1. Final Project
The Evolution of Personal Branding: From the Social World to
the Business World
By
Francisco Noceda
A Final Project Submitted to the Manhattanville College School of Business
in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of
Master of Science in Marketing Communication Management
Spring 2016
_______________________
Program Director
_________________________
Dean

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF FIGURES...................................................................................................... 4
DEDICATION................................................................................................................... 5
DECLARATION............................................................................................................... 6
ABSTRACT....................................................................................................................... 7
1. INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................... 8
1.1 INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................... 8
1.2 BACKGROUND............................................................................................................ 9
1.3 Purpose of Research Goals and ObjectiveS......................................................... 10
1.4 PROBLEMDEFINITION ............................................................................................ 11
1.5 PROPOSITIONS TO BE EXAMINED.....................................................................................................12
2. LITERATURE REVIEW .......................................................................................... 13
2.1 THERISEOF PERSONAL BRANDING ....................................................................... 13
2.1.1 Early Years........................................................................................................ 13
2.1.2 The Popularization of Personal Branding ........................................................ 14
2.2 PERSONAL BRANDING TODAY: WEB 2.0 AND SOCIAL MEDIA .............................. 16
2.2.1 Web 2.0.............................................................................................................. 16
2.2.2 Social Media...................................................................................................... 18
3. RESEARCH APPROACH......................................................................................... 23
3.1 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY..................................................................................... 23
3.2 PROBLEMSTATEMENT............................................................................................ 23
3.3 DATA COLLECTION METHODS ............................................................................... 24
3.4 RESEARCHQUESTIONS ............................................................................................ 26
4. OBERVATIONS AND ANALYSIS .......................................................................... 27
4.1 PERSONAL BRANDING IN ACTION........................................................................... 27
4.1.1 WILLIAM ARRUDA AND REACH PERSONAL BRANDING....................................... 27
4.1.2 CHRIS DESSI: TAKING CHARGE OF YOUR PERSONAL BRAND............................. 30
4.1.3 GARY VAYNERCHUK: PERSONAL BRANDING EPITOMIZED................................. 33
4.2 ANALYSIS/ INTERPRETATION.................................................................................. 35
5. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMEDATIONS....................................................... 36
5.1 CONCLUSIONS.......................................................................................................... 36
5.2 RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................................................... 38
5.2.1 Building on Reputation...................................................................................... 38
5.2.3 Provide Benefit for your Audience.................................................................... 39
5.2.3 Protecting your Brand....................................................................................... 39
5.2.4 Put in the Work.................................................................................................. 40
5.3 SUMMARY ................................................................................................................ 41
5.4 ORIGINALITY........................................................................................................... 43
5.5 CONTRIBUTION TO THE BODY OF KNOWLEDGE IN THE FIELD ............................... 43
5.6 LIMITATIONS ........................................................................................................... 42
5.7 SCOPE FOR FUTURE RESEARCH............................................................................... 44
6. REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................. 45

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7. APPENDIX.................................................................................................................. 47
7.1 ABOUT THE BUSINESS PROFESSIONALS SURVEYED/INTERVIEWED ...................... 47
7.1.1 Matthew Sawyer................................................................................................ 47
7.1.2 Patricia Nelson.................................................................................................. 47
7.1.3 Kenneth Koprowski........................................................................................... 48
7.2 TOPICS COVERED DURING SURVEY/INTERVIEWS................................................... 48
7.3 Interview Release Statements ............................................................................... 49
7.3.1 Matthew Sawyer................................................................................................ 50
7.3.2 Patricia Nelson.................................................................................................. 51
7.3.3 Kenneth Koprowski........................................................................................... 52

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Table of Figures
Figure 2.1: Areas Web 2.0 Technologies Contributes to the Most……………………17
Figure 2.2: Twitter Demographics 2015………………………………………………19
Figure 2.3: LinkedIn Demographics 2015…………………………………………… 21
Figure 4.1: Building the Personal Brand……………………………………………….35

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Dedication
To my incredible mother and father, for always believing in me and putting up with me. I
thank you for passing down your perseverance. The work ethic you both have shown, my
entire life, is a driving force in the person I hope to become.

