The Influence of Your Personal Brand

In our last post, The Trust Factor, the question, “Who trusts you?” was at the center of the message. The article explored how the answer to this question is a good measure of how well your net “works” and touched on the fact that ultimately people trust people, not companies. Truth is, you’re never selling a produce or service without also selling yourself. So, who are you? What’s your personal brand and reputation? What do you stand for?

You may never have stopped to think about the brand called “you.” But it’s worth taking the time and energy to uncover. It’s not always easy to see clearly what differentiates you from the next guy or gal. But making this distinction will enable you to work to establish your authenticity and ultimately enhance your value to and influence among your personal and professional networks. After all, these relationships are essential to success — especially in today’s economy.

Your personal brand has four elements; personality, appearance, competencies and differentiation. Your total perceived value is the combination of how each of these characteristics works together. There are two aspects of your brand you need to explore. First, the core messages most often communicated verbally. Second, the behaviors that back up what you say.

Part 1- Defining You

Whether branding a company or a person, differentiation is the cornerstone of effective positioning. In the case of a personal brand, consider what positive effect you have on people and how others feel and think about you. A great place to start on your personal brand exposition is to ask yourself and those who know you for answers to these questions. Now, if you’re thinking this is a little esoteric, I give you this: others can imitate what you do, but they cannot imitate who you are or how you behave. These questions may seem “fluffy” but the answers will be true differentiators that have to be uncovered in order to truly leverage the value of your uniqueness.

The context of your brand is determined by three essential elements.

- First, know yourself. If you’re nature is to be creative and whimsical, you won’t succeed by communicating the attributes of being predictable and focused. Ask yourself, “What attributes and behavior make me authentic to myself?” You have to be true to you.

- Second, know your competition. You can’t stand out unless you know who you’re up against. What are their brands attributes?

- And third, know your target. It’s not enough to have a personal brand; success is dependent also on sharing your brand with the right people. Who appreciates and can benefit from what you have to offer? Identify specific characteristics of your target and develop your brand messages accordingly.

Armed with these answers you can make a list of behaviors and characteristics that make up the brand called you. Easy. Right? Or perhaps you’re still stuck on knowing yourself. It may be easier to know your competition and target. Human nature makes it hardest to look at ourselves. So, if you’re stuck, try asking these questions:

- What’s your unique talent or natural ability?

- What’s your passion and what are your values?

- What experiences have shaped you?

- What are your philosophies and beliefs?

- What’s your personality and style?

- If someone were referring you to a colleague, what words or phrases would they use to describe you and your skill sets?

Part 2 - Being You

Presumably, you know the messages behind the brand called you now. Part one is complete. Part two is establishing the behavior to back it up. It’s not enough to say who you are, you have to be who you are. There’s an important distinction. The words you communicate are important but ultimately, actions speak louder than words. There are four types of behavior: symbolic, exceptional, operational and interpersonal. Think about each and how they impact your brand.

- Operational behavior is about what you do as a matter of policy for customers, colleagues or friends. It’s the standard by which you operate. An example of operational behavior is to always be on time or to return phone calls promptly. This is how you operate, always and without fail.

- Symbolic behavior is about walking your talk; living and working in alignment with your core values. If you claim to be a superb event organizer, your behavior proves it when your events go off without a hitch.

- Exceptional behavior is about going the extra mile. This is an attitude that allows you to exceed expectations easily due to your passion or commitment in special areas of interest. E.g. being customer-centric may be the only way you know how to operate, yet the rest of the world has to work at keeping their customers first.

- Interpersonal behavior often boils down to what we commonly call “chemistry.” That is clicking with your market. Are interactions natural or do they feel forced? Interpersonal behaviors also encompass common courtesies. Shaking hands, looking people in the eye, listening and so on. These basics are too often forgotten in today’s world when stress is present or time is short.

Developing your personal brand is essentially a strategic means for putting your proverbial best foot forward. When everything else is equal, your market is deciding to trust you or not based on how you present yourself. More influential than product features and attributes are the perceived benefits of a purchase or decision. The same is true when it comes to people. Benefits are almost always personal. They answer the question, “What does this product or person do for me?” That’s different than just “What does this product or person do?”

How much impact do the messages you deliver have? Whether verbal or written, marketing or interpersonal — the messages you communicate will have maximum impact if you deliver information that matters to your audience and differentiates you or what you’re selling — be it product, service or idea.

