Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Saturday, February 6, 2010,
In :
Branding
1. Video, Video, Video
Thanks to greater bandwidth, cheaper storage, and a proliferation of
products and services that make shooting, storing, viewing, and sharing
video easy (Flip video, iPhone 3GS, YouTube, vimeo, blip.tv, vodpod,
etc.), video will be king in 2010. Video is ideal because it allows
careerists to deliver a complete communication and convey their
personality—a critical component of branding.
2. Hiring Process
Companies will be hiring brands rather than employees. The...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Tuesday, January 19, 2010,
In :
Branding
“Give me a place to stand,” said Archimedes, “and I will move the world.”
As
you probably know, a fulcrum is the pivot point for a lever. And we
know that Archimedes was planning to use a lever to move the world. But
a lever by itself is worthless. It needs the fulcrum to actually do the
leveraging. You are that fulcrum.
Part of a good brand is being
focused on a dream that you want to come true. It is the thing that
drives a personal brand. While branding is about creating im...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Friday, January 15, 2010,
In :
Branding
I remember a comment Neil Young had about Live Aid
and other similar events. He said "save yourself". I have always
thought about that and realized that after I find my true self and act
upon that fact - the world will change around me.
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Thursday, January 14, 2010,
In :
Branding
I have found that when we talk about ourselves we might say that
we have some particular expertise in something and only rarely do we
say "I am an expert". This is a personal branding mistake. For example,
I might say that I have expertise in Java Software Architecture. But it
would be better expressed as saying "I am a Java Software Architecture
Expert".
And another thing, the more you repeat this phrase - the more
people will believe it and refer to you as the "Expert". Saying tha...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Friday, January 8, 2010,
In :
Branding
Taglines aren't just for companies - they are for individuals. A
tagline is a very short expression that conveys meaning to your
audience. When developing a career we can use these short expressions
in conversation or on our business cards to quickly help others
understand who and what we are. A good tagline starts a conversation
and provides context for everything that follows. Without any further
preamble (Just do it), I am going to list some qualities of a good
tagline.
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Thursday, January 7, 2010,
In :
Branding
Personal Branding - especially for your career has to do with
setting and achieving goals. In essence - getting things done. We are
not used to setting our own goals - more often we are buffeted about by
forces around us. But branding ourselves in our career is about setting
some personal goals and actually accomplishing them. In David Allen's
book Getting Things Done he uses a term called "Outcome Thinking". He says "Thinking
in a concentrated manner to define desired outcomes i... Continue reading ...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Wednesday, January 6, 2010,
In :
Branding
One of the reason so much branding fails is that people arent aware enough
of their circumstances - personally and in the marketplace. While I
dont profess to be a Buddhist, I have benefited from some meditation
and slowing down of my crazed monkey brain - thereby starting to notice
a bit more nuance in my life. Personal branding is about personal
awareness. We could learn a lot from the Buddha.
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Wednesday, January 6, 2010,
In :
Branding
Its
important to present a representative image of yourself in all of your
social network profiles. People respond visually and make very quick
decisions about you. If your avatar is a cartoon its hard to take you
seriously. One caveat to that is - if you are not concerned about
your brand then the avatar could be anything. Sometimes you want to be
anonymous or be known as something other than what you really are -
thats playful and fun - but its not a personal brand.
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Tuesday, January 5, 2010,
In :
Branding
Like any branding - its about marketing and the ability to be
memorable. Its unfortunate that most of us are terrible at making
impressions. The good news is that there is a simple recipe which you
can use to improve. I simply cant recommend the book Made To Stick
by Chip and Dan Heath enough. You gotta read the whole book to get the
whole picture - or at least start reading their columns in Fast Company. These two brothers provide some simple guidelines that can be remembered by the acronym ... Continue reading ...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Monday, January 4, 2010,
In :
Branding
A few years ago personal branding was more of a curiosity for
individuals. Now we cant read a magazine without hearing about
personal branding. I think in some ways branding yourself was
considered vain. The "corporate man culture" had not died out. I
think those days are gone. Just as women rely on having a black dress
in the closet - professionals need to have some sort of personal
branding going on - or they will seem out of it. Well I have to admit
that many unemployed people I...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Saturday, January 2, 2010,
In :
Branding
It's a new brand world.
That cross-trainer you're wearing -- one look at the distinctive
swoosh on the side tells everyone who's got you branded. That coffee
travel mug you're carrying -- ah, you're a Starbucks woman! Your
T-shirt with the distinctive Champion "C" on the sleeve, the blue jeans
with the prominent Levi's rivets, the watch with the
hey-this-certifies-I-made-it icon on the face, your fountain pen with
the maker's symbol crafted into the end ...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Friday, January 1, 2010,
In :
Branding
Personal Branding is a way of looking at things. It is a lens
through which we can interpret and decide if actions and behaviors are
good or not. Most of the things about personal branding we already know
about – but we dont always know what to apply and when. A personal
branding lens groups and guides our thoughts and actions. It’s actually
very exciting because I can now prioritize what I do using this
“branding” lens.
