Branding Yourself For Success

It is quite common to be unsure of what we mean by branding. Even though you may be aware of what a brand is and have brands you like and support, it can be tricky to figure out how exactly you should brand yourself. It’s hard to note think of branding through a purely consumer driven lens, but there are advantages to begin thinking about how you position yourself as a student and prospective employee, how do you want to be perceived, what value do you bring as a student and future employee, what do you want to be known for? This is essentially what it means to set yourself up for success by developing a strong and authentic brand.  A brand is a feature or set of features that distinguish one organization from another.  It also refers to the overall experience a customer undergoes when interacting with a business — as a shopper, customer, social media follower, or mere passerby. (Source: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/branding) 

Guidelines for Developing your Brand 

• Remember, you can’t be everything to everyone and still be yourself. Also building a brand takes work and time. You must be willing to put in the work to get the desired results. Just like your favorite sports brand or clothing line, a consistent and effective brand and message builds trust and credibility.   Starbucks is more than just coffee; Ray Ban is more than sunglasses. Apple is more than just a MacBook, they have put in years of work to ensure that they standout among other their competitors in the market. Developing your professional brand will also require effort and investment.   

• Your brand is arguably one of your most important assets. To start building your personal brand, focus on what makes you unique, and create a vision and mission that supports your professional goals. Branding is focused on establishing your professional identity, just as with a business or company it is what makes you memorable, encourages others to engage with you and it’s what helps you to stand out among others in your field.  

• Be consistent. Establishing consistent habits early on can help you create a strong and reputable brand. 

Branding Strategies

Step one: Engage self-assessment

Complete the values and skills assessments on the Career Network Website and reflect on your responses. Consider and write down all your skills, passions, interests, core values and experiences.  

Career Network Values Activity: https://ohio.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cOwuRlTTnbtJdDU 

Career Network Skills Activity: https://ohio.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bgsBmjpdmmnrOaq 

Other questions to consider: 

• What are you known for among your peers, what do you want to known for?  Are you the organizer, planner, connector, thinker, creative, peace maker/mediator.  

• What kind of professional do you aspire to be? 

• What core values do you hold dear and the things that are non-negotiable for you as a person, student, future professional? 

• What are your top strengths or top areas of growth? 

• What is the driving force behind these goals, what keeps you going? 

Step two: Seek feedback from others

• Engage with your peers, family members, advisors, mentors or advocates to seek feedback on your strengths and their insights on your experiences. Seek feedback on some of the reflection questions you pondered in step one 

• Ask your peers what are three things you do very well and three areas in which you could improve? 

• Identity individuals you admire, who may be in careers of interest or whose work or brand serves as an inspiration for you and seek their advice as you embark on your own brand design journey. 

Step three: Establish presence

Seek opportunities to share your vision and brand. It is important that you’re intentional about finding ways for others to get to know you and discover all that makes you stand out. There are numerous ways to help to establish and reiterate your brand identity.  

• If you’re very creative, you may design a Wix website or a blog to highlight your work, the inspiration for your future career goals, to tell your story, to share your passions or projects.  

• Attend networking events and be prepared to thoughtfully engage and meet new people. Be prepared to share your elevator pitch as well as your interests and plans for the future.  

• Podcasts are another way you can develop a brand by sharing insights or interviewing individuals in your area of interest. Social media affords many opportunities to engage with a diverse audience and develop a following, explore what works well for you, this could mean engaging routinely via Twitter, LinkedIn, the Bobcat Network and other platforms.  

• Remember the three Cs of branding. Clarity, consistency, constancy. Be confident and clear in who you are and are not. Don’t sugar-coat or downplay your qualifications, always be truthful. Strive to consistent in expressing your  brand across all communications mediums. Determine where you want to be based on your desired goals and then remain visible to your target audience. Source: https://us.aicpa.org/interestareas/youngcpanetwork/resources/career/fivetipstobrandingyourself 

Step four: Conduct an audit regularly

• Engage in ongoing self-assessment to ensure you are staying true to your professional and personal brand 

• Google yourself regularly to stay on top of your online presence and the information others can easily access about you. Take action based on what you discover during each audit. 

• Seek feedback from your peers, colleagues and trusted individuals in your network to enhance your brand identity and continuously improve.