“Your brand is what people say about you when you are not in the room.” – Jeff Bezos
My first year in SALES was rough.
Watching me try to secure an appointment was like watching Shaq at the foul line.
They paired me with the best sales person in our office.
He took me to lunch.
After listening to me complain how hard it was, he offered some advice:
“Be patient. You need to BUILD YOUR BRAND.”
I wasn’t even sure I knew what a BRAND was.
BRANDING was not taught in tax accounting class.
We all need to BUILD our own BRAND.
What’s a BRAND?
Our BRAND is:
- The REPUTATION that arrives before we do.
- What people EXPECT when they decide to work with us.
- What our customers SAY about us when we’re not in the room.
Tom Peters said, “All of us need to understand the importance of branding. Our most important job is to be head marketer for the BRAND called “You”.
If we don’t BUILD IT, we’ll become just another face in the crowd.
If we work for a BIG company, we’ll fade away into another replaceable employee.
If we run our own business, we’ll be at the mercy of PRICE.
Our BRAND gives others PROOF:
- It’s the PROJECTS we’ve done.
- The OPPORTUNITIES we took on.
- It’s the way we TREAT other people.
HOW TO BUILD YOUR BRAND:
LEAD WITH VALUE
Our first move should be to HELP the people we are looking to serve.
Find ways to help people accomplish their goals.
Nothing establishes TRUST faster.
BE FRIENDLY
People may not remember what you accomplished.
They will definitely remember how you made them feel.
KEEP IN TOUCH
Remembered people get opportunities.
Send the hand written note. Remember their birthday. Know their kid’s names.
Do the hard work it takes to make CONNECTING easy.
BE AUTHENTIC
Have the COURAGE to be yourself.
Everyone else is already taken.
BUILD YOUR ON-LINE PRESENCE
Your BRAND is not your product or your company.
It’s YOU!
Pick a social media platform.
Establish your online presence.
A good brand acts like a MAGNET.
People will proactively seek you out.
The best time to start BUILDING YOUR BRAND was about 5 years ago.
The second best time is TODAY.
If we don’t BRAND ourselves, someone will do it for us.
Your move…
#BuildIt
-Joe Ciccarone
The Vibe 