Brand + Business x Christine Moody*

Your personal brand is like a gemstone—each one is unique—but you have to find them first!

I am undertaking a small research project titled: “Women Leaders and their Personal Brand”. The 10-question survey included questions on what women leaders understood their personal branding was and how they align it to their career goals and aspirations. I deliberately kept the survey participant numbers low to enable me to ‘tweak’ and change some of the questions as I want to develop a much larger research project on the subject. The outcome is to understand how many women understand the notion of ‘personal brand’ but also to understand how important it is in their career development. The focus is on the visual aspect of the personal brand and how they identify their ‘hidden gems’ that make them unique and leverage this to stand out. While the survey close date is still a few days off, I thought it was worth sharing some findings to date as the data collected so far has been insightful.

Some of the emerging themes are:

1. Many participants see ‘personal brand’ as the way they present themselves to others or the quality of their work as judged by their peers and their bosses
2. They see the elements of a personal brand linked to their social media ie, LinkedIn headshot
3. Many see difficulty in creating a personal brand within the corporate context of their employer’s brand
4. Every respondent—without exception—saw their personal brand important part of their career advancement
5. Women leaders and role models the respondents admired are a very diverse group of women—including Ellen DeGeneres, Tara Moss, Julie Bishop, and Sheryl Sandberg
6. Personal branding was important at all stages of their career development.

One of the most interesting and insightful comments from the research I’d like to share with you was a response to the question, ‘Is there anything you would like to add to the conversation about personal brand?’:

“…if  you can find a way to demonstrate that it’s not about self-promotion, and that it’s important for women to undertake this activity, so they can ensure their paths are where they want to go, and for whom they want to support. We have to start thinking about ourselves as inspirational to others, only then will most of us be able to not think about this as self-promotion, but think of it as self-preservation.”

This is the where one of the problems lie in how women present their personal brands. How do women become visible without it being seen an act of self-promotion—and is there anything wrong with being proactive getting your story out there? How do women have a voice without being seen as too ‘loud’ and therefore not listened to? How do women make sure that the work they do is recognised by their peers, their bosses, and their clients? How do we remain true to ourselves but make sure we get heard?

Let me know your thoughts or experiences on this. I expect to have more findings in the next couple of weeks.

Other blogs on this topic can be found on Linkedin.

*Christine Moody is one of Australia’s leading brand strategists and the founder brand management consultancy, Brand Audits. With more than 30 years’ professional experience, Christine has helped a diverse client base of local and international brands, including Gold Coast City Council, Hilton Hotels, and Wrigleys USA, to develop, protect and achieve brand differentiation. Her particular interest is personal brand audits to assist executives realise their full potential.

For more information: chris.moody@brandaudits.com.au or +61 419 888 468.

Brand + Business x Christine Moody*

With the announcement this week by Australia’s Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, on the government’s $1 billion innovation and science package has not only started the public discussion about the details of the package—especially the amount of money and where it is going to be spent—it has also started the discussion on ‘Innovation’.

Listening to one of the radio station’s talk back session today, reminded me of the fact that many people think innovation is about the next app or the next online offering. In fact innovation is quite simple and many Australian companies are constantly reinventing themselves, their products and services, and their business models every day. Successful companies build it into their organisation’s strategy. Successful companies know that you have to innovate to survive.

Successful companies know that you have to innovate to survive.

Successful companies also employ Designers and Design Specialists as part of their teams. In fact, they believe that innovation is only possible with a diverse team that includes those from business, technology, and design backgrounds. It is the combination of all three where the ‘magic’ of innovation happens. But we only really hear about the business and technology side of things—not about the Design aspect. Designers are an underutilised resource in the innovation space and the smart organisations will be the ones who start employing them to help their organisations create an innovative strategy. There are hundreds of Designers out there—especially being graduation week this week.

