PRISM PERSONAL BRANDING KIT: PART 2 · Now that you have your Personal Brand Prism in hand, it's...

P R I S M P E R S O N A L B R A N D I N G K I T : PA R T 2

PRISM Personal Branding Kit: Part 2

Now that you have your Personal Brand Prism in hand, it's time to

transform all that inner contemplation into public-facing

communication. I'm a huge fan of not waiting for permission, or

approval, from others and instead confidently claiming who you are,

what you know, and what you're working towards through your

digital and physical presence. Even if you are still working on

embodying the vision you have for yourself, you can at least begin to

position yourself toward that eventual, inevitable truth.

This week we’re exploring what brand positioning is, what key messages are, and

how to develop these to help with your own personal brand. It all culminates in a

brand new bio that will work hard to support your Noble Purpose.

Handle yourself with professionalism and remember that in business, your

personal brand is your greatest asset. Mind your reputation and the rest will

come.

Aliza Licht

Included in this kit you’ll find:

✔ Brand positioning through key messages and your online presence

✔ Assignment: Positioning Statement/Top 3 Facets

✔ Assignment: A brand new Bio

PRISM | PERSONAL BRANDING KIT

PRISM | PERSONAL BRANDING KIT

Brand Positioning

Brand Positioning 101

Throughout your career you will be exposed to many different types

of companies, each with a unique brand. You will encounter brands

who have clearly defined identities (hallelujah) and others playing a

rather uncreative version of follow the leader, taking their cues from

the current leader in their space.

I had a boss who would bring me a different email newsletter each week from a

different fashion company, and demand that I make our next newsletter look

similar. She was convinced that the key to selling our products was in cracking the

typeface or color palette code. If our marketing materials looked a certain way,

perhaps our small, price-conscious brand could occupy a similar position than that

of a luxury retailer. In a word, nope.

From a marketing perspective, positioning is the space you want to occupy in

your customers' minds when they think about your brand. In personal

branding, it's how you want others to feel about you, whether it’s a boss,

coworker, job interviewer, friend or partner.

Jim Joseph

Successful positioning is, in part, what makes someone self-

identify as a Kate Spade vs a Nasty Gal.

The basic definition of positioning is simply "a marketing strategy that aims to make

a brand occupy a distinct position, relative to competing brands, in the mind of the

customer (Business Dictionary)." However, many brands struggle to really nail down

PRISM | PERSONAL BRANDING KIT | PERSONAL BRANDING 101

their positioning. Often it comes down to a fear that by assuming a distinct identity,

they will miss out on the economic opportunity of appealing to additional

audiences i.e. we don’t want to just seen as just a brand for moms, or our loungewear

could be worn by women 18-80, we don’t want to just reach out to college students.

In public relations, the positioning of clients as experts (so that media seek out and

quote their opinions in the news) can be a huge part of your outreach. From a

personal branding perspective, strong positioning contributes to the perception

others have of you, and will help you build your reputation among those you seek to

reach.

Businesses that were started simply to capitalize on a trend (remember all those

flat ribbon hair-ties?) or solely to acquire the disposable income of a particular

market (hello millennial female 18-24) are tasked with staying relevant, long after

the initial excitement or relevance has faded away. Brands who are rebranding (an

inevitability to most companies at some point) have the challenge of convincing

their existing audience to stay loyal, while appealing to new consumers.

When it comes to your personal brand, it’s tempting to want to make yourself as

appealing to as many people as possible, in order to increase your chances of

getting hired. But the reality is that a strong position won’t limit you - think about

the broad appeal - and strong brand perception - of Converse or Levi’s.

What makes us unique, makes us memorable.

Don’t risk being overlooked simply because there is nothing particularly special or

unique about what people are looking at. Celebrate your individuality.

So, what does all this look like in practice? Communicators start by create

positioning statements, which are often, but not always, internal to the company.


