Hansen, Ph.D.



What is it that all successful companies have mastered -- and what job-seekers looking to advance in their careers need to master? What is it about Coca-Cola, Microsoft, Starbucks, Disney, and McDonald’s? What makes a consumer buy one product over another -- and makes one job-seeker much more sought after than others? The answer is marketing, but more specifically it is the power of branding. And branding isn’t just for products anymore.

Branding can be described as many things, but it’s best defined as a promise… a promise of the value of the product… a promise that the product is better than all the competing products… a promise that must be delivered to be successful. Branding is the combination of tangible and intangible characteristics that make a brand unique. Branding is developing an image -- with results to match.

Branding (some call it self-branding when talking about individuals) is essential to career advancement because branding helps define who you are, how you are great, and why you should be sought out. Branding is your reputation. Branding is about building a name for yourself, showcasing what sets you apart from others, and describing the added value you bring to a situation.

Most job-seekers are not proactive in establishing and building their career brand, letting their actions speak for them when seeking promotions or new jobs. But why not take the time to master some very basic tactics that can help build your career brand and make you a much more attractive employee or job-seeker? Remember, if you don’t brand yourself, others will for you. And while you may be happy and secure in your job now, you really never know when that will change.

Management guru Tom Peters, writing in his book The Brand You50 (Reinventing Work): Fifty Ways to Transform Yourself from an "Employee" into a Brand That Shouts Distinction, Commitment, and Passion! states: “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 the CEOs of our own companies: Me, Inc.” He adds, “You’re not defined by your job title and you’re not confined by your job description.”

This article takes you through five easy tactics for building and strengthening your career brand.

Gain Experience/Track Accomplishments
Building your brand begins with tracking your past accomplishments and gaining strategically important new experiences. Your accomplishments are the foundation of your career brand.

But before you seek out new work, take the time to plan and focus on what you want your brand to stand for -- and develop a strategy for gaining experience in areas of your brand in which you are weak.

So, besides doing your job, ask for new and challenging assignments that will build your brand. Consider freelancing or consulting. Use volunteering to gain experience. If you’re a student, seek out multiple internships.

Complete Education/Training
For many careers, a minimum amount of education is necessary, but to excel in your career you may need to complete additional education, training, or certifications. Getting additional education can greatly enhance your career brand.

It may be hard in terms of time and finances, but find a way to do it. Some employers even offer an educational reimbursement benefit.

If you are unsure if you need more education -- and you probably do -- seek out a mentor, someone highly respected in your field (who has branded himself or herself well), and ask for advice.

Promote Yourself
You can have an amazing brand, but if no one knows about it, you are not going to have much success with your career development. And no one more than you has more reasons to promote your brand.

Throw modesty out the window? There is a fine line between bragging and promoting -- and you need to learn it -- but it’s always better to err on the side of promoting your brand than not.

One of the oldest tools of promotion for job-seekers is the resume, and you certainly need to start there by listing all your key accomplishments, skills, and education on your resume. You may even have your positioning statement (qualifications summary) on your resume… but don’t stop there.

Begin developing two career portfolios -- a print one and an online one. If you don’t have a personal Website, now is the time to buy a domain (such as myname.com) and let the world read all about the benefits of your brand. Your portfolio should include all important brand artifacts: resume(s), mission statement, detailed accomplishments list, samples of work, articles and working papers, speech transcripts, awards and honors, testimonials, and more.

One interesting trend we’ve seen is of employers “Googling” the names of prospective job-seekers -- typing each name into one or more Internet search engines -- and basing initial candidate screening decisions partly on the number (and quality) of hits for each job-seeker. The lesson? Your brand needs to have a strong online presence.

And finally, don’t forget to promote your brand on the job. Workers often assume the boss knows your accomplishments, but often times s/he does not. Certainly at review time, have a list of all you have achieved since your last review, but also consider finding ways to let the boss know your successes throughout the year.

Become an Expert
Nothing builds credibility in a career brand more than establishing yourself as an expert in your field.

Start by writing articles that showcase your knowledge -- and getting them published (ideally) in noteworthy media outlets. Consider self-publishing.

