Brilliant Branding: What is a Brand?

Like a yearbook embodies a period of life for a school, a brand embodies the life of a business. Each + every one upholds a look + feel as distinctive as a yearbook photo – even the ones you hated the most (my three years of braces perpetuated merciless picture days).

A “brand” isn't just synonymous for a company, product or service; a brand encompasses the identity of those things. It personifies them. It gives them a face. Branding allows us to differentiate between the goofy, carefree personality of Google and the sleek, sophisticated personality of Apple.

All brands accomplish the same goals:

• Representing the values of the company
• Influencing consumer perception of the company
• Sustaining a relationship with consumers

In essence, branding controls how people feel about a company. All advertising, customer service, package design, hiring decisions + web design cater to branding.

What’s this have to do with you?

Like Google, Coca Cola or any other big name company fulfilling ad space on billboards + TV, you, too, harbor your own unique brand, your personal brand. Our friends over at Wiki describe personal branding as “the practice of people marketing themselves + their careers as brands.”

Oh – but you don’t have a career? Eek – I guess no personal brand for you.

I kid, I kid. You still claim a personal brand whether or not you’re reading this from your office loft overlooking the city of your dreams. Even if you’re still in school or amidst the glorious post-grad job hunt, you can use your skills, interests + experiences to market yourself as a brand.

Understanding + utilizing your personal brand can reap a heap of benefits for you, including:

•          Attracting companies you want to work for
•          Improving your strengths + weaknesses in your field
•          Connecting with other personal brands similar to yours

Excited yet? You should be!

Understanding the importance of a brand is the first step in developing your own. Look around at your favorite brands, + try to pinpoint what their presentation says about them. 

Stay tuned for next week’s post on defining your brand – be it personal, professional or anything in between. Meanwhile, look out for #brilliantbranding on Twitter for awesome branding examples plus tips + tricks on how to build your brand.

What brand do you connect with the most? Share your story below!