Today, everyone is a brand. Those who will be successful will understand the power of personal branding – clearly communicating your values and talents as well as standing out from the competition. In order to compete in a changing world, you need new skills, specifically, the internet has changed how we manage our careers, and social media has become the preeminent channel to communicate who you are. In this program, we’ll explore methods of personal branding a discussion of the changing workforce and unique characteristics of higher education professionals. Next, we’ll review several social media tools which can help you promote yourself. We’ll end by practicing our brand – what makes us unique – while networking with other participants.
6. 1) Having a personal brand is optional
2) Social media is personal branding
3) You can’t change your brand
4) Only job seekers need a personal
brand
7. Branding Questions
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What is your vision and purpose?
What are your values and passions?
What are your top goals for the next year, two years, and five years?
What are three or four adjectives best describe the value you offer?
What words do you use to define your personality?
What are your core skills? Get feedback from those who know you best – at
work, at home, anywhere.
What are your strengths and weaknesses?
Who is your target audience? Determine where you want to fit in (industry
and niche area of expertise). Learn what decision makers in that field are
looking for and when they’re vetting candidates, and position yourself to
capture their attention.
Who is your competition in the marketplace and what differentiates you
from them?
What does your competition typically have to offer?
What value do you bring to the table that no one else does?
8. I work with (target audience) to
(what problem you solve).
This is how (your impact/results).
9. Hi, I’m Eva Ennamorato. As a graduate student
focused on communications and new media, I
encourage career-related success for [UWM
students, alumni, and staff] by [providing
practical resources and workshops] to help
them [overcome obstacles and achieve their
goals] with clarity and confidence.
14. Digital Resumes
university.linkedin.com & LinkedIn
Specifically tailored news and resources for
students and higher education professionals.
vizualize.me & about.me
Visual resume
15.
16.
17. List of blogs by category in Student Affairs
240 blogs! Career services, Women’s Issues,
Admissions, Academic Advising…
PROS
CONS
Easy to start; little tech
knowledge required
Requires a passion and skill for
writing. Writing ONLINE
Community bonds across the
globe
Requires regular updates
Free platforms available
18. • Successful adjustment into campus networks
through social, emotional, and academic
means (Gray, Vitak, Easton & Ellison, 2013)
• “Learning the rules of the college
game” (Pascarella and Terenzini 1991)
19. • Studies confirm college students use social
media daily (Junco, 2011, Junco, Heighberger, &
Loken 2011; Steinfield, Ellison & Lampe, 2008)
• Social media classroom usage creates study
groups, faculty interaction (Cheung, Chiu, & Lee,
2010; Junco, Heighberger, & Loken 2011; Laverie,
Rinaldo & Tapp, 2011)
22. #3 Holistic person – no more two profiles
1. Facebook – create a “fan” page for students to follow
2. Twitter – keep your profile public in order to connect
with SA professionals
3. Instagram – If you’re profile is public, you will get
random followers
4. Blogging – Keep it public; share your wisdom with
others
5. Google Alerts – be aware what content is out there on
you. Get alerts when your name is mentioned.
29. References
Ahlquist, J. (2014, January 9). Student development theory remixed for social media. Retrieved
from http://josieahlquist.com/2014/01/09/studentdevelopmenttheoryremix/
Cheung, C. M. K., Chiu, P., & Lee, M. K. O. (2011). Online social networks: why do students use
Facebook? Computers in Human Behavior, 27, 1337-1343.
Granz, J. (2013, June 27). More employers finding reasons not to hire candidates on social media.
Retrieved from
http://www.careerbuilder.com/share/aboutus/pressreleasesdetail.aspx?id=pr766&sd=6/26
/2013&ed=06/26/2013
Gray, R., Vitak, J., Ellison, N., & Easton, E. (2013). Examining social adjustment to college in the
age of social media: Factors influencing successful transitions and persistence. Computers &
Education, 67, 193-207.
Junco, R. (2011). The relationship between frequency of Facebook use, participation in Facebook
activities and student engagement. Computers & Education, 58, 162-171.
Junco, R., Heiberger, G. & Loken, E. (2011). The effect of Twitter on college student engagement
and grades. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning (27), 119-132.
Laverie, D. A., Rinaldo, S. B., & Tapp, S. (2011). Learning by tweeting: using twitter as a
pedagogical tool. Journal of Marketing Education, 33(2) 193-203.