In our last article we talked about networking and how “real” networks are only as effective as the communication between the different points of contact. Picture a spider web. It’s only a web if it’s connected. Otherwise, it’s just a bunch of dangling strings. So how do you create strong links via effective communication? How do you develop messages that make a real connection?

At Communications Plus, when we begin working on messaging for our clients we first ask them what they think matters to their audience in regard to the service or promotion we’re working on. This information becomes the first piece of a puzzle we’re putting together. Next, and more importantly, we find out what actually matters to the audience by asking them directly.

Armed with these two insights we compare and look for where answers overlap. This is how we identify the cornerstones of our messaging strategy. Then, we can look at what insights we uncovered that are truly differentiating factors. What can we say about this project, service or idea that no one else can say? Outside of features that others might also claim, what benefits does it deliver?

The answers to these questions become pillars in the final piece, which is context. Perhaps the most essential step in effective messaging is developing a story around the key points. Ever wonder why case studies and illustrative examples are so plentiful in communication? They have amazing power. Context gives premises and promises an extra dimension. They offer proof. Moreover, as humans we easily pass along stories, thereby context gives a message legs.

In developing context we also have to look at the audience and their point of view to be sure the stories we tell make sense to them and incorporate their preferences. The basic premise of the process is simple: if the audience is a class of preschoolers the message will be positioned differently than if the audience is a group of professionals. Perhaps you’re positioning to appeal to engineers or generation Y. Or perhaps, you’re positioning to a group of gen Y engineers. The nuances get tricky when the audience characteristics are harder to define, but the philosophy remains the same.

Determine what matters to the market. Differentiate. Tell a story that appeals to the audience.

So, if you’re attempting to communicate effectively and build your network at a business event, how does this really apply? It’s a lot to think about when you’re just trying to make conversation. Right?

First, if you’re promoting yourself and/or your business it’s worth taking time to think about your messages in detail with some strategic focus. You may have a handful of different stories you tell depending on your audience, but the essence of your effective message will always be the same. So, figure out what it is.

Second, telling your story and communicating your messages is only half the story. Remember, it’s not about you. Listen. Ask questions. This is the informal version of the discovery phase. Uncover what matters. Then show you understand by communicating those messages back.

Last but not least, a final word of caution. “Canned” content is worse than bad content. It’s inauthentic and impersonal. A “spiel” doesn’t make strong connections, it breaks them. It sends off red flags and flairs. Don’t rehearse and recite. Just know the main points you need to share in order to deliver an effective message. Beyond an effective message, a real connection must also have trust present and accounted for. See what a tangled web we weave? Next time: how trust plays into the network.

If the value of a strong professional network was ever in question, its benefits are easily identified in this day and age when cut backs and layoffs are so common. What’s the first thing people do if they find themselves without work? Put their network to work for them. Get the word out on the street.

A network of colleagues and friends that knows you and what you do can actually be a safety “net” when the going gets tough. It doesn’t matter if the scenario is as dramatic as looking for a job or just pooling resources to answer a question that has come across your desk. Still, despite its importance most of us aren’t actively building our network or thinking through the best way to do so.

Too often “networking” events involve the passing of business cards and no real communication. Real networking involves getting to know people. Listening to what they do and telling them what you do. The truest and most valuable networking goes beyond basic communication to true conversation where there is opportunity to develop genuine connections and interest. This is where in-depth understanding of one another can occur and common ground can be found. It’s on this level that the net is the strongest and most valuable. This is not the kind of thing that happens at a luncheon table or on Facebook. It’s a process. It takes place in many shapes and forms over a period of time.  

So, how do you build a network that can really work for you? First, remember that a network is never complete. Networks evolve and have many different levels of bonds. It’s simply good business (and personal for that matter) practice to mindfully and continually build your network. As you set out to do so, don’t forget that the lines in a network are two way streets. Real communication is not one-sided. Balance the seesaw on the playground. Be an active part of others networks if you want them to be part of yours. Moreover, know how to communicate who you are and what you do. It can feel awkward to “toot your own horn” but you have to toot first if your network is going to take over the job down the line. The better job you do of sharing yourself, your skills and special traits, the better your network can work for you.

I’ll argue some of business’ biggest issues boil down to ineffective communication. Networking is a great case in point. Effective networking is essentially effective communication. When you do it right it works! Effective operations management requires effective communication. Human resources issues? Effective communication, once again. So if you’re asking yourself how well your net works, start by exploring how effective your communication style is and how much impact the messages you share have. A network is only as powerful as the communications skills behind it. Are you on target with your messages?