Personal Brand Talk with Brandi Boatner
On Tuesday, February 19th, 2020, I attended Brandi Boatner’s talk on “The Brand Called YOU” when she visited the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. Ms. Boatner is currently the Social and Influencer Communications Lead at Global Markets and the Brand Communications Manager for IBM Corporate Communications.
Boatner’s talk on self-branding is a workshop she offers internally to IBM employees. Within the workshop, she talks about how a brand is what is perceived by the viewer and therefore those perceptions are reality. As a person is a brand, one must market him or herself in an honest, straightforward, and comprehensible manner. Further, one has to be a good digital citizen. This means one should follow the social norms of “appropriate, responsible technology use” in digital activities and conversations because what one puts into the digital world comes back and is ever-present. One also has to be aware of what platforms are being used and where and for what purpose one’s data is being stored.
On the business of brands, brands gain respect and loyalty by making society feel something. For example, when the beer, Corona, is mentioned, the image of summer, beach, and lime come to mind immediately. This feeling and image is Corona’s brand, what they are known for. Businesses answer four fundamental questions when creating a brand: (1) what does the brand want to be known for?, (2) what differentiates our brand?, (3) whom do I serve?, and (4) what is my enduring idea? By answering these questions and keeping the answers to these questions in mind when creating a product and interacting with stakeholders, the brand will always be communicated clearly.
When it comes to you as a brand, we have to answer these same questions and present ourselves accordingly. Time is a currency and paying (with your time) without a return is something that no stakeholder wants. Through the metaphor of having dinner with a stakeholder, one has to know what you are bringing to the table. At this dinner, share your expertise and differentiate your brand: what makes you distinguished and what are you proud of that has distinct value?
Boatner’s talk examines the brand and the consumer and teaches one how to appeal to the stakeholders. Further, Boatner discussed the importance of ethics. She gave the statistic “86% of people want brands to be honest on social media.” This includes us, as in the age of social media people working in fields such as public relations, advertising, or general influencing positions are brands just as companies are. This includes being a good digital citizen and following general norms of conduct.
I was inspired by Brandi Boatner and grateful for her professional advice. Her workshop on self-branding will give me a step-up over the competition as it is uncommon to be taught such clear steps in how to brand oneself professionally. Especially considering I am a college freshman; many do not start a professional social media presence and self-branding for career life until later on. I will be using her advice on how to market myself to create a successful career for myself.
