Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Personal Branding

The next time you’re driving down the street and come upon a cluster of fast food restaurants, take notice of the common theme among the colorful and bright logos; the golden arches of McDonald’s, the big bold spelling of Wendy’s underneath the famous face, or Colonel Sanders next to the recognizable letters KFC. In-N-Out, Carl’s Jr., Burger King, Pizza Hut, Denny’s, and Sonic all carry the same theme too. So what is it? It’s the specific use of the colors red and yellow in their branding. But why red and yellow specifically? According to the psychology of color, the combination of red and yellow are known to subconsciously trigger hunger and induce excitement. In fact, it is often referred to as the “Ketchup and Mustard Theory.” These colors encourage customers to spend more and leave quickly, representing exactly what fast food restaurants want customers to do. Red represents the characteristics of enthusiasm and passion. Restaurants use red to create vitality and a psychological atmosphere of speed where customers want to order and eat more food. Red also is said to increases pulse, blood pressure, and respiration, all factors related to stimulating the brain, and thus a need for food consumption. Yellow represents the characteristics of brightness and hope just like a rising sun. It provides a positive energy and aura that attracts customers to enter the store. Yellow is also is associated with quickness and speed, two essential elements to any successful fast food joint. Another important quality of the color yellow is that it is the easiest color to see from a distance, which helps to attract people from far away. When red and yellow are combined together, which some people have it not only creates a positive energy to attract customers, but also increases purchase motivation to spend more.

In this example, branding is important because of the story it tells, and the message these companies want to convey. The colors red and yellow in this case strive to create a connection between the product and customer, and also motivates the buyer. A strong brand builds name recognition, and aims to build customer loyalty. The strongest brand names out there have done so successfully for years. You don’t need colors to build your brand, but the attributes associated with such are what you should choose from in building yours.

In the midst of a job search, your personal branding is no different than the branding we are surrounded by in virtually every walk of daily life. In order to open new doors, you as a candidate must be able to effectively convey the value that you bring to the table for a potential employer. You must absolutely present a clear, consistent and instant picture of your value throughout your job search, from initial networking endeavors to final position negotiations. Beyond a resume or cover letter, marketing your brand utilizing social networking mediums such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook is essential to your career or job search to establish yourself as a competent, knowledgeable and skilled professional in your field. Through these mediums you must be able to specifically justify the value position you hold, and relay that to prospective employers.

In addition to social networking sites, blogs are becoming increasingly popular as a means to demonstrate expertise in your career area. Not only can blogging be a great way to promote your skills and capabilities, but they can be a great benefit to others as well. When I have a question about a particular type of food, or how to complete a specific project, Google searches often lead me to personal blogs for the answers. If these are useful to me, imagine how a prospective employer in the field will view them.

As a caution once again, just be careful with the social media sites (LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook) to keep all communications professional if that is what you intend to use them for. It sends a mixed message if part is professional, and part is too personal. Leave the pictures of keg stands off completely, or create two separately distinct accounts. And for the other account, make sure that the settings are kept private. We check them.

In short, branding is the image you want to portray to others. Personal branding during a job search is about the value you can provide to employers. Create and implement the right strategy, and it can result in catapulting your career.

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