Marketing and Communications Programs

The Importance of Your Personal & Professional Brand

1. What is your / company vision and purpose?

Look externally at the bigger picture of your vision for the world, and then internally at how you might help the world realize your vision or your company’s vision. Think about one world problem you or your company would like to see solved or one area of life that you want to see transformed or improved. This is your vision. What role might you play in making your vision happen? This is your purpose.

2. What are your values?

Your values are your guiding principles – things like:

Balance, being the best, agility, calmness, challenge, decisiveness, perseverance, drive, honesty, integrity, pragmatism, sensitivity, structure, teamwork, sharing, vitality, zeal.

3. What are your personal or corporate passions?

What do you most enjoy doing – in your personal life and work life? Think about the activities, interests, or conversational topics that fascinate and energize you. How do your passions converge with what you are best at doing?

4. What are your top goals for the next year, 2 years, and 5 years?

Work on projecting what you intend to accomplish so you can put together a strategic action plan to get there.

5. What are your top brand attributes? What 3 or 4 adjectives best describe the value you offer? What words do you use to define your personality or your companies image?

Once you pinpoint what you feel are the right kinds of words, it’s a good idea to consult a thesaurus to precisely nail the exact words. Here are some possibilities, but don’t limit yourself to these:

Collaborative, resilient, forward-focused, risk-taking, connected, international, visionary, diplomatic, intuitive, precise, enterprising, ethical, genuine, accessible.

6. What are your core strengths or motivated skills?

In what functions and responsibilities do you or your company excel in? For what things are you the designated “go-to” person or company? What gap would your company or industry be faced with if you or your company were no longer in the market place? The possibilities are endless, but here are a few suggestions:

Analyzing, collaborating, leading, delegating, empowering others, forecasting, crunching numbers, anticipating risk, mentoring, visioning, selling, innovating, managing conflict, defining needs, writing, listening, communicating.

7. Get feedback from those who know you best – at work, at home, industry, anywhere.

The true measure of your brand is the reputation others hold of you in their hearts and minds. Notice how they introduce you or your company to others. Ask them what your top brand attributes and core strengths are. How does your self-assessment measure up with their feedback?

8. Do a SWOT analysis (Strengths – Weaknesses – Opportunities – Threats).

Strengths and weaknesses are internal, and speak to your potential value. Opportunities and threats are external, and help you foresee what you’re facing from the outside. SWOT is an invaluable branding exercise that also helps prepare for current and future growth and stability.

9. Who is your target audience?

Determine where you want to work (kind of job position and industry). Learn what decision makers in that field are looking for when they’re assessing candidates. Create your personal brand messaging around what keywords and content will attract them. Find out where those decision makers hang out, position yourself / your company in front of them, and capture their attention.

10. Who is your competition in the marketplace and what differentiates you / company from them?

What do the people / companies competing for the same market have to offer? What is it about you / company that make you the best choice? What added value do you and or your company bring to the table that no one else does?

"If you listen to your fears, you will dies never knowing what a great person you might have been."
-Robert H. Schuller