Personal Branding Blunders
Learn what behaviors to avoid from other’s lapse of personal branding judgment.
While working as an account manager for a Silicon Valley-based public relations agency, one of my responsibilities was to go on new business pitches with the agency’s president, Roberta.
After months of pitching John, the CEO of what is today a very well known, global technology company, Roberta and I finally secured a time on his calendar. It didn’t matter that our meeting would take place during John’s lunchtime; we were thrilled for the opportunity, as landing John’s company as a client would result in hundreds of thousands of dollars in annual revenue to our agency.
Shortly after being seated in the guest chairs in front of his desk, John walked in with his “to go” lunch in hand. After the customary introductions, Roberta began the pitch. I knew it was my time to participate in the conversation when Roberta side kicked my shin with one her high heels.
A business casual working environment.
Mark, a 33 year-old senior associate is on track to realize his career dream—to become a shareholder in his CPA firm. In order to ensure this dream becomes a reality, Mark and I would meet regularly to discuss the professional development he must continue to pursue to be an appealing candidate to his business partners.
During one of our coaching sessions, I worked with Mark to refine his elevator pitch so he could communicate to prospects and referral sources what differentiates him from his competition. I encouraged Mark to attend the upcoming meeting of a networking group comprised of other accountants, lawyers, bankers and financial planners, many of whom I knew.
As a visitor, Mark would be given a couple of minutes to introduce himself and his practice. I wished him good luck and told him to check-in with me after the meeting.
The afternoon of the meeting, I was sitting in my office when the phone rang. It was a business contact of mine, Jeffrey, who called to tell me he had met Mark at the networking group. Knowing all the effort Mark and I had spent to refine his elevator pitch, I asked Jeffrey to tell me what he thought of Mark’s introduction. Jeffrey replied by saying, “Mark seems like a nice guy and a capable attorney, but why didn’t he show up in a suit?”
Does "I'm sorry" make it all better?
Having been at the PR agency for only a few days, I thought it would be useful to convene the marketing committee comprised of account executives from every department in order to formally meet everyone and get a better sense of current projects and initiatives.
Within 15 minutes of the start of the meeting, and in response to my question, “So tell me about some of the initiatives that have been successful at the agency,” one of the principals, Mike, remarked, “Wait, wait, wait! What the hell are we doing here? This committee has never accomplished a damn thing, and now I’m supposed to spend my precious time bringing our new director of marketing up to speed? Who’s to say if we provide him with the information that he’s even capable of delivering? He’s probably nothing more than the half wits who used to have his position!”
Last week, news broke that Arnold Schwarzenegger fathered a love child with a member of his household staff more than a decade ago. Instantly, the Terminator and Governator drew worldwide scorn as the Inseminator.
Although Arnold isn’t the first high profile, internationally recognized personality to be unfaithful, he follows a long list of politicians who have cheated on their wives, such as President Clinton, former South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, and former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer.
From a branding perspective, do actions we take in our personal lives have the ability to affect our business? Do we hold certain people, like celebrities and politicians, to a different standard than we would a colleague, a neighbor, or a friend? Is it permissible to turn a blind eye to one’s bad behavior because they are a significant revenue source or have industry influence?
My mother, Kathy, was an executive for General Motors for almost 30 years. During that time, and in pursuit of different roles throughout the company, GM transferred my family from Salt Lake City to Portland, then to Detroit and California, with a final stop in New York. To say that Kathy was loyal and dedicated to the GM brand would be an understatement.
Throughout her time at the company, Kathy would receive pitches from vendors, who were hoping to peddle their products. In one particular instance, Kathy agreed to meet with Ron and Bob, principals from a Chicago-based advertising agency who had a remarkable idea for the campaign launch of a new, Chevrolet vehicle.