In fact yesterday I graduated with nearly 300 other Designers (my degree was Master of Design—Research). These newly-minted Designers represented graduates from all design disciplines including visual, interactive, fashion, architecture , interiors et al. These are the disciplines that make up the Creative Industries at Queensland University of Technology (QUT) which is now one of the most popular faculties within the university. And most students are combining their Creative Industries Degree with a Business Degree. These students are smart, articulate, and ready to go.

Designers think differently and can take complex problems, immerse themselves in it, and solve them in a way that business and technology students cannot. Designers simply see things differently and use visual language to solve the problem—vs a multi-page written report. They are often the ones that don’t settle for solutions that are just ‘okay’ and instead they only settle when they know it is time to settle on the solution—it is their gut feeling and the tingling sensation they feel when they know it is right—ask a Designer and they will tell you!

Designers simply see things differently

Study and research the successful and innovative companies—like I did for the last six years—and you will see what makes up the teams within these organisations such as BMW, P&G, and Apple et al. This is where the innovation happens and this is the time to ensure you have Designers as part of your team. Look out for them, you will find them everywhere if you care to look!

*Christine Moody is one of Australia’s leading brand strategists and the founder brand management consultancy, Brand Audits. With more than 30 years’ professional experience, Christine has helped a diverse client base of local and international brands, including Gold Coast City Council, Hilton Hotels, and Wrigleys USA, to develop, protect and achieve brand differentiation. Her particular interest is personal brand audits to assist executives realise their full potential.

For more information: chris.moody@brandaudits.com.au or +61 419 888 468.

Brand + Business x Christine Moody*

Branding is no longer the domain of companies. Successful executives and entrepreneurs are realising the need to cultivate and manage their personal brands to maximise and increase their business opportunities. Whether you like it or not, each and every one of us has a personal brand. This ‘Brand You’ can be managed in the same way corporate brands are managed—with authenticity, with your unique story, and by highlighting your unique skills.

How you manage your personal brand is particularly relevant to to those of us who wish to pursue a non-executive director roles on boards. Obviously the pre-requisites for board’s consideration are assumed—meeting the selection criteria in the position description for the role—but how do you create a personal brand that ensures that you stand out for consideration for board roles?

According to the Australian Institute of Company Directors, “The board is responsible for ensuring that it has represented on it the skills, knowledge and experience needed to effectively steer the company forward. Directors will be appointed to the board because their specific skills, knowledge and experience will fill particular gaps on the board. It is important to acknowledge that not all directors will possess each necessary skill but the board as a whole must possess them.”

Why a differentiated personal brand important?

Apple is an example of a great brand. Apple—the corporate brand—encompasses every detail or ‘touch point’ that comes in contact with the customer eg, Apple has beautifully designed, customer-centric products presented in purpose-designed packaging and contained in an innovative carry bag. The Apple website is easy to navigate and both the layout and the language align with the Apple ethos of simplicity and creativity.

So, taking the Apple example, we can apply this to understanding the power of great personal brands. When thinking of great personal brands we think of Barack Obama and his ‘presence’ at G20 Brisbane last year—particularly his speech at The University of Queensland—and his brand style eg, the way he walks confidently down the red carpet at events. We can think of Australia’s Gail Kelly (formerly CEO, Westpac Group) and how she presents at corporate events including the tone of her voice, her corporate wardrobe, and the quality of her presentations.

The personal brands of these high-profile leaders are deliberately and purposefully designed to create a brand that is unique, authentic, and at the same time being in line and ‘on brand’ with the organisations they represent. Every single detail is considered and aligned with their desired personal brand.

Personal branding has become even more important with the growth in the use of social media.

Personal branding has become even more important with the growth in the use of social media. Personal branding has become even more important with the growth in the use of social media. Social media is personal by the very nature of the medium—Resume, LinkedIn, Facebook (personal and professional) et al. So these days, everyone has a personal brand and everyone needs to be in control of the management of their brand. It is important to ensure your personal brand message is consistent across each and every 『touch point’. Key to creating a differentiated and consistent personal brand is about delivering the entire brand package so you can carve out a niche and stand out from the crowd in an ever-increasing and competitive professional arena.

