No matter what your career choice is, effectively BRANDING yourself or your company is the main criteria which determine the fate of your career. Branding is the symbol, logo, service, etc that exudes the true essence of that product. Companies such as FedEx, Exxon, McDonald’s or in the entertainment industry, Bad Boy, Rock-a-fella, Cash Money, Warner Brothers, MGM, for example, are easily recognized for what type of product or service they provide because of their effective marketing placements on the web, tv, and/or radio.When you begin your career venture, there are several things you should consider through the process of branding yourself.

1. Preparation – Henry Ford said, “Before everything else, getting ready is the secret to success.” As you prepare your plan of attack, make sure that you market yourself in the way in which you want to be remembered. Be careful of your presence on the web. The internet is a place where your posts, images, etc will last forever. So be mindful of what you tag, comment on, and submit via video or mp3. Think about how you want to be perceived. State exactly how you want your product to be understood as.

2. Build Web Presence – The internet is viewed by billions of people daily. The web is the best place to get your brand out there for people to see. There are several sites that you can build a major presence on: YouTube, Myspace, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and many more. Make sure you purchase your domain names (youname.com, yourcompany.com, yourkidsnames.com, etc). Purchasing a domain name will secure your place on the web for many years to come. But remember, there is normally an annual fee you’ll have to pay to continue to secure that domain.

3. Be Compelling – Every person will not be good at everything. Whether it is creating videos or writing thought-provoking articles, know that it is okay to not be the best. The goal here is to first LISTEN and then figure out how you want to add to it. Once you create your website/blog/profile, figure what is the basis and the focus. Is the site for promoting your music? Is it to profile a new fashion designer? Whatever it is, make sure you focus on that thing.

Also it’s good to market your brand through commenting on other blogs. Experts have said it is good to spend 2-3 times longer commenting on other sites than you do writing your own. The more you spend commenting on other sites, the more you can make a stamp of your brand. This in the end will catch other commentor’s eyes and they will be curious enough to track back to your site.


4. Know Who You Are, Know What You Want – It is very important to know what your brand is. If someone came up and asked us, “What is STACKS Magazine?”, my team and I better be able to answer the question clearly and quick. If it takes you too long to describe your brand, the listener will be able to tell that you don’t really know yourself. At that point, the confidence in your product is lost.

Also, knowing what you want, will weed out those people that aren’t really interested in what you have to sell or give. Knowing those things, will help keep you on track and inline with the goals you’ve set for your brand.


5. Practice – The more you practice on your skills, the better off you’ll be at branding. In the end, your customers will believe in your brand and understand what it is exactly that you are giving to the public.