Pascarella, E. T., and P. T. Terenzini. 1991. How college affects students. San Francisco: Jossey-Bas
Salpeter, M. (2011). Social networking for career success. (1st ed.). New York: LearningExpress,
LLC.
Schwabel, D. (2013). Promote yourself: The new rules for career success. (1st ed.). New York: St.
Martin's Press.
Editor's Notes
Sticky note activity:What does branding mean to you?What’s your favorite social media site to use?
Meg Guiseppi, Executive Branding and Job Search Strategist and owner of Executive Career Brand asserts that everyone already has a brand – whether they know it or not.“Your brand is your reputation – the perception of you held by the external world. Your brand is the unique combination of personal attributes, values, drives, strengths, and passions that define you. Your brand helps those assessing you determine whether they should hire or do business with you” (p. 76).
Today, I will be sharing a number of resources related to personal branding. By the end of this presentation, you’ll be able to implement at least three effective professional branding strategies as you plan for life after college.
So, our agenda for this evening is as follows: 1) we’ll spend some time looking at personal branding. 2) Then using some models, I’ll ask you to write part of your brand. 3) We’ll transition to talk about social media tools to help you effectively brand yourself, and 4) we’ll end with a bit of practice.
History of brandingSome sayAlthough it has become a buzzword lately, the term personal branding is not new. Tom Peters coined it in an article titled “The Brand Called You” for Fast Company Magazine in 1997. Back then, there was no Youtube and no slew of social networking applications, so one thing Peters suggested was to get out into the community to gain visibility.
Everyone has a professional reputation. Just ask your boss or coworkers – it’s better to conduct your own research into your brand rather than leave it up to chance.Promote and market your brand, but it’s your action, behavior, and performance that creates your personal brand. Even if you are “all that” on social mediaYour brand will evolve within the course of your career. At different times, you can highlight different attributes in order to achieve your goals. I don’t know how many of you planned to be in higher ed. I certainly didn’t. How many of you have had to highlight skills, values from other careers?Your brand is constantly impacting your career.
Remember the three Cs of personal branding: Clarity – be clear about who you are and who you are notConsistency – steadfastly express your brand across all communications channels, both online and offline Constancy – strong brands are always visible to their audience
Wouldn’t it be great to have a panel of experts at your disposal, to help you keep on top of the latest trends and industry advancements? With social networking tools, this scenario doesn’t have to be a dream – it is the reality for anyone who has developed a strong online community. Social networks provide a constant stream of relevant data, research, opinions, and information.Capture information via twitterTwitter Chatscrowd source and gather informationattend conferences virtually via live tweetsTwitter – a skill employers seekFor those of you who think that using social media for professional development is only for those in communications, technical, and public relations industries, think again. The word Twitter is the fastest growing term to appear in job postings, according to Indeed.com “Using Twitter trains people to be succinct in their writing, leading to interesting, eye-catching, and short CVs which appeal to recruiters.” (TheNextWeb.com, Using Social Media for Professional Development).
Unlike other social networks, on Twitter you can follow anyone on the site, even if that person is not following you. One of the best uses of the site is to follow people you admire or with whom you want to work someday. This includes recruiters, industry leaders, company CEOs, corporate Twitter feeds, graduate programs and much more. Following your prospects will help you learn what those people and organizations are thinking and talking about, which will come in handy as you network and apply for jobs. You can also search for the leading twitter users on a wide variety of topics on the Twitter directory site http://www.wefollow.com.Or Google search “Twitter hashtags.”
The arrival and transition into campus life for a new student is significant. This successfully occurs through adjustment into campus networks through social, emotional, and academic means (Gray, Vitak, Easton & Ellison, 2013). Transitioning into college is not as simple as cutting ties with one’s previous selves or previous relationships. Theorist Tinto’s model of student integration (1982) states students have a need to maintain interactions from high school as they adjust to college. Pascarella and Terenzini (1991) also explained integration as a student who comes to share peer and faculty attitudes and beliefs; being part of the ‘institutional culture.’ In other words, they learn the rules of the college game.Connecting the power of social media to this theory, Junco’s (2011) study showed that through Facebook a student can support relationships, both those at their universities and physically distant. Other social media sites have also proved beneficial to college transition.