Where do you start with your personal brand audit?

If you are serious about board roles you have to be strategic. Firstly you need to audit your personal brand to find out your strengths and how these will fill the gaps on particular boards. Finding and highlighting your unique skills and experience will enable you to target potential board roles. Similar to a corporate brand, you need to find your own personal point of difference and promote this point of difference in everything you say and do. The outcome of your personal brand audit is to translate your brand’s point of difference across all your ‘touch points’—those points in which you present yourself e.g., your business card, linkedin profile, and other social media platforms.

The starting point of the personal brand audit is to ask yourself a series of questions to reveal your point of difference. The idea is to peel back the layers to reveal your unique qualities and then to highlight these to organisations whose boards need your skills the most.

The questions cover four main areas—including your competitive advantage; demonstrating your value; your specialist skills; and what boards would require your skills? The audit questions include:

> what are my unique and specialised skills that I can bring to boards?

> what organisations have boards that would require my particular specialist skills?

> who do I know that has similar skills to mine who are currently on boards that I can talk to?

Once you have completed the questionnaire, you need to apply the finding to your ‘touch points’. Your personal brand includes your qualifications, your work experience, and your career success but also includes the visual aspects of your brand—your personal brand identity. This includes the way you dress and your behaviour and also the 『touch points’ of your brand identity—eg, the layout and quality of your business card and resume. No detail is too small to consider—eg, the style and quality of your photograph on your LinkedIn account.

The systematic approach includes the creation of your personal ‘mood board’—how you see yourself and how this aligns with your current and future brand initiatives. This outcome of this process is to create an authentic visual brand identity that aligns with your targeted industry sector and your skills. This process is time consuming but it is worth the focus and the time.  You need to take control of your personal brand and differentiate yourself to stand out. Personal branding is a powerful tool in your professional toolkit.

This article originally appeared 24 November 2015 Directors’ Australia Blog.

*Christine Moody is one of Australia’s leading brand strategists and the founder brand management consultancy, Brand Audits. With more than 30 years’ professional experience, Christine has helped a diverse client base of local and international brands, including Gold Coast City Council, Hilton Hotels, and Wrigleys USA, to develop, protect and achieve brand differentiation. Her particular interest is personal brand audits to assist executives realise their full potential.

For more information: chris.moody@brandaudits.com.au or +61 419 888 468.

Brand + Business x Christine Moody*

My husband was horrified when I told him I was going to write about the Rugby! It’s not because everyone is probably over the commentary on the Rugby World Cup 2015 by now, but it was more to do with the fact that he knows that I am just not ‘into Rugby’. But I am ‘into Brand’ and I am ‘into’ observing and linking so much of what happens on the field (sport) to off the field (business). So my comments on the Rugby game on Saturday (Sunday morning Australian time) are purely from the ‘Brand’ perspective you understand and will leave the technical stuff to those far more qualified. Read ABC News here.

I observed so many examples of things that happened during the match that are great examples for your team and therefore your brand

Brand + Business x Christine Moody*

For those who read my blogs regularly know that I am always on the look out for examples of great brands. By great brands I mean those who align their purpose (the ‘why’) with their brand’s touch points.

A brand’s touch points include online (website and social media etc) and offline (bricks-and-mortar stores and packaging etc) and everything else in between ie, how your staff answer the phone and greet the customers. We recognise many global examples when we think of great brands—think Apple—but great examples are often just around the corner. Examples of great brands can be the local deli or bakery and lessons can be learned from these businesses just as much as visiting the Apple flagship store on Fifth Avenue New York.

Examples of great brands are often just around the corner!

