IBRANDsm Tune-Up
by Gary C. Sain
Chief Marketing Officer & Partner
Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown & Russell
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IBRAND is based on three important core pillars: credentials,
standards, and style. An IBRAND tune-up is taking the time to
evaluate your individual progress toward your overall goals and
making the proper adjustments within these three core building blocks.
Credentials consists of education, experience, and insight.
Credentials make you believable. It is the main reason you're in
your current position.
Constantly updating your credentials can enhance your position
in the minds of your customers and peers. That promotes believability
and credibility. It demonstrates you are committed to self-improvement.
More importantly, it reinforces your desire to be the best at what
you do and what you can do.
Continuing education is one of the most important endeavors you
can pursue for yourself. Be a knowledge worker. Expanding educational
interests can also open up additional opportunities.
It's all about experiences. As travel marketers, we are only believable
if we have been there and done that. How do you recommend a cruise
if you have never cruised? How do you sell Hawaii if you've never
been there?
One of the most important activities we take for granted (or don't
aggressively challenge ourselves) is personal goal setting. On a
piece of paper, write down your goals for your life. Don't just
include business goals -- write down community and family goals
as well. This is a critical step within IBRAND. If you don't know
where you are going, how will you know when you get there?
Standards are how you do what you do. They are your personal
benchmarks or individual commitments you make to yourself. They
are your code of individual performance. The higher your mark, the
more distinctive your personal brand will become.
Think about the customers you serve. They have choices. You must
set high customer standards and develop ways to make your customers
more profitable. Do what you said you were going to do, when you
said you were going to do it, and how you said you were going to
do it. You can increase sales by 30 percent by providing excellent
customer service to your existing clients.
Maintain a written document listing your standards of performance.
For example, your follow-up standards might include returning every
phone call within one or two hours, or replying to emails within
three hours. As with your personal brand, it's all about you. Standards
need to be your personal standards and should be complementary to
your company's standards for performance.
Style is doing it your way. Style is your personal trademark
-- a trademark unduplicated by any other human being. Style may
be the most memorable core pillar of IBRAND. It can also be the
quickest way to end a promising client relationship, business deal,
or promotion. Style is how you relate to others.
What are the elements of style? I feel the most important in business
are presentation, etiquette, and attitude. Presentation is how you
dress, as well as your grooming habits and your overall delivery.
Etiquette is how you treat people -- how you value what's important
to them and how you place others before yourself. Attitude is your
mindset, your passion, and your enthusiasm for what you do.
Your credentials, standards, and style help convey your personal
brand story. Recommendations by friends, family, and associates
are the most credible forms of information sources used in making
purchasing decisions (especially travel). Your personal brand story
will be told regardless if you want it told or not. I would suggest
you manage it diligently so that the right story is being told.
I wish you continued success in 2006. One last quote that I have
always liked is "If you are not the lead dog, the view always
looks the same." As basic as it sounds, it has incredible merit.
In order to stand out from the crowd, you need to execute your personal
brand plan to create a distinction for yourself. It's up to you.
The view is much better if it is your own. Be an IBRAND!
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