Question

Topic: Branding

Definition: Personal Career Branding

Posted by SteveByrneMarketing on 12/9/2008 at 3:48 PM ET 3000 Points
I'm working on the concept of "personal branding" but with a twist. I started by taking a collection of knowledge from "product branding" and then re-purposing this information by changing "product" to "personal" (as in classic P&G or R&T). The twist is to focus on the current job market, and building a strategy to gain employment from in a specific job segment, in a specific geographical area, where there would be a limited and knowable number of potential competitor candidates. For example, a SVP Marketing for a Biomed company in North San Diego. To this end, I could use some help and feedback on the following definition:

Definition

Personal Career Branding is a means of differentiating yourself from the most likely competitor candidates for specific career opportunities. The three components of your personal career brand are:

Positioning - Who are the top contenders for a specific position and what position do you own relative to them.

Story and Personality - What is your story and personality and how does this define you as a "right selection" for an opportunity.

Proposition - What do you offer, over and above what your contenders generically offer, for a specific job position.

Thanks in advance for your comments.
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by mgoodman on 12/9/2008 at 4:56 PM Accepted
    Hi, Steve ...

    There are a few items on the list of "requirements" for an effective positioning statement that you might want to slip into your definition of Personal Career Branding:

    * Focused, single-minded
    * Benefit-oriented
    * Truthful/accurate
    * Believable
    * Unique
    * Competitive
    * Relevant and important to the target audience
    * Capture the most important source of competitive advantage

    Of course these are for Positioning Statements, not brand identities, but the same concepts apply.

    Another thought: A brand -- even a personal career brand -- lives in the minds of the target audience. May want to start with an in-depth understanding of the target audience's needs.

    Finally: Consider adding the concept of brand "touchpoints" so that the personal career brand includes all the ways someone might come in contact with the brand ... on the phone, via internet searches, through former associates, etc.

    Hope this helps. Good luck.

  • Posted by mgoodman on 12/9/2008 at 5:09 PM Accepted
    Check out The Potato Chip Difference. The subtitle is "How to apply leading edge marketing strategies to landing the job you want."

    The book has frequent reference to branding, brand images and positioning in the context of a job search.

    Also, I have several articles on the subject (of marketing/branding as part of a job search) that were developed for promotion of the title a few years back. Contact me offline if interested.
  • Posted by simon.gloster on 12/9/2008 at 5:59 PM Member
    Hi

    Is there also an Expertise that may qualify, or a solution to a problem. Benefits are another positioning strategy.
    Evidence of success. Ego is important, and reassurance. A response in the end would be good.

    S

  • Posted by SteveByrneMarketing on 12/10/2008 at 1:11 AM Author
    Thanks for the input Michael, all good points. My goal is to modify this definition and still maintain its basic structure, i.e. fall within the three components, with any additional concepts integrated within one or more of the three. For example, the benefit of specific expertise may be integrated with "story and personal" and with "proposition".

    Also, since the concept here is to tightly focus on a specific potential job "a SVP Marketing for a Biomed company in North San Diego", the target executives within leading target companies may total only several dozen people - highly targeted.
  • Posted by SteveByrneMarketing on 12/10/2008 at 1:49 AM Author
    Paul, you are correct that some job positions will pull from a global pool of talented executives (particularly key executives/top companies, maybe less so for a key executives/medium sized companies). It is also true that many local candidates are unwilling to relocate, and local candidates are in a better position to network for information about local companies, key executives and local competitor candidates. If a job seeker selects several dozen companies and two or three key executives per company, he or she will have a pool that they can own in the sense of thoroughly knowing the target and staying current (and patient) until that right job opportunity is available. It is not to say that the candidate is limited to a local company, it's just that it would be very difficult to proactively and intimately know hundreds of companies on a global scale.

    I'm having trouble with the word "territorial" as well. It is intended to mean "a claim of positioning territory (top rung on a ladder)". And it will be confused with geography as in job location.

    Thanks for your input, good food for thought.
  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 12/10/2008 at 9:10 AM Accepted
    Who will identify the top contenders - you or the client? The territorial positioning sounds more like a SWOT analysis (or simple comparison matrix) of client vs. everyone else.

    The other piece that seems missing is the analysis of the job position relative to your client. You'll want to figure out what exactly the criteria the hiring company is looking for (not just the job description, interviewing other senior staff in the company, etc.). You obviously need to position them (their brand) relative to what the specific need is.
  • Posted by SteveByrneMarketing on 12/10/2008 at 1:32 PM Author
    Jay, the client will identify the top contenders and yes it could be likened to a SWOT analysis, it's research the client is conducting in his own industry and geographic area. This research will also include "what the hiring company is looking for". This activity will be under step one - to be renamed.

    Thanks for the comments, they really help.
  • Posted by SteveByrneMarketing on 12/12/2008 at 2:13 PM Author
    Does anybody have an alternative definition for - "personal career branding"?

    Personal career branding is ...

  • Posted by SteveByrneMarketing on 12/13/2008 at 4:31 PM Author
    we continue to research this concept, thanks for all the feedback.
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