Renée T. Walker, APR June 7, 2011

Cadillac or Pinto?Brand image is vital: Steer yours in the right

direction

Agenda

• Cadillac or Pinto?• Brand ABCs• Personal Branding• Building Brand You• Managing Your Brand• Rules of Engagement• Resources• Questions & Answers

Cadillac or Pinto?

• Established 1902

• For over a century, Cadillac has stood for iconic design, artful engineering and a love of innovation.

Staying Power

• It has been the automotive expression of the American dream, built for people who believe it doesn’t matter where you came from, just how far you want to go and how fast you want to get there.

Unrealized Brand Potential• Established 1970

• Introduced to counter other imports such as VW

• In less than a year, the Pinto sold over 100,000 units.

• Gas tank controversy ultimately caused the demise of the brand forever hurting it’s reputation as one of the safest cars in its class.

Brand ABCs

Brands

• A brand is not a logo

• A brand is a collection of perceptions in the mind of a consumer

• Brands are born of experience and reflect reputation

• Brands are built from the inside out

• Brands are only as strong as their weakest touch point

• Brands are differentiators that lead to competitive advantage

Brands = Big Business

= $70,452 billion

Source: Interbrand 2010 Best Global Brands

= $21,860 billion

= $43,557 billion

= $28,731 billion = $21,143 billion

Brand Power

Personal Branding

Now let’s talk about personal brands

Brand and Reputation

• Personal Brand: What you say about yourself• You are the message

• Reputation: What others say about you• Perception is reality

What’s Your Brand?

• Every person has a brand

• Personal brands enable us to differentiate ourselves by consistently articulating and leveraging our unique value proposition

Building Brand You

1. What are your personal and professional goals?

2. What are your deal breakers?

3. What are you passionate about?

4. What inspires and motivates you?

5. What makes you unique and remarkable?

5 Questions

•Define your core values and brand attributes

•Establish credibility and believability by remaining committed to your core values

•Clearly and constantly communicate your value promise

•Visible and connected through affiliations, partnerships and charitable activities

Building a Strong BrandV

alu

e P

rop

osit

ion

Deliver on your brand promise

Strong brands are built on a solid foundation and are developed over time

Infuse value promise within all touch points

Provide dependable and consistent service

Building Brand You• BMW – The ultimate driving machine

• Performance, power and style

• Highly accomplished innovative senior leader and communications professional delivering results for more than two decades.

Managing Your Brand

Jump Start, Enhance or Rehab

Press releases

Panels

Events

SEO

BuzzWeb 2.0

Vlog

Social Networks

Business cards

Publications

ResearchArticles

Avatar

Twitter

LinkedIn

Online Reputation

Flickr

E-resumePublic speaking

Forums

YouTube

Website

RSSBlogs

Tagging

PodcastingMobile

Business Card

Facebook

The evolution of communications requires a new approach

Resume

Brand Management & Touch Points

Attire

Work Product

Volunteer/Service

Leadership

Presence

5 StepsEffective personal brands take time and effort.

1.Inventory Brand Assets– Get real about your current brand identity

2.Develop a (Brand) Plan– Define your desired brand identity

3.Align Brand Touch Points– Launch your brand plan

4.Manage, Leverage and Protect – Be consistently true to your brand

5.Measure and Realign– Update the presentation of your brand

Personal Brand Footprint

Rules of Engagement

What it takes

Rules of Engagement

The one-size-fits-all approach will not work.

•Be Authentic•Be Diligent•Be Consistent•Be Relevant•Be Purposeful

Execute your plan

Manage your brand

Avoid sitting on the bench

Learn the lingo

Stay active

Create a plan

• Seek new opportunities and experiences

• Build career portfolio• Develop competencies in

multiple communication disciplines

• Become a well-rounded professional

• Be active and visible• Expand professional and social

networks• Sharpen your skills and enhance

body of work

• Engage the executives through in-depth and substantive dialogue

• Align ideas with business objectives

• Reinvent yourself often• Develop your core

competencies through stretch goals and special projects

• Secure a mentor • Develop a support group• Adapt your course as necessary

• Carefully manage and continuously evolve your personal brand

• Differentiate yourself• Demonstrate your value

Rules of Engagement

Resources

Resources

What Color is your Parachute? Richard N. Bolles

Knowing your Value Mika Brzezinski

Resources

You are the MessageRoger Ailes

The Power of Focus Jack Canfield

Questions & Answers

“Don’t let the fear of falling keep you from

knowing the joy of flight.”

Lane WallaceEditor, Flying Magazine

Final Thought

Thank You!

Renée T. Walker, APRAssociate Vice President, University Communications

Central Michigan UniversityMount Pleasant, MI 48859renee.walker@cmich.edu

Presentation available at http://linkedin.com/in/reneetwalker