Then, they create key messages that are consumer-facing, and that support that

position out in the world. Lucky for you, that’s just what we’re going to work in in

this workbook!

Your Digital Presence

A great way to begin expressing your personal brand and unique

positioning is to establish a cohesive online identity. An online

presence and self-promotional strategy is absolutely crucial to

succeeding in PR. And that's great news, because you have total

control over what you create and what say.

There are so many different ways to begin the process of getting your personal

brand out there - LinkedIn, a PR blog, a portfolio website, and active social media

channels can all be used to build relationships and promote yourself.

Whether you are focused on simply making it through to graduation, trying to get a

job on the other side of the country, or simply figuring out what your next step

should be, clear digital communication and your own little corner of the internet is

an invaluable tool.

No matter where you are building your brand online, there are three major components that absolutely must be PR Girl perfect: Name/URL, Bio and Headshot.

1. Domain Name/Social Media Name: My biggest piece of advice is to simply

choose your name, first and last. If you don't own your name as a URL i.e.

crosbynoricks.com, buy your domain name, today. If you don't own the

corresponding social media accounts, sign up for those too. You can use this


http://knowem.com/

service to find out what is available. If your name is common, try your middle initial

or put “PR” at the end of your name.

2. Bio: You'll need two versions, a short one to use on social media, and a longer

"About Me." It's up to you if you prefer to write in first or third-person (you may

want to create two versions). The good news is that once your positioning and key

messages are done, writing your bio will be a breeze!

3. Headshot: It absolutely drives me nuts when an aspiring PR Girl use a personal

photo that is too small, pixelated, over photoshopped, or clearly cropping someone

out of the picture. It’s the absolute worst! If you don't want the expense of

professional headshots, just have a friend take photos of you against a neutral

background. Brighten up the photo, smooth it out with lightly with your favorite

filters) and boom - gorgeous! For ideas on posing, check out the PR Couture

headshot board on Pinterest.


http://knowem.com/

https://www.pinterest.com/prcouture/h

https://www.pinterest.com/prcouture/headshot-ideas/

Assignment:

POSITIONING STATEMENT & PERSONAL FACETS

Assignment: Write a Positioning Statement

A positioning statement is nothing more than a few, careful lines that

will help guide your communication with your right people.

Statements typically include the following six elements and should:

➔ Be simple, memorable, and writing in language designed to appeal to your

target audience.

➔ Explain how you (or the brand) are different/better than the competition

➔ Be 100% true.

➔ Be “ownable.” Meaning, you’re positioning should be unique and distinct

enough to easily stand out from the crowd

➔ Help you to determine (upon reading it over) whether or not something is “on

or off brand”

➔ Have room growth and change (if you completely changed careers or, say,

hair color, your positioning statement would more or less still hold up)

For this assignment, you’re looking to write a few sentences that captures your

expertise, experience and personality. Put another way, this statement explains

what you are the best at (value), who you serve (audience) and how you do it

uniquely (Unique Selling Proposition).

Here’s a positioning statement that I created that is aimed at appealing to my ideal

consulting client (an overwhelmed, highly creative fashion entrepreneur looking for

PR and brand direction, expertise and support).

PRISM | PERSONAL BRANDING KIT | ASSIGNMENTS: POSITIONING, FACETS AND BIO

I help emerging brands craft irresistible, on-brand copy and campaign concepts

that spark emotion and action among customers, while being mindful of goals,

priorities and budgets. I’ve got an alchemical sixth sense for turning, tweaking

and polishing pretty good communication strategy into pure gold, quickly.

What do you think?

O K H E R E W E G O ! W H AT ’ S YO U R P O S I T I O N I N G S TAT E M E N T ?

NOW THAT IS SOME GORGEOUS WRITING!


Your Personal Facets

Now that you’ve spent some time exploring your own positioning, it’s

time to tease that out a bit more by identifying your signature sound-

bites. While positioning is something brands use to guide strategy

and decision-making, key messages are how brands (and individuals)

make it easy for audiences to understand that positioning by putting

in into practice through written communication.