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Declaration
I grant power of discretion to the Department, the School of Business, and
Manhattanville College to allow this final project to be copied in part or in whole without
further reference to me. This permission covers only copes made for study purposes or
for inclusion in Department, School of Business, and Manhattanville College research
publications, subject to normal conditions of acknowledgement

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Abstract
Personal branding has become a popular practice during the past twenty years. With the
rise of technology and the development of social media, individuals now have the
opportunity to take control of their careers, and build their own brand to help with the
enhancement of their careers. Through literature review, this paper will introduce the
history of personal branding, and how the development of Web 2.0 and the rise of social
media have affected individuals who have personal brands. Cases of individuals who
have used personal branding for success were studied in depth in order to demonstrate to
readers how beneficial personal branding can be. In addition, interviews with business
professionals who have been affected by personal branding help clear up how to build a
personal brand, and why it has become much more commonly practiced. The three
individuals also give valuable first-hand experience and knowledge in why personal
branding is so beneficial in the modern business world. This paper will benefit any reader
interested in delving into personal branding, or who may just be curious to learn more
about the practice. Those who are unemployed, looking for a career change, or just
interested in learning more about the practice will benefit from this paper, as it provides
the clear benefits of personal branding along with how to go about building a personal
brand.

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1. Introduction
1.1 Introduction
Personal branding is the practice of individual’s marketing themselves and their
careers as brands, using their education and knowledge to make themselves more well-
rounded professionals. Personal branding involves impression and reputation
management, as well being able to stay up to date on trends in the industry one may work
in, or an industry of interest, thus helping one to become a trusted and respected expert.
Practices such as writing, blogging, and being active on social media can help enhance a
personal brand, while also expanding one’s reach and network.
A lot more goes into personal branding than just being outgoing at the office or a great
leader within a department or even within a company. The rise of the internet and the
creation of social platforms have had a significant impact in the rise of personal branding,
as “the internet has forced everyone in the world to become a marketer.” (Giridharadas)
With the fluidity of the economy and issue job safety, personal branding can help ensure
a “measure of job security”, if done properly. With our ever-changing society and as
mentioned, the rise of social media, personal branding is “no longer a nice-to-have, it’s a
must-have.” (Johnstone)
The scope of this paper will focus on demonstrating the necessity of personal branding in
the modern business world, and showing how it can help set one apart both within an
organization and in an industry as a whole. It will also provide examples of individuals
who have benefitted from personal branding and some of the practices they found
successful. Finally it will provide suggestions as to how to create and grow one’s own
personal brand.

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1.2 Background
Personal branding can be defined in many ways. Ifan Shepherd, a GeoBusiness
professor at the Middlesex University of London, who has studied personal branding and
personal development, defines personal branding as a “variety of activities undertaken by
individuals to make themselves known in the marketplace.” (Khedher) Experts also
equate people to goods and services and proposes that the current American Marketing
Association (AMA) definition of a brand is simply extended to include people. (Khedher)
The AMA defines a brand as "A brand is a customer experience represented by a
collection of images and ideas; often, it refers to a symbol such as a name, logo, slogan,
and design scheme. Brand recognition and other reactions are created by the
accumulation of experiences with the specific product or service, both directly relating to
its use, and through the influence of advertising, design, and media commentary.” The
term can be defined in many ways, but the substance is all the same. Personal Branding is
not new, “it was first introduced in the 1937 book “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon
Hill.” (Johnstone) While it may have been introduced in the 1930’s, the concept was not
popularized until decades later.
In 1997, Tom Peters wrote in his Fast Company article, The Brand Called You,
which popularized personal branding as it made it clear that it was not only a tactic for
athletes, celebrities and politicians. “Regardless of age, regardless of position, regardless
of the business we happen to be in, all of us need to understand the importance of
branding. We are the CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc. To be in business today, our
most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You.” (Peters) The
following years saw personal branding grow with a “rising number of books on the

