Written on the 13 June 2011 by Rachel Quilty, Personal Brand Strategist, Author and Speaker
Personal branding is about promoting what is true and unique about you and letting your target audience know about it. It is also about positioning your personal brand to differentiate yourself from your competitors.
A compelling personal brand is one which:
• has an easy identifiable personal identity
• it stimulates a positive emotional response
• it embodies specific desired values or qualities
Positioning your brand lies in identifying what’s unique about you and your brand. The goal in designing our personal brand is to discover the strongest and most appealing aspect of our character and then promoting that part of us until we become an embodiment of that trait.
We saw the successful re-positioning of Oprah Winfrey’s television program over a decade ago. Although rating well during an era of sensational, provocative and obscure topics, Oprah decided to launch a new brand of show. For the past decade, the Oprah Winfrey show has educated the world on personal responsibility and encouraged personal growth.
This has been one of the biggest brand re-positioning exercises witnessed on the small screen. Would Oprah’s fans follow her? Would they support her new platform? Was this the television they wanted to watch?
Oprah’s appeal remained despite the new show format and philosophy. In this master tactical move Oprah successfully positioned herself in a unique niche; she became the big fish in the little pond as she had no direct competitors. She had strategically differentiated herself from all the other Talk Shows and they were left floundering.
Leaving an overcrowded marketplace full of talk show hosts, she positioned her personal brand and new show as the exception to the Talk Show format. She took a risk. No one was doing or had proposed to do what Oprah felt was necessary for long term survival. It paid off. Oprah remains while talk show hosts have come and gone. Few left under their own steam, calling a halt on their own say so.
Oprah has been considered the Queen of the Small Screen as well as the Queen of Personal Responsibility. Having been nominated in the number one spot on the Forbes list of Most Influential Entertainers for the past decade – no one questions her authority and influence.
This re-positioning allowed Oprah to personify her personal brand and remain true to her values. She truly embodies the principle of taking personal responsibility for your choices. She has regularly apologized to audiences, taken personal responsibility for book selections and incidents within her organizations, as well as admitted some very personal information in an effort to maintain her integrity with her audience.
The question is: Are you differentiating your personal brand to establish yourself as the authority in your marketplace? Are positioning your personal brand as the ‘only choice’ brand?
Brand Yourself! And Jump the Q! Your personal brand should reflect your abilities and potential.
Author: Rachel Quilty, Personal Brand Strategist, known as ‘the Authority’ on personal branding and author of must- have book ‘Brand Yourself’ Read more: www.brandyourselfbook.com. Rachel encourages Jump the Q clients to think strategically when developing a personal brand to get that job offer, gain that promotion or win that client.
Jump the Q assists you to strategically and systematically leverage your professional profile and build your personal brand to become the authority in your industry. Get your free personal branding tactics and tips at http://www.brandyourselfblueprint.com
We assist you to develop your Personal Brand Strategy by:
- Discovering your purpose.
- Designing your best personal brand.
- Devising a personal marketing plan.
- Developing your Signature Brand.
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