In any public relations plan, there is always a place for key messages. Key messages

are like little one-liners that express the features and benefits of a brand, product

or even a person. They are written in a stylized, editorial voice - like something you

might read in a magazine.

If you haven’t guessed it by now, we’re calling your key messages Personal Facets

because this course is called PRISM and it’s just more fun that way!

Part of our job as communicators is to help our clients use key messages to stay "on

message" when they are engaging with press. We help our clients learn to take any

media question and weave their answer back to include a key message. A great way

to see this in action is to watch any political interview and watch the politician

deftly navigate difficult questions back to the main components of their campaign.

I want you to become so familiar, comfortable and confident in your own key

messages that you can do the same, in any situation.


Real-world scenario: This skill of staying on message is one you can practice in

a job interview setting. The next time a hiring manager asks you a question you

find difficult or don’t have a strong answer for, find the conversational thread

that allows you to find your way back to one of your facets. It’s a bit of an art

and a science and when done well, it’s electric.

Key messages are the building blocks for most PR-related outreach. They become

part of an editor pitches, sponsorship requests and social media content. From a

personal branding perspective, your own key messages are used in cover letters,

personal bios, networking events and job interviews. Your key messages are the

threads that create the story of who you are and who you are becoming. They pique

interest and stick in people’s minds, helping them to remember who you are.

Key messages are a part of your personal narrative. After all, communicators are

storytellers. Stories evoke curiosity and curiosity is what drives us to want to know

more and to understand the world around us. Personal positioning through key

messages help others to understand where we're coming from, where we're

headed, what we value and what makes us unique.

The Center for Risk Communication analyzed 10 years of print and media coverage

of emergencies and crises in the US and found that:

• The average length of a sound bite in the print media is 27 words

• The average duration of a sound bite in the broadcast media is nine seconds

• The average number of messages reported in both the print and broadcast

media is three.


http://www.jrmyprtr.com/

The 27/9/3 key message grid is a format you can use to create three concise

soundbite-length messages. This format is used by professional communicators and

is ideal for key messages that work on TV, radio, print, and social.

3 Tips for Writing Key Messages

Focus on how you want your recipient to feel: Depending on what you’re writing or

the context, do you want people to feel entertained? Educated? Confident?

Curious? Remember what Maya Angelou said, “People will forget what you said, but

they’ll never forget how you made them feel.”

Example: I want PR Couture to feel a bit like that popular girl in school you

couldn’t bring yourself to hate because she was actually just really nice and

helpful to everybody. Yet I also want there to be a bit of an “insider status,”

and of course wit and humor. To that end, our Instagram bio sometimes

reads: Yes, you can sit with us! Helpful haute spot for fashion and lifestyle

communicators.

Use the Rule of 3: For some reason, we’re attracted to sentences that include an

element of three, so when possible group together features and benefits into a sets

of 3.

Example: The PR Couture About Page reads: Affectionately termed “The

Fashion PR Bible,” PR Couture is the leading destination for fresh insight into

those industry professionals, brands and trends impacting public relations,

marketing and social media in the fashion & lifestyle space.


Use Numbers: Numbers are impressive, so use them to make an impact.

Example: We did a series years ago with a recent college graduate who had

completed a ton of PR internships. Her short bio for the articles she wrote

for said the following: Vianka McConville is a recent University of Florida grad

with a B.S. in Public Relations. Vianka completed four internships in three

years, held various leadership positions and helped create an FPRA award-

winning PR campaign during college.

Can you spot Vianka’s key messages? Her bio is chock-full of them! These days,

Vianka is an associate communications strategist at Curley & Pynn Public Relations

& Marketing Communications in Miami - good stuff!