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subject, magazines, web sites, training programs, personal coaches, and specialized
literature about how exactly to brand oneself for success in the business world.” (Khedar)
With the dawn of the digital age in the early-mid 2000’s, personal branding has
become increasingly important. The days of being outgoing at the office, and letting your
work speak for itself began to not be enough to be successful within an organization.
Social media outlets like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and the rise of Web 2.0 (web sites
that emphasize user-generated content, usability, and interoperability) have made it
possible for people for concentrate on developing their own personal brands, while
reaching a much broader audience thus creating opportunities that may not have been
available to them for it not for personal branding. Today, “successful employees working
at large companies desperately need to create a “brand within a brand”, a professional
passport that travels with them from place to place.” (Hyatt) Personal branding has
helped those from entry level positions to those in the C-Suite, and as people continue to
find success with the concept, more and more people are turning to it, so much so that
personal branding has become “not only acceptable, but necessary.” (Brand You)
1.3 Research: Purpose, Goals and Objectives
Personal Branding has become a much more common practice in the modern business
world. From blogging, tweeting, sharing, writing and much more, there are now many
outlets for individual’s to communicate to the world. It can be a bit intimidating,
especially for those who may not be as experienced, but this paper hopes to clarify how
personal branding can help enhance one’s career, and even help in creating new
employment or other opportunities.

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With the rise of Web 2.0 and social media, personal branding has become a more labor
intensive task than in the past. Professionals who put the time and effort to dedicate
themselves to building their personal brand, can find success. This paper will demonstrate
how personal branding has evolved and how professionals have used it for their benefit,
and it will clarify how and why it must be common practice in the modern business
world.
As stated, personal branding is becoming more common place today, and this extends
beyond being active on social media, and having TV or Radio ads. Professionals have to
make sure to be up to date with what is trending in their industry or company. With an
unstable economic and work environment, professionals need to make sure that they are
prepared in case anything occurs. “To be in business today, our most important job is to
be head marketer for the brand called You.” (Peters) Tom Peters wrote these words more
almost 20 years ago, and they are very much still relevant. This paper will aid
professionals in all aspects of personal branding, and in the end, help in the creation of
their own personal brands.
1.4 Problem Definition
Personal Branding is no longer a choice, but a necessity in the modern business
world. The growth of the internet and the rise of social media have made it pivotal for
individual’s to think of themselves as brands. Gone are the days of beginning and ending
your career with the same company or organization. With an ever-changing economy and
job insecurity always being an issue, business professional’s need to keep their skills up
to date, and make sure to be in the now, in terms of what is trending, or changing in
whatever industry they are be involved in.

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Personal branding “if applied correctly can transform any person into a brand in any
field.” (Khedar)
Individuals should be aware that in the current environment, if you do not market
yourself, someone else will. With the internet and the social media revolution (Web 2.0)
that followed, society has become more connected than ever, and this change made it
possible for individuals to be known simply for their online presence. As social outlets
became more widely used by all, so did the ability to for business professionals to
distinguish themselves with the help of their online presences. This paper seeks to clarify
why personal branding has become necessary in business today and it will provide
suggestions as to how one should go about developing their own personal brand.
1.5 Propositions To Be Examined
This paper will test the statements below, and provide professionals with ideas and
methods to cultivate their own brands.
 Why is Personal Branding a necessity?
 How to go about building a personal brand.
 What role has social media played in the evolution of personal branding?
 What are the benefits of building your personal brand?
 How can personal branding affect your reputation negatively?

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2. Literature Review
2.1 The Rise of Personal Branding
2.1.1 Early Years
While many might think that personal branding is a recent concept developed
with the help of the age of technology, the concept is actually much older than
that. In 1937, author Napolean Hill released “Think and Grow Rich”, which many
experts agree was the introduction of the personal branding concept. Hill
mentioned that “You are the master of your destiny. You can influence, direct and
control your own environment. You can make your life what you want it to be.”
Hill spoke of personal development and that each individual is the master of their
own fate.
Going off of Hill’s work, in 1959 Erving Goffman’s “The Presentation of Self in
Every Day Life”. In the book, Goffman viewed people as actors, engaging in
performances, in various setting’s seen by audiences. “The actor is on stage and
acting in ways that will produce the most favorable impression.” (Khedar)
Goffman coined the term impression management, which is the practice of
“conscious or subconscious process in which people attempt to influence the
perceptions of other people about a person, object or event. They do so by
regulating and controlling information in social interaction.” Impression
management of course plays a role in personal branding as people’s impressions
of an individual is key to it, if someone has a poor impression a person, they may
not want to have any more to do with them.

