INTHEBLACK December 2021 - Magazine - Page 62
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revenue opportunities, but isn’t lasting,” explains Ford.
“Building a brand is a long-term vehicle for success,
and it can take years to build.”
PERSONAL BRANDING IN AN ORGANISATION
A personal brand is, of course, similar to a corporate
brand, a concept with which most people are far
more familiar.
When Zac McCall, account director at branding
agency Percept, sits down with a corporate client, he
gets as much information about the company as he
possibly can. He begins by asking questions about the
company’s history, and then moves onto the service
offering and future ambitions.
“The difference with personal branding and
branding a business is that with the latter, you’re
developing a set of values for a group of people, rather
than a single person. The two are linked in that the
leader of the company would want to espouse similar
values in terms of their leadership and attitude as part
of their personal brand,” he explains.
Strategic communication expert Jane Anderson says
that personal branding is ultimately about showing
who you are as a person.
“It’s where we bring in control when things go
wrong, because your character shows up most when
things go wrong.”
62 ITB December 2021
Perhaps one of the most well-known recent
examples of how one’s personal brand can change
is American TV personality Ellen DeGeneres.
“She seemed to have made a brand out of being a
good person,” says Ford.
After hosting a wildly successful talk show for
nearly two decades, DeGeneres found herself in a
storm of controversy last year, with allegations of
staff harassment and a toxic work environment. Her
personal brand, and the show, suffered as the result.
Ford works with people at different stages of their
career and says that what is relevant to someone’s
personal brand often changes over time. Someone
who is starting out in their career will be eager to
become known – for all the right reasons – and will
seek visibility.
“Towards the end of a person’s career, climbing the
corporate ladder and earning a big salary becomes
less important,” he says. “The focus often switches to
leaving a legacy.”
IT MUST BE AUTHENTIC
Clearly articulated values are integral to developing
a strong brand at any stage of a person’s career, or
indeed for a company in its own phase of growth.
McCall recommends steering clear of generic
values, such as “teamwork” or “honesty”, because they