F I G U R I N G O U T YO U R FAC E T S

Step 1: Check the left side of your Personal Brand Prism and ask

yourself: What is the best way to articulate my strengths and

talent to capture the interest and curiosity of prospective hiring

managers, clients and collaborators?


https://www.linkedin.com/title/associate-communications-strategist?trk=mprofile_title

Step 2: Check the right side of your Personal Brand Prism and

ask yourself: What can I say to the world about these aspects of

who I am in order to begin to cultivate the external perception I

want prospective hiring managers, clients and collaborators to

have about me?

Step 3: Brainstorm a multitude of key messages in order to

identify your 3 most compelling facets. Use the Message Grid

Template below for help and when you’re done, put the winners

in the box below!

Shout it Out Loud! My Top 3 Facets Are:


Step 4: Learn them by heart and repeat them. Your key

messages must be clear, concise, and consistent and not

contradict one another. And they must be repeated to be

effective. Memorize them and incorporate them into all your

personal branding materials.

M E S S AG E G R I D T E M P L AT E

Write 10 key messages about yourself. Think about the 5 guiding

questions below before you write. As you complete each message,

read it aloud and make sure it sounds natural.

When you’re done, choose 3 that you feel make the most impact.

Guiding Questions

1. Who is the audience for this particular message? (i.e. a hiring manager, social

media follower, prospective client)

2. What are they looking for from me? (i.e. What’s in it for them? Why should they

care?)

3. What do I want this person to think or understand about me?

4. How do I want them to feel about me?

5. What do I want them to do after they hear your message? (i.e. Set up an

interview, tell a friend, click the like button)


10 Key Messages About Me

Key Message (Claim):

Supporting Message (Fact):

#1 Final Key Message:









Assignment:

A BRAND NEW BIO

Assignment: A Brand New Bio

A great bio has a multitude of uses. You can pull from it to create your

cover letter, send it along with an article idea for your favorite PR

blog and include it on your website. Now that you are crystal clear on

your personal positioning and your top 3 facets are all shined up and

sparkling, use all that hard work to create a powerful promotional

asset in the form of a new “about” or personal bio. I want to feel your

voice and your personality coming off the page!

A few tips on writing your new bio:

➔ Keep it short darling: Your bio should be no more than a few paragraphs, just

a few sentences each.

➔ Write for skimming: Use headings and bullet points to make your bio easy to

read and to guide the reader’s attention to your biggest accomplishments to

date.

➔ Be a ruthless editor: Once you have a draft, go back through and ask yourself

if anything is repetitive or unnecessary. It’s amazing how much stronger a

statements can be without a ton of unnecessary fluff.

How I do it…

When I write a bio for a client, I first ask them to fill out a bunch of questions. Then

I put it all together and highlight my favorite lines, important data points or places

where I need more clarification. I’m sharing the exact questions I use with you

below. I hope they help you think through what you might want to include in your

bio.


Although I use these questions with everyone, the resulting bio is always unique. I

always take time to refine their responses to align with the key messages I believe

will best support their overall brand.

Take some time to answer these questions, and see what you come up with. I’ve

included a few examples of bios I’ve written using this process to give you some

examples:

Crosby’s 13 Questions to Create Amazing About Pages

✔ What are your credentials (college major, job experience)

✔ How did you arrive at your current venture? What path brought you here?

✔ Are there any stories from your childhood, hobbies or life experiences that help to

illustrate why you have chosen this career path?

✔ What do you have a knack for? i.e. What are your strengths?

✔ What are a few of the big wins you have experienced thus far?

✔ Have you overcome any big obstacles? What were they and how did you deal?

✔ Who have you worked with/for in the past? And what have you done for them?

✔ What most excites you about your work & the contribution you can make/are

making?

✔ What are you passionate about personally? What do you really enjoy? What can’t

you stop talking about?

✔ Where can we find you when you’re not working? What’s your favorite way to spend

a Sunday afternoon?

✔ Any volunteer activities you’re crazy about? Any awards?

✔ What are you looking for right now? (New job, graphic designer? New fitness class?)