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In 1980, personal branding again resurfaced in the release of “Positioning:
The Battle for Your Mind” by Al Reis and Jack Trout. The authors discuss how
“Positioning in the first body of thought to come to grips with the problems of
communicating in an over-communicated society.” (Khedher) Additionally the
authors mentioned “you can benefit by using positioning strategy to advance your
own career.” This rings trues in personal branding as one has to position oneself
correctly in order to have the most impact on the audience, if one is trying to
communicate to the wrong audience, it is unlikely they will find success. A
personal brand without a strong brand position is likely to get passed over. Hill,
Goffman, Reis and Trout all contributed to the development of the concept of
personal branding, but they never truly embraced personal branding, instead
discussing self-improvement and how important the individual is. Personal
branding would become a much more widely accepted concept and practice in the
1990’s with the help of Tom Peters and The Brand Called You.
2.1.2 The Popularization of Personal Branding
As mentioned in the section above, the foundation of personal branding was
built on “self-help”, but with his 1997 Fast Company article “The Brand Called
You”, Tom Peters made it clear that it was a “new brand world.” Peters discussed
how people are their own brands and that “regardless of age, regardless of
position, regardless of the business they happen to be in, everyone needs to
understand the important of branding. “We are the CEOs of our own companies:
Me Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for
the brand called You.” Peters made it clear to the readers of the article that

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“everyone has a chance to be a brand worthy of remark.” (Peters) One has to see
themselves as a brand, and be their own brand manager. In order to do so, it is
necessary to “ask yourself the same question brand managers at Nike, Coke,
Pepsi, or the Body Shop ask themselves: What is it that my product or service
does that makes it different?” A person has to identify the qualities or
characteristics that set him/her apart from their competitors- or in the case of
personal branding, their colleagues.
Peter’s key premises for personal branding is that everyone has a personal
brand, but most people are not aware of this and do not “manage it strategically,
consistently, and effectively” (Khedar) One has to be open to “enhancing your
profile”, making themselves more well-rounded employees. Peters suggests
moonlighting, signing up for extra projects at work, or introducing yourself to
colleagues in order to showcase skills, or even working on new skills. Peters also
suggested writing, contributing to local columns or opinion pieces. Getting
oneself out there is what Peters preached. It is important to remember that with
appearance is also an important part of any personal branding campaign.
“Everything from the way you handle phone conversations to email messages
you may respond to, and even how you dress and go about your daily business are
all important when it comes to your individual brand.” (Peters) Word-of-Mouth
marketing is also key; your network of friends, colleagues, clients, and customers
are very important because what they say about you and your contributions is
what the marketing will ultimately gauge your value as a brand. Perception is

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also of great importance when it comes to personal branding. “If you want people
to see you as a powerful brand, act like a credible leader.” (Peters)
With this article, Tom Peters made it evident to people that each individual has
the power to take themselves and their career as far as possible. The rise of social
media and the dawn of Web 2.0 would mark significant changes in the way
individuals could go about personal branding. Personal branding would see a true
renaissance in the new millennium.
2.2 Personal Branding Today: Web 2.0 and Social Media
2.2.1 Web 2.0
In the early 2000’s, the internet saw a change in the way websites and the web
worked. “Web 1.0 was seen as one-to-many online platform where a few
businesses, organization and individuals held a one-way dialog with people over
the Internet. They could pass on information in a variety of ways, but the
interaction was limited.” (Beattie) Since Web 1.0 was seen as limited, there had to
be a way to open up the online community and get people interacting.
Web 2.0 was seen as the next step for the internet. The main concept of Web
2.0 was many-to-many content. Individuals could set up their own websites and
blogs, post videos, and fill the Web with user-generated content. Part of the Web
2.0 package was an easier platform to work with. For the first time, people with
little HTML experience could set up a site through third-party software. With the
development of Web 2.0, personal branding became much easier and in depth for
people who may not have been as technologically savvy, but still had good