Seek out conferences and meetings where you can give speeches and presentations.

Play up awards and other recognition that can help label you an expert.

Get quoted by offering your thoughts, ideas, and opinions to journalists and reporters.

Consider constructing a professional Website where you can publish all your articles and speeches.

Build Relationships
Nothing in marketing is more powerful than a promotion tool called word-of-mouth, which can be defined as what people say about you.

Thus, nothing is more powerful in building your career brand than what your network of contacts -- your friends, colleagues, customers, clients, and former bosses -- say about you and your set of skills, education, and accomplishments.

And keeping your network strong involves nothing more than relationship building. Keep in good contact with your network and be sure they know of your most recent successes.

But the best brand-builders don’t stop with their current network; these folks are in constant network-building mode. Search out new professional associations as well as the growing number of online networking communities.

Final Thoughts
Once you identify and build your brand, remember to continue strengthening and protecting it. There will always be competing brands (job-seekers) ready to fill any gap you leave behind. You are indeed founder and CEO of Me, Inc., and the more you do to cultivate your career brand, the more successful you’ll be with your current employer and in the job-search.




To better understand how these marketing terms apply to job-hunting it helps to first understand the terminology. To that end, go to our Marketing Concepts Glossary. And for a general introduction to marketing and career development, read: Using Key Marketing Tools to Position Yourself on the Job Market.

Questions about some of the terminology used in this article? Get more information (definitions and links) on key college, career, and job-search terms by going to our Job-Seeker's Glossary of Job-Hunting Terms.

Dr. Randall S. Hansen is founder of Quintessential Careers, one of the oldest and most comprehensive career development sites on the Web, as well CEO of EmpoweringSites.com. He is also founder of MyCollegeSuccessStory.com and EnhanceMyVocabulary.com. He is publisher of Quintessential Careers Press, including the Quintessential Careers electronic newsletter, QuintZine. Dr. Hansen is also a published author, with several books, chapters in books, and hundreds of articles. He's often quoted in the media and conducts empowering workshops around the country. Finally, Dr. Hansen is also an educator, having taught at the college level for more than 15 years. Visit his personal Website or reach him by email at randall(at)quintcareers.com.

10 ways to Celebrate Earth Day

by Robert Budlow

Even though some geophysicists suggest that the Earth is approximately 4.7 billion years old, when do you think the first Earth Day was celebrated as a holiday in the US? If you guessed anytime greater than 50 years, you would be wrong. The first recognized Earth Day took place on April 22, 1970. It was not a celebration at all; in fact it was just the opposite. Senator Gaylord Nelson from Wisconsin, known as the “Father of Earth Day” created this idea as an environmental protest, “to shake up the political establishment and force this issue onto the national agenda.” Over 20 million people took to the street that day to support the protest. In fact the EPA was founded as a direct result from this first Earth Day.
Now, nearly 40 years later there seems to be a resurgence of environmental conscious and Earth Day is more a celebration rather than a protest. So, what are some relatively easy things you do to help the environment today and well into the future?

1. First and foremost, you should recycle. Ink Cartridges are a killer. So are most electronics. Don’t just throw out your old cell phones, printers, computers, glass, batteries, newspapers, plastic stamped with a #1 or #2 on the bottom, solicitation mail (aka junk mail), cereal and shoe boxes. They all should be recycled.

2.Reuse bags. Bring bags back to the grocery store and refill them with new groceries. Better yet, bring a canvass bag.

3.Replace your light bulbs with CFL (Compact Fluorescent Lights)

4.Unplug chargers (phone, computer, etc.) and turnoff lights and other electronics when not in use.

5.Use organic and natural landscape techniques. Pesticides are not necessary to produce a green lawn.

6.Install programmable thermostats. Each degree up or down not only consumes less energy, but is better on your wallet too.

7.Use less water: Don’t run the water while you’re brushing your teeth, and take shorter showers.

8.Use Refillable water bottles. Those small plastic water bottles are a killer on the environment.

9.Download Digital books. No trees are harmed and no ink is used to create digital books. Better yet, download digital books about the environment. Here’s one for the kids: “All the way to the Ocean.”