✔ Where can we find you online? What about offline?


Make it real: Once you have a bio you feel good about and a headshot, update

your LinkedIn with your personal summary and pic.

My Brand New Bio


Sample Biographies

Ashley McPherson

A classically trained ballerina who fell in love with fashion through the bright lights

and elaborate costumes of many a dance performance, Ashley McPherson’s passion

for movement, expression and feminine strength is boldly evident in the precision

design technique and impeccable fit of her swim and lifestyle designs.

Forced to retire her pointe shoes due to injury, Maryland-born McPherson still

brings a dancer’s sense of deep focus and drive to her work, designing pieces that

celebrate the adventure, freedom and fun of beachwear.

In addition to a Bachelor’s degree in Business Marketing, this FIDM grad has

amassed significant product development and design experience over the past

decade at leading action sports brands Dakine, O’neil and Fox Racing. Her work has

been featured in places like Women's Wear Daily, ShopEatSurf, Textile Insight,

Transworld Business, Foam Magazine, Surfing Magazine Swimsuit, and the Sports

Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. Known for her commitment to sustainability, McPherson

is passionate about choosing recycled fiber textiles and manufacturing in the USA.

With her East Coast roots firmly intact, McPherson is a Pacific Ocean girl at heart.

She can often be found exploring the beaches along the Southern California coast,

visiting art museums and attending gallery openings, or tucked in a corner at her

favorite Malibu coffee shop, updating her blog, Bikini Junkie.


Robin Diamond

A highly effective publicist with a proven track record of helping brands make a big

impact, Robin Diamond has built her career on impeccable editor relationships and

a specialized understanding of how to take advantage of existing and emerging

lifestyle trends for wow-worthy media coverage. Through through an impressive

mix of targeted traditional and digital media outreach, as well as social media

management and content creation, Robin has a unique ability to package and pitch

client stories that lead to enthusiastic endorsement and business growth. A former

beauty editor, Robin is more than simply a pitching powerhouse; she offers a

strategic mix of business counsel and public relations expertise, operating as a true

extension of the team.

Since 2008, Robin has operated independently out of Miami as a sought after

independent publicist, helping to launch and grow companies in the fitness, beauty

and lifestyle sectors. Additionally, Robin continues to reach out to her media

contacts on as a freelance media relations expert for top agencies, who regularly

call on her skills for client campaigns.

Born and raised in Miami, Robin first established herself working for some of the

most well-respected New York lifestyle and beauty agencies including Susan

Magrino (clients Martha Stewart, Laura Mercier), Tractenberg & Co. (clients John

Frieda, Sephora) and Tara INK (The Art of Shaving, Juvena of Switzerland) before

spending 2 years inhouse as the PR Director for Joey New York.

A self-confessed beauty and fitness junkie, Robin gets her best ideas while running

along Miami Beach’s boardwalk or sweating it out during a Bikram yoga session

(after which a scoop of Argentinean ice cream and reality TV episode on Bravo is

just the ticket).


Laura Adrianna

Laura is known for helping premium brands like Net a Porter and Victoria Beckham

design and deliver luxury consumer experiences. The former Creative Director of

Audrey Magazine, Laura was responsible for the fashion magazines’ complete

rebranding in 2014 and is a highly skilled, multilingual international marketing

expert.

With her latest project, Frontrowstyle.ch, Laura invites women to take a "front row"

approach to style. By curating luxury fashion and sharing in-depth, sartorial

conversations with successful women through a global lens, Laura helps her

readers (and more than 16k Instagram followers), successfully navigate the pace of

modern life while looking effortlessly chic.

Canadian-born, Laura received her MBA in France and currently lives in

Switzerland. She once created a haute couture dress out of 15 napkins in less than

24 hours at IL TAVOLO. She can pretty much do anything.


PRISM PERSONAL BRANDING KIT: PART 2 · Now that you have your Personal Brand Prism in hand, it's...

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