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knowledge and experience to share. It opened up pathways for people to connect
and be able to communicate and collaborate.
Figure 2.1: Areas Web 2.0 Technologies Contributes to the most
Source: Stephen J. Andriole/ Communications of the ACM, U.S., December 2010
Table 2.1 above, shows that knowledge management and collaboration and
communication are where Web 2.0 contributes the most. This figure shows that
Web 2.0 has had a profound affect in collaboration and communication within
business, therefore it provides a platform for individuals who may choose to
create their own site, blog, or contribute to existing blogs to have the opportunity
to communicate with a specific audience, thus enhancing their reach and opening
themselves to new opportunities. This figure shows how Web 2.0 has impacted
business in additional areas such as customer relationship management and
innovation. Within Web 2.0, is the practice of social networking, which is a big

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part of personal branding that is until social media would come and change social
networking and personal branding altogether.
2.2.2 Social Media
As Web 2.0 continued to shape the way business’s operated online, and make
it a more open and smaller world, the world started to become vastly digital.
Social media made it so people needed to manage our online identities, social
profile presences, and keep track of their digital footprints. Social media offers the
opportunity to truly be able to target specific audiences with content, and is now
considered the one of, if not the most, important aspects of personal branding.
Social outlets can be most beneficial to aiding one’s personal brand, and while in
reality all social media can help with a personal brand, in this section we will deal
with specifically with how Twitter and LinkedIn benefit a personal brand.
Twitter:
Twitter is a microblogging site that limits users to a 140 character limit,
therefore individuals have to be precise and brief in what they say. While also a
great service for professional athletes, celebrities, and reporters, many corporate
level (C-Level) leaders have taken to the site to “strengthen their own brands.”
(Whitler) With more than 330 million users worldwide and “users positioning 750
tweets per second” (Vaynerchuk, Jab), Twitter offers an audience that is ready to
listen. According to entrepreneur and personal branding guru Gary Vaynerchuk,
Twitter’s “main currency is news and information.” This would make Twitter
perfect for individuals to get creative with tweets, in order to get people’s
attention and interested in what they may have to say in the future. Twitter is also

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a great service to connect to your personal website, blog, or any other content you
may have which may exceed the 140 character limit. Twitter’s demographics help
illustrate who is using the social outlet.
Figure 2.2 Twitter Demographics 2015
Source: Pew Research Center, March 17-April 12, 2015
Duggan, Maeve. “The Demographics of Social Media Users.” Pew Research Center 19 Aug.
2015.Web 7 April 2016.
Twitter’s demographics, shown above, should help clarify why it can be so helpful
with personal branding. Its main audience is individuals aged 18-50, with these
individuals earning salaries ranging from 30,000-75,000+. This means that people go to
the site for more than entertainment and leisure. They know they can leverage their
Twitter account to help grow their personal brand, by acquiring more followers to read

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and share their content. Social media expert Phil Glutting offers five ways to strengthen
and grow a personal brand on twitter by;
1. Put a disclaimer your Twitter bio. Therefore you separate your views from that of
your company or workplace. This provides a degree of safety as you want to
build your brand, but not put your job in jeopardy.
2. Avoid hot-button topics. Keep with what you know, your opinion are your own.
3. Be strategic with how you engage. Follow individuals who you may admire and
who you may want to be like one day with your personal brand.
4. Be disciplined. Tweet about key topic that you are knowledgeable about, this
may help establish your brand and help grow it faster.
5. Don’t let something get under your skins, everyone has a right to their own
opinions and if they criticize what you to say, just have let it happen, not
everyone will agree with what you may say.
As mentioned Twitter can be a great aid to help one grow a personal brand by
tweeting consistent and interesting content that their community of followers can
benefit from. LinkedIn is a social service that seems to have been made specifically
for networking and growing your personal brand.
LinkedIn:
According to personal branding expert William Arruda, “first introduced as little
more than an online resume, LinkedIn has quickly transformed into a rich,
customizable, multi-faceted personal branding platform. It helps you do your job
better and manage your brand throughout the longevity of your career.” (Arruda,
Why) The “professional’s” social network, it is used for individuals to have an

