How to make a name for yourself: Liz King on the value of branding
Posted by Jenise Fryatt on Mon, May 03, 2010 @ 01:06 PM
If you follow events news on Twitter, you've probably come across Liz King, owner of Liz King Events. An avid tweetor, posting a wealth of information on events, social media and branding, Liz has been in the events business since 2003 and prides herself on being extremely detail oriented and an expert at logistics.
Along with Twitter, Liz uses Facebook, LinkedIn and other social networks to promote events and collaborate with other event professionals. She maintains her personal social network and blogs regularly about social media, personal branding and events.
I recently asked her to answer a few questions on branding. For more on this subject, check out her blog series, 30 Days of Branding, filled with useful information.
Jenise: What is branding and why is it so important for you personally?
Liz: Branding is a really broad term which really is a summary of who you are, what you do, and how those two fit together. It's about why you are the only one who can do things the way you do and finding a means of communicating that to potential clients and customers.Your brand is what people think of when they hear your name and what makes them come to you.
As for me, I fell into branding because I wanted to brand myself. I read thousands of articles and tried many things and I saw first hand what worked for me. Then, I noticed that there were people all around who were trying to do the same thing and I thought that by sharing the lessons I learned, maybe it would save people some trial and error.
Jenise: You are such a great source of information on this subject. How did you learn so much?
Liz: Reading, trying and evaluating. This is my personal branding model and it's what I did over and over in the last 18 months or so. I would read an article with some tips and I would tweak my profiles (or create a new one). I would try to do one thing at a time and give it a couple weeks. Then, I would evaluate it to see if it was working for me. If I didn't, I scrapped it. If it did, I kept doing it. Then, I would read something else and try something else. It's really been a trial and error process and that's how you learn so much!
Jenise: Who should be thinking about branding? (ie is it just for businesses, is it good for events, can it help individuals?)
Liz: Branding is imperative for everyone. Businesses can use branding to sell a new product or attract new clients. Individuals can do it to find a job. Events can do it to increase attendance and, more importantly, keep people engaged in the event before and after. If you a business, individual or event and you are really good at what you do, but no one knows it - what's the point?
Jenise: What is the biggest mistake people make in trying to brand themselves/company/etc?
Liz: I think it's very easy for people to create a million accounts at one time and not maintain them. As I write in my blog, I think it's really important to develop a strategy and to try one technology at a time. Once you try something new, you should evaluate whether it meets your goals before moving on to something else. This way you stay engaged with technologies that convey your brand and you don't waste time trying to keep 35 profiles updated.
Jenise: Why is social media so important for branding?
Liz: Social Media and Web 2.0 technologies in general have taken networking to a whole new level. I use LinkedIn as a clear example of this. When you search for a company in LinkedIn you find the profile, website etc. But more importantly, you see a clear picture of who you know in that company. While you may know that your mom works at Disney, you may not know that your mom's best friend works at BizBash.
If you're into events, this is really valuable information that you wouldn't have access to ten years ago. Social media opens up the world to you and allows you to share your brand as if you were standing on a pedestal with a megaphone.
Jenise: What is the first thing people should do when they begin the process of branding themselves or their company?
Liz: Taking a look at your current brand before you begin this process is really important and I think it's one thing people don't do often enough. For companies that have been around for a while, they will likely find that they have a brand already - one that has been given to them by their clients and customers. This can be a launching point for them - either affirming that brand and presenting a new, fresh brand that will catch attention. You have to find an accurate picture of how others perceive you to be before you can figure out how to change or enhance that perception.
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