*Christine Moody is one of Australia’s leading brand strategists and the founder brand management consultancy, Brand Audits. With more than 30 years’ professional experience, Christine has helped a diverse client base of local and international brands, including Gold Coast City Council, Hilton Hotels, and Wrigleys USA, to develop, protect and achieve brand differentiation. Her particular interest is personal brand audits to assist executives realise their full potential.

For more information: chris.moody@brandaudits.com.au or +61 419 888 468.

*Christine Moody is one of Australia’s leading brand strategists and the founder brand management consultancy, Brand Audits. With more than 30 years’ professional experience, Christine has helped a diverse client base of local and international brands, including Gold Coast City Council, Hilton Hotels, and Wrigleys USA, to develop, protect and achieve brand differentiation. Her particular interest is personal brand audits to assist executives realise their full potential.

For more information: chris.moody@brandaudits.com.au or +61 419 888 468.

Brands + Business x Christine Moody*

In The Huffington Post article, ’10 Ways to Make Customers Fall in Love with Your Business’, Brian Honigman presents some interesting data about customer service:

• Only 37 percent of brands received good or excellent customer experience index scores in 2012. Whereas, 64 percent of brands got a rating of “OK,” “poor” or “very poor” from their customers. Source: Forrester Research
• As many as 89 percent of consumers began doing business with a competitor following a poor customer experience. Source: RightNow
• Up to 60 percent of consumers will pay more for a better customer experience. Source: Desk
• Average annual value of each customer relationship lost to a competitor or abandoned -289. Source: Genesys Report

This data shows how important customer services is to your brand and your business. The worst case scenario is when your customer move onto your competition. Many organisations are confused about what customer service actually is. Customer service is so much more than being friendly to your customers. It is about understanding your customers and building a relationship with them—it is about your developing your Brand Promise and then delivering that every single time and from every aspect of your organisation—from website to sales to delivery of the product. It must be ‘on brand’ and there must be an understanding of customer service across the organisation—not just within brand’s marketing department.

…and don’t forget to say “Thank You”!

Honigman suggests there are 10 ways to ensure your customers stay in love with your brand:

1. Treat your Customers Right—Genuinely Interact
2. Don’t Come on Too Strong—Respect Your Customers
3. Always Listen—Hear What Your Customers Are Saying
4. Continue to Satisfy—Offer Ongoing Support and Specials
5. Treat a Customer Like a Valued Partner—Communication is Two Way
6. Build Trust—Alert Customer to Large Scale Changes, Good or Bad
7. Be Transparent—Honesty is Crucial When it comes to Mistakes
8. Follow Through on Your Word—Follow Up on Promises
9. Recognise Responsibility—The Customer is Always Right
10. Always say “Thank You”—Kindness and Gratitude will Take You Far.

From the list you can see that they ’10 Ways’ are really common sense but clearly the data shows that organisations are not following them. The number of times I have personally experienced a mismatch between the brand’s advertising and the actual delivery of the product or service. The more we create digital platforms the more we need to move closer to the customer and get out there and observe and listen to what they are doing and saying.

So you want to know why customers walk away from your brand? Just ask them. Oh yes…and don’t forget to say “Thank You”!

*Christine Moody is one of Australia’s leading brand strategists and the founder brand management consultancy, Brand Audits. With more than 30 years’ professional experience, Christine has helped a diverse client base of local and international brands, including Gold Coast City Council, Hilton Hotels, and Wrigleys USA, to develop, protect and achieve brand differentiation. Her particular interest is personal brand audits to assist executives realise their full potential.

For more information: chris.moody@brandaudits.com.au or +61 419 888 468.

Brand + Business x Christine Moody*

In the excitement of starting a business—and then surviving the first few years—trademarking the brand’s identity (the logo/symbol) is often forgotten or seen as an unnecessary expense. But the important process of trademarking—what protects your valuable asset—needs to be included in your start-up or expansion plans. Where I have seen it being a  problem is when the lack of protection is revealed during the due diligence process of the sale of the business. When the organisation goes to register it, it is may not be able to secure the trademark. This occurs for various reasons but the main one is that the front-end research stage was not included in the process of deciding on the trading name.