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“online” resume, while also offering the opportunity to connect with past and present
colleagues, friends, and school mates. The social outlet is useful for job seekers,
employers trying to gage the background and career history of current and potential
employees, and a great source for growing a personal brand. The demographics
below, show who is on LinkedIn. Much like Twitter, LinkedIn’s main users are
individuals in the early and middle stages of their careers, with average to above
average salaries.
Figure 2.3 LinkedIn Demographics 2015
Source: Pew Research Center, March 17-April 12, 2015
Duggan, Maeve. “The Demographics of Social Media Users.” Pew Research Center 19 Aug.
2015 Web 7 April 2016.

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LinkedIn offers the opportunity to connect to your personal site/blog, and with no
character limit, posts can be much more creative and thoughtful. C-Suite individuals with
years of experience can leverage that experience and create posts, the equivalent of a
tweet on Twitter that is akin to blogging. These posts will be seen by a network that the
individual has developed, therefore being quite targeted. LinkedIn is such a great source
that, if done right, can be a main source for personal branding. It offers a way to create
and share content that is relevant and useful for individuals in an industry or sector of
work and makes a person visible to “decision-makers who are looking for exactly the
services you provide.” (Arruda, Why) If someone in business is interested in personal
branding, they have to be on and active on LinkedIn.

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3. Research Approach
3.1 ResearchMethodology
This thesis was developed using the primary and secondary research approach. Primary
methods included interviewing business professionals with many years of experience and
all with personal experience in personal branding. Secondary methods included reading
articles, cases studies, and additional literature on personal branding beliefs, history and
methods. This process of research was believed to be the best approach to help
understand the full scope of personal branding as well as support the theory that personal
branding is now a necessary part of the modern business world.
3.2 Problem
With the rise of technology, the development of Web 2.0, and the rise of social media,
personal branding has become much more important for individuals to set themselves
apart and open door’s to other opportunities. With an unstable or shaky, to say the least,
economy, personal branding can help ensure a measure of job security. While being a
good employee, transparent with coworkers and management, and open to collaborating
with people are still very widely used methods of career enhancement, the World Wide
Web has truly changed how individuals can go about building a career. By creating
personal sites, blogs, or contributing to industry specific blogs individuals have begun to
open themselves up to a larger audience’s. There is of course a right way and wrong way
to personal branding, but if individuals are true to themselves and their intended
audiences, both parties should benefit.

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With the help of social media, individuals can now benefit from their skills,
experience, and knowledge. Sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook have all made
it possible for people to create and grow an audience of followers that are interested in
what they have to say. Whether they are an executive with 30 years’ experience or a
college graduate fresh out of school, both have the power to create and grow their
personal brand and social media. This thesis seeks to give readers clarity on the practice
of personal branding and why the stand to benefit from it in their own lives. Additionally,
readers will be provided with basic guidelines in building a personal brand that they stand
to benefit from.
3.3 Data Collection Methods
Data was collected primarily using the online resources and databases such as; EBSCO,
Business Source Premier, PsychINFO, Communication & Mass Media Complete. The
databases aided in finding books, articles, and other relevant literature aiding in learning
more about personal branding and help to answer the research questions. The two books
chosen, authored by personal branding experts, for this paper were Jab, Jab, Jab, Right
Hook by Gary Vaynherchuk and Remarkable You: Build a Personal Brand and Take
Charge of Your Career by Chris Dessi. In addition outsides sources such as Google
Scholar, the New York Times, and American Marketing Association (AMA) aided in
helping clearly understand branding and how personal branding has changed over the
years.
Primary research was also conducted. A survey of six questions were developed and
sent to three individuals, all business professionals, with backgrounds in

