Personal Branding

Personal Branding – Why Your Livelihood Depends On It

Published September 12, 2018 | By Stuart Parkin

So you don’t believe in personal branding? Or you’re too busy to focus on it? Or, you believe your work speaks for itself? Or, you believe branding is for people that have their own business? Or you believe the whole concept is a bit narcissistic?

The truth is, it’s always been more important to do a great job versus talking about doing one. The quality of your work, your contribution and the consistency and impact it has, has always been key. So an emphasis on doing great work makes sense.

What’s changed is the time that people with the dollars have to recognise your work and in so doing, you’ve become more vulnerable; You’re doing a great job really is no longer enough. Marketing your expertise/showcasing your value has become an essential part of others ‘recognising’ the problems you solve.

Seeking attention without having a story to tell is narcissistic. Making others aware of a genuine problem solving ability isn’t. And given the ever transational nature of the agency world, we are all effectively becoming free agents if not stand alone businesses, that need to promote the value we can deliver.

That said, I speak with many folks that don’t like promotion, let alone self promotion. What do you think?

Posted in Career Optimization, Personal Branding, Trusted Advisor

‘Unique’ Candidate Raincheck

Published May 17, 2017 | By Stuart Parkin

Some candidates believe when compared to others, like the glowing waves. what they have to offer is quite unique.
What can enhance the chances of this being true is something regularly practiced by the best candidates, who always seek feedback after interviews/They always seek to improve.
Really smart candidates learn from the new found knowledge and adapt.
The smartest candidates of all, (who always end up with serious consideration, if not the job) know that even when they apply the lessons of the past and do everything they can and what they offer is very differentiated, sometimes still, they won’t be hired!
They know that this is not because they did anything wrong but because every opportunity is unique, (just like them) and simply, in some cases there was an even better ‘unique’ fit for the role.

Posted in Career Planning, Personal Branding

Building Brands and Careers

Published September 30, 2015 | By Stuart Parkin

Attributes needed to build brands are much the same as those needed to power a career. And two important similarities are critical for both.

First and foremost you must provide ‘a real difference that is valued’. Whether a brand or employee, this matters. The most valued employees show excellence in addressing critical business challenges, specifically helping your agency attract and retain profitable client relationships. In our field of advertising, this ultimately translates into developing better ways for clients to communicate to their customers. Which neatly brings me to the second point.

This value not only has to be present, it has ‘sold’ so it is recognized as well or in Bill Bernbach’s words, ‘A unique selling proposition is not enough. Without a unique sales talent it may die.’ Successful brands and careerists alike excel at communicating and selling themselves, perhaps loudly, perhaps quietly, but always persuasively.

See some of these links for some broader thinking.

Stuart

Articles and commentary that might be of interest…

Posted in Career Optimization, Personal Branding, Soft Skills

Employees and Personal Branding Baloney

Published May 9, 2014 | By Stuart Parkin

If you’re an employee, what does personal branding really matter?

Posted in Career Optimization, Personal Branding, Trusted Advisor

Personal Brand

Published May 7, 2014 | By Stuart Parkin

There’s much talk about personal branding but does it really matter when it comes to you? It does, for two reasons:

Defensively – The best way to keep your job is to be known for doing something well that ideally correlates with making money. Ideally, you will have a unique expertise in a discipline, practice or process, or specific knowledge of an industry vertical or own key client relationships.

Offensively – You optimize your chances of success in your current agency or with prospective employers if what you deliver has a uniqueness or ‘stand out’ factor. So it should concern us when Peter Drucker says ‘Most people think they know what they are good at. They are usually wrong.’

There are two aspects to the personal branding ‘thing’ to focus on:

The reality – What you actually do; And, The ‘spin’ – What people perceive you can do, as a result of marketing.
For expert commentary, see the attached list of links.

Stuart

PS. Have a look at my past newsletters

Articles and commentary that might be of interest…