lesley Everett played
up the contrast
between her '1½"
stature and love of
giraffes to create
a successful and
memorable brand.
PAcKAGE
youR BRANd
Packaging makes your
first visible and lasting
impression. It’s difficult
to resist the temptation
of creating packaging
before identifying your
unique and authentic
brand messages. What
do you want to be known and remem-
bered for?
Many speakers have fabulous messages, but aren’t memorable because
their brand isn’t packaged and projected clearly and consistently. I know
a world-class sales coach whose colleagues describe him as an intelligent,
fun “coach of some sort.” They had no
idea what he speaks about or his area
of expertise. Finally, he created a brand
that was completely unique to him and
his values and life experiences. Moreover, it was clever, quirky and meaningful at the same time. Now his brand is
exploding!
My personal brand, Walking Tall, is
conveyed by a catchy giraffe logo. At 5
feet 1½ inches tall, my message is about
standing out from the crowd in a different way—not a vertical way. Did I mention that I also love giraffes?
We often concentrate
on obvious ways to
project and build our
brand via the media,
speaking more, one-
sheets, Web sites and
products. But there are
less obvious, but argu-
ably more important, elements for pro-
jecting your brand. How do other peo-
ple project your brand?
Start with your staff. Do your employees know your values and what you
want to project to the outside world
about yourself and your business? My
assistant’s job description is to make me
look good. Quite simply, she has to understand my values, standards and overall personal brand.
Meet face to face with key players.
Nobody represents me in any way unless he or she has met with me personally. My publicist, who has worked with
me for seven years, knows me better
than most people I know. This is crucial
if she is to represent me authentically to
the media.
How do you See yourself?
select the four words that best describe you from the list below.then,
ask family members, friends and colleagues to select words that describe
you. do your lists match?
responsive
inspirational
Focused
driven
observant
sharp
good listener
empathetic
Authoritative
creative
humorous
rigid
Flexible
Well organized
egotistic
Methodical
impulsive
Animated
Melodramatic
disciplined
spontaneous
innovative
Your brand is “on stage” via all the
people that represent your business—
virtually or face to face. Do you have
the right people talking about you?
Are the messages consistent?
Most of us work with other experts, so make sure you do your due
diligence in selecting associates with
well-respected brands and messages
that align with yours. I once worked
with a celebrity and was told after
the presentation that his brand was
damaging mine and I didn’t need
him. I never worked with him again.
Just because an associate is in the
public eye doesn’t mean his brand is
well respected.
Pay attention to your image and
appearance. It’s common sense to try
to look good on stage, but is it common practice? Remember, your image
is magnified when you’re in front of
an audience for 40 minutes or more.
Attendees will scrutinize your appearance from head to toe and notice every
little distraction, including a poorly
fitting suit, scuffed shoes, stained clothing, and inappropriate attire for the
audience, situation and environment.
Prepare carefully for international
presentations. Make a good impression by being culturally sensitive to
acceptable and unacceptable topics,
attire, business norms and expectations in other countries.
Think wider when it comes to
building and projecting your brand.
It’s personal and it matters. Develop
it, maximize it and live it.
Lesley Everett is an international speaker and expert
on personal branding.
She is author of Drop
Dead Brilliant: Dazzle in
the Workplace with Confidence and
Panache! (McGraw-Hill). Contact
Lesley at Lesley@lesleyeverett.com or
visit www.lesleyeverett.com
