Specialists go deep. Generalists go wide. Both are valuable.
Continue reading “How to Write About Anything: The Generalist Content Creator’s Advantage”
The right publishing frequency is the one you can sustain indefinitely—not the most ambitious schedule you can manage for a month.
Continue reading “The Long Game: Why Consistent Content Beats Viral Every Time”
Fifteen years ago I interviewed a half-dozen experts about LinkedIn Groups. Here’s how their advice has aged.Continue reading “LinkedIn Groups in 2026: What My 2011 Article Got Right — And What Changed”
A hot topic in recent months, perhaps due to the pandemic and sudden interest in pursuing new job and career opportunities, seems to be “building a personal brand.” We work with a wide range of entrepreneurs, independent consultants and others who are adept at building what they refer to as their “thought leadership.” In truth, though, what they’re really doing, is building their personal brands. We help them do that and we also speak and write regularly about the topic.
Building your personal brand doesn’t start after you’ve already established yourself in your career, or at least it shouldn’t. As we like to say “your reputation precedes you.” And, for good or ill, it precedes you whether you’ve been paying attention or not. Continue reading “Graduates: Some Important Tips for Building Your Personal Brand”
For many people, recognizing that they have a “personal brand” may be a foreign concept. After all, products have brands, right? Yes, that’s true but so do you! And, if you’re a business professional, you should realize that your services, whether as an entrepreneur, or an employee, are not commodities. To set yourself apart from your competition, it’s crucial to develop and promote your own, unique, personal brand. So how do you do it? We’ve covered the topic of personal branding in the past, but it’s one that’s certainly worth revisiting. Continue reading “Building Your Personal Brand”
PricewaterhouseCoopers U.S. chairman Robert Moritz has discussed the issue of engaging younger employees in an article for Harvard Business Review titled “The U.S. Chairman of PwC on Keeping Millennials Engaged.” While the article contains a number of intriguing insights, one point that stood out from a marketing perspective was a comment Moritz made in relation to how an organization and its leaders are perceived to reflect the stated values of that company. Continue reading “The One Thing You Need to Do to Build Your Brand: Walk the Talk!”
In the “old days” finding experts was largely limited to identifying them through academic circles or highly regarded trade and professional publications. Experts were, in essence, “vetted” and those seeking their input could rely upon their veracity, authority and credentials. But, things have changed. Today, quite literally, anyone can be positioned as an “expert”–whether they really are or not. This has become possible because of the World Wide Web and a plethora of online communication channels, including websites, social media, blogs, etc. This is both a good and a bad thing. Interestingly, it is both good and bad for experts and non-experts. Here’s why: Continue reading “What Defines an “Expert” in 2016?”
Continue reading “How Well Are You Managing Your Personal Brand?”
Continue reading “How Well Are You Managing Your Personal Brand?”
I recently did a presentation for a group of Young Professionals that are part of a local Chamber of Commerce on how to create and deliver effective “elevator speeches.” Elevator speeches are those brief introductions that we’re all called upon to give from time to time, particularly in networking situations when we’re asked: “What do you do?”
For business owners, consultants and business leaders in any field, the opportunity to deliver an “elevator speech” is an opportunity to support your desired brand perception. We often fail to think of it that way, though–instead, we tend to think of it as simply a requirement to provide some general information about what it is we do.
Interestingly, as I worked on the presentation for this group it became very clear to me that just as when thinking about organizational brand impact, individually we have an opportunity to define and manage our personal brands. The steps are very similar to the steps I take when working with clients on branding-related issues. They are: Continue reading “Writing Your Elevator Speech: Individual Branding for Personal and Professional Success”