I have seen this far too often and it is part of our standard procedures to conduct initial research into the name and symbol, prior to engaging an IP lawyer. The initial checks are no guarantee for the acceptance of the trademark but what it does give us is a good indication of names more likely to be successful in the process. It is not enough just to register the domain name and the business name. Registering a trademark is different.

…you need brand specialists to help your organisation protect and manage one of your most valuable assets—your brand identity.

As well as securing the services of an accountant and lawyer, you also need brand specialists to help your organisation protect and manage one of your most valuable assets. And once it is registered, it needs regular audits to ensure that the brand remains ‘on brand’ and what has been trademarked is what is still in use by staff and suppliers. You would be amazed at the number of audits I have done where the logo has been recreated and bears only slight resemblance to the trademark. This logo is then used across the organisation without anyone seeing the difference. This leaves your trademark exposed as part of protecting your trademark is using it—the organisation needs to be using the logo that was trademarked.

The best way to ensure everyone in the organisation understands the importance of using the correct trademark, is to regularly conduct formal audits. Another way is to educate staff and suppliers on the brand identity and ensure they have access to the current guidelines and digital files. Regular presentations of exemplars of the brand identity usage along with inconsistencies in use, also helps to educate and encourage staff and suppliers to work with the correct—and valuable—trademarked brand identity.

Every organisation should be practising safe branding. Is yours?

*Christine Moody is one of Australia’s leading brand strategists and the founder brand management consultancy, Brand Audits. With more than 30 years’ professional experience, Christine has helped a diverse client base of local and international brands, including Gold Coast City Council, Hilton Hotels, and Wrigleys USA, to develop, protect and achieve brand differentiation. Her particular interest is personal brand audits to assist executives realise their full potential.

For more information: chris.moody@brandaudits.com.au or +61 419 888 468.

Brands + Business x Christine Moody*

This week I attended the launch of Queensland Ballet‘s 2016 Season. The launch was held at the stunning Brisbane City Hall and the event was beautifully choreographed and so aligned with the ‘QB brand’. It began with one of the Principal dancer’s—Clare Morehen—introducing the overview of the season’s program and then Artistic Director—the well-known “Mao’s Last Dancer—Li Cunxin presenting the details of the season and each ballet.

The speeches were interspersed with excerpts of the four ballets live on stage plus videos of the ballet in London and highlights of the coming year. This was a very impactful event as each of the presenters demonstrated to the audience their passion for their art. Their words, expression, and personal stories of their time with the organisation resonated with the audience. As I looked around the audience I could see the smiles on their faces and feel the love in the room! Imagine if your brand could have that sort of impact on your ‘audience’!

I got carried away with the magic of it all. And isn’t that what every brand wants?

It was obvious that a lot of effort and planning had gone into this event. Every detail was considered and delivered to represent ‘Queensland Ballet’ the brand as well as the upcoming program. This season’s theme—”the season shimmers with stardust, as we share ballets that enchant with the glamour of a golden age”—was made tangible and exciting in so many ways. From the entry line up of Queensland Ballet branded staff who greeted us as on arrival, to the gift of gold-dusted macaroons and the gold-foiled program booklet handed to us as we left the venue, every thing and every little detail made the event memorable. It would be interesting to see the spike in ticket sales the next day as I am sure that many people went online that night and booked their tickets—I know I did.

I got carried away with the magic of it all. And isn’t that what every brand wants?

*Christine Moody is one of Australia’s leading brand strategists and the founder brand management consultancy, Brand Audits. With more than 30 years’ professional experience, Christine has helped a diverse client base of local and international brands, including Gold Coast City Council, Hilton Hotels, and Wrigleys USA, to develop, protect and achieve brand differentiation. Her particular interest is personal brand audits to assist executives realise their full potential.

For more information: chris.moody@brandaudits.com.au or +61 419 888 468.