I was thinking about this today when I set up my first Squidoo p...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Friday, January 1, 2010,
In :
Branding
Everybody has heard of the Invisible Man
by H.G. Wells. The Invisible Man in the story is a scientist who
theorizes that if a person’s refractive index is changed to exactly
that of air and his body does not absorb or reflect light, then he will
be invisible. He successfully carries out this procedure on himself,
but cannot become visible again, becoming mentally unstable as a result.
Without personal branding most of us are exactly like the Invisible
Man – but without going through the ...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Friday, January 1, 2010,
In :
Branding
Lately, Ive been attempting to come to grips with telling my
personal story more effectively. I know its important to tell a good
story in order to have people remember you positively. But I didnt
really understand the power of story telling until I read Seth Godin’s
book called “All Marketers Are Liars”. And before you misunderstand the
title I have to tell you the subtitle is “The Power of Telling
Authentic Stories in a Low-Trust World”.
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Friday, January 1, 2010,
In :
Branding
Many people around me seem to be interested in blogging. Its almost as
if they feel they are missing something if they don’t blog. Beyond
selecting which blogger to use to create the posts – most people I know
have difficulty figuring out what to write about sustainably. The
primary reason people dont know what to blog about is that they don’t
know what their personal brand is. If you have a clearly defined
personal brand (especially for your career) – then blogging is easy.
The reaso... Continue reading ...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Friday, January 1, 2010,
In :
Branding
I have been reflecting on how to be most effective on Twitter – and
to use Twitter to convey my brand. Since my primary trade is a software
architect – I immediately recognize what I think are best practices –
in fact are probably patterns for success on Twitter. So here they are:
First start with an interesting design. You can customize the
Twitter page using what Twitter gives you. Or you can upload a custom
background. I uploaded a simple image of the ocean – an image large
enough...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Friday, January 1, 2010,
In :
Branding
So what do you see when you google your name. Is it a listing for a
convicted felon or porn star? If you have an unusual name (like a well
differentiated keyword) you will rise to the top automatically. But if
you have an ordinary name you might not even show up. What you don’t
want to happen is to have a search result that doesn’t represent you.
Your name is your brand so use it consistently. Don't dilute it by
using different variations – pick one version of your name and stick
with i...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Friday, January 1, 2010,
In :
Blogging
You cant blog unless you already have a personal brand.
I joke about this – but I really believe that you cant blog sustainably
unless you find your voice, have an opinion, and have something
valuable to say. Having a brand is like being in the groove – and when
you are in a groove – things roll along.
Start with an attention getting title. If you dont
capture an audience in the first sentence – you have lost them. The
title is going to show up in a list of your blogs and that is all t...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Friday, September 25, 2009,
In :
Branding
The best leaders look for opportunities to give other people credit. We all like to receive recognition. Too often we dont give it out.
If you are a manager or team leader dont blab out all the ideas yourself. Often times your team members have the same ideas but arent as adept in expressing it. If you let others come up with ideas then then they will take credit and will also take ownership of the idea.
Dont forget to RT (Return Tweet) on Twitter if someone has a great idea that you noti...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Friday, July 17, 2009,
In :
Landing Page
A good landing page is something that is tailored to your audience. Any good brand knows their audience and will create a different landing page for each one its customer types. A personal brand is no different. When brands advertise on the web and present a link - that link should go to a customized landing page not to your home page. I am currently reflecting on how I can create better landing pages for my personal brand. I am going to start by listing everything I know about land... Continue reading ...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Sunday, July 12, 2009,
In :
Meme
We all know Richard Dawkins invented the concept of a meme in the Selfish Gene. A meme, is an idea that is transmitted from one mind to
another through speech, gestures, rituals, or other imitable phenomena. Ive heard someone say that meme is "Anything that can be copied from one mind to another". We know what it is when we experience it. The classic phrase "Got Milk" is instantly recognizable as a meme because its simple, conveys a purpose and is infectious. Meme's arent labels ... Continue reading ...
Posted by Jeffrey Blake on Saturday, July 4, 2009,
In :
Email
Email is one of the best ways we have now to connect with our friends and associates. It is ubiquitous. But how can we stand out?
Just as any good blog article it has to have a "catchy" title. So make your subject line make a difference. The subject has to be shorter than a twitter comment but pithy enough to be remembered.
There is no substitute for providing something of value. Let me know in the title what it is you are going to say
And my biggest secret for branding is to make sure ...