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Communications, Marketing and Public Relations. The three individuals each received
the following questions;
1. What are your thoughts on Personal Branding (PB)?
2. Do you believe it has become a more common practice in recent years?
3. What is your personal experience with PB? How have you used it?
4. What do you believe are a few of the best practices for PB success that you
may have used?
5. Can you think of someone who personifies how beneficial PB can be for
professional success?
6. How do you believe PB will be utilized in the coming years? What may
change?
Each of the individuals have experience with personal branding and have benefitted
from the practice. Kenneth Koprowski took time to answer the survey and send it back to
the author. Matthew Sawyer and Patricia Nelson, completed the survey and chose to
speak personally with the author over the phone and additionally discussed their feelings
on personal branding. The conversations helped in getting more of a sense of their
expertise and their feelings and knowledge on the topic of personal branding. Having the
professionals’ answer these questions brought a sense of clarity into how personal
branding can benefit any individual who is willing to put in the time and effort.
Finally, the author researched case studies of individuals who have benefited from
personal branding and are experts in the execution and practice of personal branding on
the social and digital side. The three experts chosen were William Arruda, Chris Dessi
and Gary Vaynerchuk, all of whom have first-hand experience with personal branding,

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using the practice to help build their careers, and are true symbolization’s of how much
the practice can help with career enhancement.
3.4 ResearchQuestions
1. Why is Personal Branding a necessity?
2. How to go about building a personal brand.
3. What role has social media played in the evolution of personal branding?
4. What are the benefits of building your personal brand?
5. How can personal branding affect your reputation negatively?

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4. Observations and Analysis
In this section, this paper will discuss how to go about building a personal brand.
Taking from all of the sources utilized in the paper, along with the primary research of
having business professionals who have firsthand experience with the subject, this section
will showcase cases of individuals who have used personal branding for success in their
own careers.
4.1 Personal Branding in Action
4.1.1 William Arruda and ReachPersonal Branding
William Arruda is renowned as a motivational speaker, social media consultant, and
personal branding pioneer. A true advocate of the practice he states, “It took technology-
Web 2.0- to make executives and employees at all levels of the organization that business
truly is a human endeavor. It’s clear that, to succeed today, we need to build relationships
inside and outside the company, regardless of our role or level.” (Martin, Arruda, Alba)
Mr. Arruda credits his interest in personal branding to Tom Peters’ "The Brand Called
You." According to his LinkedIn page, he credits the article to “changing everything”,
saying “Here were my two great passions – branding and people - joined in an
exhilarating alchemy called personal branding!” Mr. Arruda continued his “day job”,
with IBM/Lotus Software, but eventually he could “no longer ignore the pull of personal
branding.” Going off a growing interest and passion in personal branding, Mr. Arruda
started Reach Personal Branding in 2001. Reach Personal Branding offers personal
branding resources to help advance ones career or support their organization. Using
internal branding keynotes, workshops, blended learning programs and coaching
engagements enabling clients to get the best from their talents. With hard work and
dedication, his persistence paid off as “Reach is now the leader in personal branding with

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certified Strategists in 45 countries and pioneering products used by a million+ people.
Mr. Arruda built Reach through the belief that “Personal branding is a revolution in the
way you manage a career or business. Your personal brand is what is authentic to you,
differentiating from your peers and relevant and compelling to those who are making
decisions about you. In a phrase, it’s your unique promise of value.” (Reach Personal
Branding)
Mr. Arruda built Reach, along with his own personal brand through hard work and
dedication. He researched and studied the practice, developing a certification program for
individuals to become coaches and consultants in the “Reach personal branding
methodology”. He also delivers keynote speeches and workshops on the transformative
power of personal branding for some of the world’s most successful companies. Speaking
is one of the best ways to grow a personal brand as it gives people the opportunity to get
to know more about a person or business and their knowledge or what they may offer in
the first person. Helping verify what individuals might think of the person/business as an
“expert” or “leader”.
As a thought-leader, Mr. Arruda is a sought-after spokesperson on personal branding,
social media and leadership. He often speaks regarding personal branding and the
benefits of the practice, in addition to being a motivation speaker. He has appeared on
BBC TV, the Discovery Channel and Fox News Live and he’s been featured in countless
publications, including Time Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and
Entrepreneur. He is also very active on LinkedIn, and contributes posts often, while also
being active in groups, thus helping expand his reach and letting others discuss about
how knowledgeable he and Reach Personal Branding are. He believes LinkedIn can be a

