Featuring Sarah Taylor, Careers and Branding expert.

So what is Branding and why is it so important for me to have a Brand?

A brand is a name, term, design, symbol, or other feature that distinguishes an individual, company or product from its rivals in the eyes of others. It applies a set of marketing and communication methods that help distinguish an individual, company or product from competitors, aiming to create a lasting impression in the minds of those that they come in contact with. A brand is in essence a promise of what people can expect from an individual, company or product. In accounting, a brand is defined as an intangible asset and is often the most valuable asset that a company or product has to differentiate them from the crowd - which is why creating your brand is so important.

So, in your case, the brand are the characteristics that make you as a person, different from others and what differentiate you from the crowd. 

There are two ways you can go about creating your brand, either look at getting an objective individual to work with you, thereby 'Branding You', or try to look inside yourself and create your brand another way, 'Branding Me'.

Branding You is a very straight forward process, but requires the help of an independent person and some simple tools. We asked Careers and Branding expert, Sarah Taylor, how she would approach it -

Sarah said, 'Its a great process. I can spend time “assessing” you by asking you some relevant questions, to request feedback from colleagues and clients / suppliers, to complete some tailormade exercises and personality tests.

Using this information I gather the insights and come up with a “Career Voyage Compass” which encompasses Brand You. There are many things which also come out of the process of Brand You, which are not expected and it clarifies

who you are

what you stand for

how you add value

what makes you different

This will then allow you to have a language to define, evidence and articulate what you do. Your personal branding (Brand You) helps you to convince suppliers / employers to make a decision about whether to hire you or not, based on your strengths. It helps you to have a clear idea on your value, understanding how, why and what you are worth and therefore what you can charge, which is a necessary skill in life outside of corporate. You also need to know your destination – Where are you heading? What are you trying to achieve? How do you get there? and who do you want to or need to talk to, to get there.  

Having a clear idea of Brand You allows you to present / sell yourself better, and in todays world of technology and LinkedIn, this is the type of information that you require to do yourself justice.  You cannot write your LinkedIn profile unless you know this stuff …Regarding, Branding Me – that is not straight-forward at all. I am a brand marketer and have worked in fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) recruitment, headhunting and interim management as well as in marketing and HR and I cannot brand me – I need the help of an objective individual to validate and evidence my brand.

I did a LinkedIn piece to camera a few months ago and it was extremely uncomfortable talking to camera about my strengths (even though I do have some ….) – in the same interview when asked about my weaknesses they seemed to keep coming…People seem to find it very difficult to self-assess themselves and for whatever reason will usually mark themselves down. So, in short to put the best pitch' for Brand You together, you need to do a lot of work, you need to gather insights and dig deep, but you also need someone who isn’t you, to help build your showcase'.

If you would like to know more, contact SarahTaylor@careervoyage.co.uk

Sarah is passionate about getting people (back) into the workplace, recognising their true potential and being valued correctly and fairly. Sarah connects local companies with local talent. Specialising in school leavers, returning parents and over 50s.