10.Whenever possible, use a bus, subway, ride a bike or walk.

Here are some facts you may not know:

1.The average American generates more than 3.5 pounds of trash a day.

2.About 90% of the energy used in lighting with a standard bulb is lost as heat. (See point #3 above)

3.Plastic bags and other plastic garbage thrown into the ocean kill as many as one million sea creatures every year.

4.US industry “admits” to four billion pounds of toxic pollution released per year.

5.Approximately one billion books are put into landfills each year. (See point #9 above)

On April 22, let’s all take some time to celebrate the Earth. You’ll be happy you did. So will the generations of people who will walk this Earth in the centuries to come.


Robert Budlow, father of two, is president and co-founder of Still Motion Media, publisher of MobiStories, Virtual Books for Kids, MobiStories. Recognizing that there was little content for digital screen-savvy young children, Mr. Budlow started this company with another Dad who had left his job as a Hollywood Art Director. Prior to this Mr. Budlow was founder of a direct marketing and Internet services firm based in New York City. In addition, he is also Board President of the Children's Brain Tumor Foundation. He can be contacted at rbudlow@stillmotionmedia.com

How to Become a Celebrity in Your Field

This is happening all around you, and you can see the results. Here are a few names: Martha Stewart, Britney Spears, Colonel Sanders, Colin Powel, Lance Armstrong, Paris Hilton, Opra Winfrey, Tiger Woods. Need I go on? Some of these people are extraordinarily talented; some show only a talent for getting noticed. But, it’s a good bet that there are people in their fields who are just as talented, but are not as well known. What makes the difference?

Keep in mind there are degrees of celebrity which vary based on an individual's region or field. While someone might be a celebrity to some people who are interested in their area, to others they may be completely unknown. You may be interested in becoming a celebrity retail store owner in a small city, while another person may want national fame in an industry.

What these people and others who want to be seen as leaders are doing is honing their own “personal brand.” They are following the Four Universal Rules of Personal Branding.

Universal Rule #1 – Nothing is Sold Until it is Branded. Here’s shorthand for understanding branding. Branding is “pre-selling.” We’ve moved from a selling world to a buying world. Nobody wants to be sold anything, but they do want to buy. Buyers want to investigate, educate themselves and buy the product or services they think they have discovered. They want to follow the thought leadership of someone they believe they have found. The good news is, if you don’t like selling, this is a perfect strategy for you because buyers show up at your door pre-sold.

Universal Rule #2- Visibility is More Important than Ability. That’s a chilling thought, isn’t it? But, think about it. Do you know a competitor who is incompetent but still gets business? Visibility. Visibility builds trust, and all sales are built on trust. As human beings, we have a few ways to judge people and products. One way is if we see it everywhere, we start to believe it is trustworthy. If everyone is investing with Bernie Madoff, we believe he is credible. So, if you want to be a celebrity in your field, get visible. You can’t hide behind your business or avoid the public and become a celebrity.

Universal Rule #3 – What You See is What You Think You Get. Perception drives our world. In the quest to become a celebrity in your field, you must manage perception or it will manage you. So, start with the image you project. Do you exude confidence? Do you stand out in a crowd? Are you gregarious or at least have a character that is interesting? Avoid the sin of being too conservative and reserved which is perceived as mousey and insecure, which is death to celebrity. Harry Beckwith in his book You, Inc. says “People think in stereotypes. People think and buy with their eyes. They hear what they see. Watch your visual clues to trigger the right stereotypes.”

Universal Rule #4 – People Trust People They Like, and are Impressed With. In the western psyche “like” and “trust” and inextricably linked. We have a difficult time trusting someone we don’t like and we intrinsically trust someone we do like. Buyers always prefer to do business with a person, not a company, because we know we can trust a person we know. Logic loses out to emotion every time, and people find confidence very attractive. People buy and will pay more for the way you make them feel, so make them feel good. Everyone is looking for a guru, no matter the field. We want advice we can depend on and follow. Show people you are that person.

These are the principals behind the strategy of becoming a celebrity in your field. How you apply these principals is the subject of another article.