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true asset to help your personal brand and states. “If you are going to choose only one
personal branding tool to invest time in, choose LinkedIn. With a smart profile and a
well-honed strategy, LinkedIn can become your powerful partner in long-range branding
and career management.” (Arruda, Why)
William Arruda: Constructing Your Own Personal Brand
In addition to his publications in multiple news outlets, blogs, etc... Mr. Arruda has
also written a few books regarding personal branding. He co-authored the 2007 best-
selling Career Distinction: Stand Out by Building Your Brand. In the book he lays out a
three step process to set yourself apart by building your brand. The steps are;
1. Unearth Your Unique Promise of Value
In this step, Mr. Arruda discusses defining yourself and being able to personally
grow as an individual and professional. He also discusses defining your brands
community, and telling your brand story.
2. Communicate Your Brand to Your Target Audience
This step deals with deciding how to communicate with your target audience or
community. This involves determining what social outlets to be a part of, in terms
of your brand, getting creative and expressing yourself.
3. Manage Your Brand Environment
This final step involves reflecting on your efforts and evaluating what may have
worked or failed. Learning from past mistake and success is a large part of
personal branding.
Mr. Arruda has helped expand the practice of personal branding as some credit him
with “turning the concept into a global industry.” (Reach Personal Branding) He took the

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inspiration from the Peters article and ran with it, helping shape personal branding at the
same time.
4.1.2 Chris Dessi: Taking Charge of Your Personal Brand
Chris Dessi is another beneficiary of building a personal brand. He states that,
“building a personal brand changed my life.” This is evident with his first blog post, in
which he described what he would do if he was given the opportunity to be a vice
president (VP) of marketing. When he interviewed for a VP job a month later, he
discussed the ideas he had put forward in that post, and was given the job. In the end,
thus one blog post helped earn Mr. Dessi a new job title and a great salary of $260,000,
all because of one blog post. Mr. Dessi is a clear advocate of personal branding, and he
believes that "You" are the Brand of The Year.” (Dessi, Why) He believes 2016 is the
year of the personal brand, “Personal brand building online for executives, employees
and students will dominate 2016.” (Dessi, Why)
He has elevated his career through hard work and the ability to know when to act or
jump on an opportunity, which he did with his personal brand. He has become a leading
personal branding and social media expert, and regularly speaks as the keynote speaker at
conferences and he “loves helping people realize how powerful social media can be to
create your personal brand, generate awareness & sales through social media channels.”
Additionally he appears on CNBC, CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, and Good Day New York
among others, to discuss topics ranging from social media to personal branding.
Mr. Dessi embraced the power of Web 2.0 and social media, almost from the outset.
He believes personal branding can be of great benefit, whether one is working or
unemployed. “Your whole industry might go away because of a technological shift that

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may be occurring, and by building your personal brand, you are taking the first step in the
right direction for creating a safety net.” (Dessi, Remarkable)
With all the success Mr. Dessi found, he wanted to give back by helping people
interested in building a personal brand. In his book, Remarkable You, Mr. Dessi sets forth
seven pillars to building your brand;
1. Pillar One: Generate Ideas
Mr. Dessi suggests to try and take time to generate 10 ideas each day. You never
know what may be a “star” or a “dud”. You never know what may come of your
ideas, take time and write them down.
2. Pillar Two: Define Your Passion
Mr. Dessi was inspired by Gary Vaynerchuk, who has had success with personal
branding, about truly doing what you’re passionate about. If it is your family, a
sport, a hobby, anything, you need to “find what it is you love to do and get
proficient at it. Success dwells at the fulcrum of passion and excellence.” (Dessi,
Remarkable)
3. Pillar Three: Work, Focus, and Persist
With anything in life, success comes to those who truly work for it. Mr. Dessi
suggests “surrounding yourself with people who support you and your vision.”
(Dessi, