** MOST of this taken right out of a private email exchange between a corporate client and myself. **
Let’s face it. BRANDing is a common business word that’s “sexier” than most. It’s also one of those buzz words that has generated a LOT of buzz… and even more MONEY for those coaches specializing in branding.Like MOST ingredients inherent to YOUR success, people typically make branding FAR MORE difficult and time consuming than it really is.
Quick warning: If complicated and sexy is what you’re going for, you might want to stop reading. =) Because building a BANKable brand (i.e. one you can really cash in on) has an entirely unsexy process behind it.
So, let’s drill it down. First, your brand isn’t something you discover or uncover. It REALLY isn’t something that you should have another person create for you. HERE – this three step process – is all a profitable branding process should include:
1) A look in the mirror. Who ARE you already to your clients, industry, and colleagues? What do they depend on you for? What do you do better than anyone else?
2) An aspiration. A personal brand, once you’ve taken stock of what you ALREADY bring to the table, should be something you create deliberately. You know what you ARE. Now… what do you WANT to be to your target market and ideal clients?
3) A promise. What can you PROMISE? When YOU are involved in a project, task, or initiative, what can your clients DEPEND on you to deliver?
Put these three together, and you have a really compelling brand statement that GUIDES YOU in your career and gives YOU a brand you can (really) take to the bank! So… share YOUR brand statement below! I can’t wait to read it!
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