How to Become a Celebrity in Your Field - To learn more about this author, visit Vicki Garcia's Website.

http://www.marketing-impressions.com/

Internet Business Survival

Another timely reprint, tweaking traffic, reprints, search engines, etc. In three years, not one dime in income, what the hell?


Everyone online wants to make money; however, there are many people online who need to go back to some of the basics outlined below. There is entirely too much hype, too much hoping for the "next miracle ebook" or some other short cut.

The truth of the matter is that for the average Joe or Josephine online, the internet business will not be built overnight and they will need to adhere to some of the same basic principles that those retail stores use to get customers in the door.

The first thing you need to do is realize that the Internet is a place where you have to establish your creditability on each transaction with each customer. Doing what you say, offering quality products that you yourself have tried, and maintaining an attitude that the customer needs to have the reassurance to do business with you, will get you many more dollars than high pressure sales tricks. There is no reason for a customer to trust you unless you offer your complete name, business name, address and a way to contact you within your website or your order form. A thank you note also helps the customer to confirm that their order was processed correctly and gives you a chance to acknowledge again their value to you and your respect for them.

Make your website easy to navigate. Make the products and the way to purchase them stand out. Do not add a bunch of other filler or banners and items that only take away from your main focus - your product or service. When a shopping cart or buy button is presented, make sure that it is a smooth transaction and ask for as little information as possible to get the order confirmed. People hate to fill out tons of lines on your form and will leave if you try to ask them everything under the sun about their situation on the first contact. Also, make sure that they are aware of your privacy policy that you will never share their information.

Remember, the goal is to either get them to purchase a product or to get them to leave their email address and first name so that you can contact them again with tips, articles, and other software or items that will be of interest to them. Let them receive something for nothing for a while as everyone loves free items and they will look forward to receiving your newsletter. Most people will not buy on their first contact with you or your website, so you need to reinforce your trustworthiness.

When you send out a newsletter, do not send it too frequently. Once a week or twice a month is much better than three times a week. Always use the same format and make it quick, swift and to the point. This is not the place to write your life history and what you did for entertainment that weekend. It is a method that you can communicate with your customer and encourage them to trust and place their confidence in you. Anything that you can do to that end will reward you many times over.

If you have a product that others are marketing, then check out their websites. Find the top people in your business and see what they are doing. You can search Google or Yahoo or any of the other major search engines to come up with these competitor's websites just by inserting keywords relevant to your industry and seeing the top ten that come up. Do not copy what they have on their websites, but just get the feel for the website and why they are having success. Make notes as you scroll through the website and see what you like about their website, how they showcase their products, their ease of use, their ability to explain their product or service in easy to understand wording, and how their guarantee works, anything that will help you to understand why someone would come to this website and feel comfortable with their decision to purchase from this vendor.

Another important point is to make sure your colors on your website convey the mood you are trying to establish. If you do not know what colors can do for your website, then do a search and some reading and learn the combinations that are pleasing to the eye. Do not load the website up with graphics that are not necessary. Even flash introductions seem to be on the way out lately. Everyone has moved back to the website being functional and less is more here. You will have more customers, more visitors, and more orders for your company if you keep things simple but professional.

Make your headline and subheadings grab the attention of the reader. Most people will not stay on a website but a short time unless they are directed through curiosity to find out more about what you are offering. So, lead their mind where you want it to be within the first headline and first couple of sentences. Avoid mundane headings like Welcome to My Website or I am so glad to have you visit - I am happy to be able to show you my products. Do use headings like Are You Afraid You Are Being Left Out?

Your goal is to direct the customer's mindset and allow them time to indulge in reading your website. If they think they will find some value within your words, products or services, then you will continue to keep their interest if you are honest with them. Usually, the first hint of the self-indulgence type of sales words and the customer is long gone.

Fulfill a need, provide an excellent service, make the website easy to understand, and do not be pushy or extreme in your declarations. Then you will have the basics down of making your Internet business lasting and successful.

Article Source: http://www.articlesnatch.com

About the Author:
Don Fletchinger specializes in teaching other people how to start earning multiple paychecks working from home. His money making website contains the best diversified business opportunities, training programs and ideas on the internet today. http://www.home-business-paychecks.com