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The benefits of having a strong brand are tremendous. Strong brands charge premium pricing. They thrive during economic downturns. They attract valuable employees, business partners and customers. And they can branch out to thrive in new business areas with ease. Every company, product, city and person can reap these benefits when they focus on uncovering, building and expanding their brands. The characteristics that define a strong brand all begin with the letter C.
When building and nurturing a strong personal brand, you have a lot more to think about than these ten C’s, but no brand is truly powerful unless it aces the Ten C Test.
As you think about growing your brand and your career success, ask yourself if you exhibit all ten C’s. Are you:
1. Competent
All brands begin with competence. It’s a rational brand attribute because brands that are rooted in false promises will fail. Your competencies are the table stakes that get you into the game. You aren't going to get too far with branding if you can’t tick the box next to all the skills required to do your job. Brands aren’t built around ineptitude. Start with meeting the minimum eligibility requirements for your role—and for the role you seek to have next.
2. Clear
Strong brands are clear about who they are and who they are not. They have uncovered the six drivers of their personal brand and understand their unique promise of value. This promise sets them apart from their peers or competitors. Clarity differentiates them and allows them to attract and build loyalty among a desirable set of internal or external clients.
3. Credible
Not only do your competencies need to be solid, you need to be believable. While competence comes from the inside—your ability to make things happen—credibility often derives from others’ impressions of you. When you have a chorus of peers, clients, and others singing your praises, you grow your credibility quotient. Of course, proof of your accomplishments also contributes to your credibility. Establishing credibility through your actions, words and expertise is essential for building a strong personal brand.
4. Consistent
Strong personal brands are also consistent. They are always who they say they are in all that they do. Consistently presenting and expressing your personal brand reinforces your brand message and helps you build trust and credibility with the people you hope to influence.
5. Constant
Strong brands are constant—always visible and available to their customers and prospects. They don't go into hiding. When you think about one of the world’s strongest brands, Coca-Cola, the entire planet is the target market. That is why you can't make it through a day without being exposed to the brand’s bright red color or familiar script logo. Chances are, your brand's target market is a lot smaller than Coke's. Phew! That will make it more manageable for you to remain constantly visible to your target audience.
6. Compelling
A strong brand is appropriate for—and interesting to—its target audience. It is relevant. It knows who to focus on and what that audience is passionate about, and how to get that audience to feel passionate about what the brand has to offer. You need to build excitement and enthusiasm for your offerings with the right decision makers.
7. Connected
Relationships are the currency of business, and building and nurturing relationships is essential for having a strong personal brand. This means having a network of partners, colleagues and clients. It also means developing affiliations that reinforce your brand. And it means building relationships with people outside your area of expertise, diversifying your network so you can be open to opportunities you don’t even know exist.
8. Committed
Branding is not a one-time event; it's not about fads. A strong brand is in it for the long haul, built steadily over time with a steadfast commitment to pursuing a defined purpose. Dorie Clark in her bestselling book The Long Game put it this way: “True networking is not about trying to get something as fast as you can. When we set out to make friends and build relationships, rather than to simply get something, it feels entirely different.”
9. Confident
Confidence is attractive, and it’s an attribute of all strong brands. Strong brands are not wishy-washy. They make decisions with conviction and are willing to deal with the consequences of that. They have a vision and believe that the vision can become reality. Showing confidence in your personal brand can help you to inspire trust and credibility in others. Just don’t overdo it. Too much confidence becomes arrogance, and that won’t build your fan club.
10. Current
Strong brands are based in today, with room to evolve for tomorrow. Although grounded in authenticity, there is an important aspirational element to branding. You must remain relevant to your target audience while becoming relevant to new audiences. Everything around us changes, but you pursue your goals with persistence, in support of your life purpose. Strong brands don’t stay stuck in the past.
11. Bonus! Courageous
In a world that praises conformity, it takes courage to stand out by truly being yourself— always without fear or excuses. Personal branding is all about standing out authentically, and it can be challenging to do in the face of criticism or adversity. Having courage will make each of the 10 C’s achievable.
How does your brand stack up?
William Arruda is a keynote speaker, co-founder of CareerBlast.TV and co-creator of the Personal Brand Power Audit - a complimentary quiz that helps you measure the strength of personal brand.