Adoption of social media is a personal choice, as well as the amount of activity one produces. It can be tempting as a ‘fan’ of certain platforms to yell it from the mountaintops. I have found that the more convincing I had to do to get someone on a platform, especially Twitter or Instagram, the less likely they were to use it in the long run.Being attracted to social media and integrating it into a personal/professional usage takes a certain type of person. It is OK if you just happen to not have that blood type running through your veins. It is better to be aware of this, figuring out what platform(s) may fit better with your personality, boundaries, etc and start exploring. This must be stated, because online activity is personal. It forces the online contributor to be connected, sometimes constantly. Adding another notification from Facebook or Twitter may be the last thing that professional may want.At the same time, that type of connection and communication may extend beyond your comfort level. That is OK too. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t a platform or methods out there that might better suit your personal DNA a little better.My suggestions, if you want to keep things strictly business: use Twitter, Blogging and YouTube platforms as possible options. If your DNA includes a bit more adventure online, look into Instagram, Vine & Foursquare.
Working with young adults, Student Affairs professionals must, a minimum, be aware of what makes up the current Social Media Universe. This includes knowing the popular platforms, terminology and possible positive and negative impacts of these tools. The big ones include Instagram, YouTube, Tumblr, Twitter and (declining quickly) Facebook. Nearly all social media applications have privacy settings, allowing you to explore, experiment and listen to what is happening. Some new ones to keep you eyes on include Vine, Google+, SnapChat & Pheed.
I’m saying it, no more two profiles for professionals. If you can’t be yourself through one account, both personally and professionally, then you may not want to use that platform. The reality of the web 2.0 revolution is (like it or not) there is no separation. This does not mean you should restrict who you are. However, if there is messaging or photos you wouldn’t want a student to see, let’s say on Facebook, my suggestion would be that you should not friend students or maybe that picture isn’t the best choice to put out there.
Be prepared for student requests, especially on Facebook and Instagram. Have a personal plan for how you will respond to requests. For example, for many years I notified my students at the beginning of each year what my social media presence was. Another option could be to say you’ll only friend those students that are 21 and over, ensuring any photos they post that have alcohol included will not raise red flags. However, you also have the option to never respond to a student request, ever. The important thing is to be consistent and if you work with the same students during the year that you communicate this right away. It keeps you from any awkward conversation or regrets down the line. If these options do not sit well with you, I offer one more suggestion which is LinkedIn. This professional networking site keeps communication clear that all on this platform is for career activity. In other words, it is not common or even appropriate to post personal pictures or information on LinkedIn. These already established norms may make approving student connections more comfortable.
Not thinking about these elements before you speed ahead integrating personal/professional presence may hurt you later, possibly regretting a post or decision to connect.Boundaries with students, as well as your employees and co-workers.Privacy settings decisions for each platform.How you will go about responding to negative comments.Overall etiquette, as it has to do with what you will/will not share.
Turn your written projects, especially #sagrads #sadoc, into shareable contentAs Student Affairs professionals and those aspiring in the field as graduate students, we produce countless ‘works’ in our jobs and classes. Student Affairs best practice sharing and borrowing is a welcome practice, as the betterment of department programs and operations will in the end help more students. I encourage you to consider sharing these works with your colleagues online. This can be done through blog posts, wiki’s or even posting a photo of a program that could spark direction for another professional.Most importantly under this guideline, consider your activity online contributing to a conversation and not just adding to the noise. Be active, not only with your posts, but in supporting others. For example, be generous in re-tweeting, favoriting and/or replying when you see a post you like.Nearly every conference has at least a twitter account, if not also a common hashtag. For example, the national conference for NASPA will use #NASPA14. This way you can search this before, during and after the conference whether you actually attend or not!
Not to say you are a product, but each of us have unique skills, personalities and experiences that make us into a trademark. The more self-awareness you have about what you are all about: strengths/weaknesses, interests/dislikes, comfort zone, etc, the more your true self will shine through your profile. Especially if you are going for a stronger professional presence, please ensure this is still personalized. By going through these guidelines, you hopefully will have a stronger understanding of the reason(s) you are even on social media. I urge you to always be yourself and do what you want to be known for. If that is being a mother, a dean of students, a runner OR all three, then let that be known. Just make a decision. Being yourself and choosing not to share particular things about your life is not being fake. Saying you are head over heels happily married with your husband, but living in separate houses IS. Intentionality brings you right back to your code of ethics, being clear what you will and will not post in both your personal or professional worlds. These boundaries are healthy and encouraged.
Walk around the room and practice stating your brand to others. Listen to others’ brands. You may use your notes, but try to do so without them.