By Robyn Nakaambo
Often, people ask me this: “Is there a difference between Corporate Brand Strategy and Personal Brand Strategy?”
I believe that they embody similar attributes such as seeking to positively position a brand, instil trust, elevate the brand experience and enhance brand loyalty, which ultimately result in monetary gain. However, what sets the two worlds apart is the way goals are attained.
Implementing Brand Strategies in the workplace has shifted my perception regarding my personal brand.
A decade ago, I would not have made an annual effort to develop a strategy for my personal brand; however, with my experience in the corporate world, my perspective has evolved.
On an annual basis, I develop a strategy to reposition my personal brand as one of authenticity, authority, influence, consistency and professionalism to augment my niche as an influencer and master of ceremonies in a challenging market.
Let us start from the beginning.
What is a brand? Scott Cook states that “A brand is no longer what we tell the consumer, it is what consumers tell each other it is.”
This quote genuinely resonates with me, as I believe that a brand is how the audience or customer experiences it and ultimately how they relate it to everyone they encounter.
Forget the theatrics and aesthetics, what feelings does your brand evoke in your audience or customer? From the initial point of contact to the end of the experience.
The industry is moving from customer service to customer experience. Service refers to transactional assistance that solves specific, immediate customer problems and is reactive in nature.
Customer experience, on the other hand, considers the holistic emotional interaction between a customer and a brand, which is proactive.
Customer experience involves intentionally curating communication channels to ensure seamless interaction with customers or audience by maintaining brand and messaging consistency, implementing robust feedback mechanisms and customer relationship management, and offering customised services to elevate interactions from transactional to holistic, meaningful connections.
The second component of the topic is strategy. Sun Tzu’s The Art of War focuses on winning through strategy. The quote I resonate with from this book is “Those who are victorious plan effectively and change decisively.
They are like a great river that maintains its course but adjusts its flow.” This approach speaks to the key to success in strategy: the ability to be agile, adaptable, intentional, consistent and disciplined.
In a personal context, this speaks to the ability to conduct regular personal audits to examine how one is faring towards attaining set goals and to be agile enough to adjust goalposts to ensure goals are realistically achieved.
Take this as a personal journey, one in which the competition is the version you were yesterday, taking leaps to a greater version of yourself while starving your distractions.
It is never too late to start. The following are a few great books to inculcate a culture of
self-development in the world of brand strategy:
• Myles Munroe “In pursuit of purpose”
• Stephen R. Covey, “The 7 habits of highly effective people”
• Robert Greene, “The 48 laws of power”
• Phil Knight “Shoe Dog”
• Sun Tzu “The Art of War”
One of my mentors, a local seasoned strategist, once shared that the greatest misconception of Corporations is the belief that only they can construct a strategy best suited to their corporate brands, which results in them procuring services from external consultants for tasks well within their reach. These consultants strategically intercede to enlighten these corporates of their internal ability to achieve their goals. Let us take this advice when dealing with our personal brand strategies to ensure we capitalise on it, because you know your true story, background, desires, aspirations and dreams.
As you embark on this introspective journey, I implore you to be as honest as possible.
Lack of transparency and accountability will only cost you growth. The morale of the story: your Personal Brand is your business, so treat it with the same regard as you would a Corporate Brand.
