‘So what do you do then?'
It's an innocent enough question but for those of us who have chosen a mix and match career portfolio it's often quite a daunting one.
As someone who coaches, works in PR, writes books on adoption, teaches media training, runs team-building workshops, and specialises in the not-for-profit sector, I learnt to dread that moment during the coffee break when my new acquaintance uttered those few, inoffensive words.
Here was I, a supposed ‘communications specialist', wondering just how much detail I ought to go into before their eyes glazed over and they went for a refill. More often than not I'd end up underselling myself, muttering something about ‘Oh I do a lot of things really' and probably losing their interest within seconds.
These days I describe myself as a ‘communications consultant' - which gives me a fixed starting point - and a firm sense of identity. I can then follow up with a more detailed description of whichever area of my skills seems most applicable to my new acquaintances and their interests.
Having a clear identity - or brand - is important. Nobody wants to buy a product which doesn't know what it's there for. Imagine going into the supermarket and picking up a bottle which says: ‘Can be used for washing hair but also quite good for bathing the dog and cleaning the car, and you also might want to give it a try on that nasty stain on the sofa that's been bothering you for weeks.'
Something so chaotically branded isn't exactly going to walk off the shelves! For a start the shop assistants won't know which section to stack it in. And as the consumer we need to have faith the product can do the job we want it to do - when we're buying shampoo we want the brand that confidently guarantees results for our dry/greasy/frizzy/flyaway hair and we'd also look something which suits our colour (be it natural or dyed). And it's just the same when we ‘buy' into people who provide services.
So as people with multi-faceted careers or people who are in one job but know we should really be doing something else, we all need to develop a ‘brand identity'. Something which helps us pinpoint what it is about us which will make us desirable - and relevant - to our potential customers.
What makes up a ‘brand'?
You will find as many definitions of branding as you will find books about how to do it. My definition of branding is creating the ‘personality' of your product or service - which is all about the values you are going to embody. Getting the name, logo, promotional aspects right are important features but can only happen when the intrinsic values have been identified.
When you create a brand for yourself always aim for something which suits you and how you work - rather than how you think you ought to be. A thrusting, cutting-edge brand identity won't suit a mild mannered individual whose greatest ‘marketing' strengths are their reliability and attention to quality and detail.
A good brand feels natural - it seems an intrinsic part of the product or service, rather than something too gimmicky or eye catching.
How to picture yourself as a brand
Picturing yourself as a ‘brand' is a lot easier than it sounds. A colleague of mine built his one-man consultancy around the notion ‘If my consultancy was a hotel what sort of hotel would I want it to be?'. He wasn't aiming to be as grand and costly as The Ritz but he also knew he didn't want to be an impersonal, city centre inn with its multitude of high-turnover characterless bedrooms. Nor did he want to be a cheap and cheerful motorway stopover or a cheery, family-run B&B.
Instead he wanted to be a small country house hotel, where every room is tastefully and individually decorated, the dinner menu changes every night and staff think nothing of rustling up drinks and snacks whenever their guests feel peckish.
In other words he wanted an identity which reassured customers that his services would be thoughtfully tailor-made to their individual needs. This company would not be providing off-the-peg solutions or running large, impersonal training days. Not surprisingly this consultancy now attracts an eclectic range of customers from the arts, culture, spiritual and voluntary sector who value the exceptional quality on offer for reasonable prices.
If hotels aren't your thing then find another metaphor that works for you. What kind of car is your company? What sort of chocolate? Is it a high street clothing chain or a Bond Street boutique? Are you a real ale drinker or a company that sips claret? Have some fun with choosing your brand - the best ideas develop when people are truly enjoying themselves.
Names R Us?
Names are helpful but mostly because they distinguish one thing from another. There's a lot more to branding than just a name.
Find a name that fits your brand, don't fit your brand to the name. Something witty may sound fantastic now but it could become jaded in a matter of months. My favourite dog groomer has opted for naming his company after his own surname - Statham's Pet Groomers - which I find a refreshing alternative to the Paws for Thought type names which abound. This man has been in the business a long time and was formerly a vet's assistant. His company style is reliable, friendly and somewhat under-stated, and he's proud to claim it with his surname.
And if you have no intention of slapping some kind of title on yourself and what you do, then at least aim to visualise yourself as a ‘branded' entity. If your name is Nita Patel or John Smith, then what kind of brand is Nita Patel or John Smith? What values and working ethos will you embody? And how when somebody asks, ‘So what do you do?' will you be able to describe yourself?
Henrietta Bond is a communications consultant and coach, and the director of Resourceful Coaching Associates. With many years experience of PR in the voluntary sector, and an experienced media trainer and journalist, Henrietta is as adaptable to the coaching and communication needs of the individual as to those of larger companies. For further details visit www.resourcefulcoaching.com
