Branding

This entry is in response to the podcast on Brand You. As a retail management student with a fair amount of background in marketing, branding is a concept that I understand pretty well. Products are branded to keep them from being generic, to stand out against the competition, to distinguish them as something that is unique and unable to be easily substituted or replaced. A brand offers a consumer a unique benefit beyond what is offered by similar products. It is an image and an entire package that translates into the value of the product offering. What a perfect way to describe a person as a candidate for a job, a promotion, or even for a friendship or serious relationship. You "sell" yourself on a regular basis. When you meet a new person, what motivates them to want to establish a friendship with you, what do you have to offer them? Is it your sense of humor, your confidence, your good looks, your kindness and generosity?

My goal over the course of this semester is to find out more about the corporate culture of the companies where I would like to apply so that I can see how my brand is aligned with what they value or if I need to alter it. Currently I would brand myself as highly creative and innovative, adaptive, very outside-the-box and open to new ideas, unfamiliar situations, taking risks, and eager to learn. In my opinion, these attributes would be valuable to any organization but as I have said before, these attributes are not enough on their own. I need to portray them through my actions and my ability to communicate them to my potential employer with examples from my past. That goes back to the lecture about having a story and my last blog entry. My first blog entry was in essence a story demonstrating my past leadership accomplishments. But I need to adapt it to make it more meaningful to my employer and find out what is important to them and explain how I fit the bill with "The Story."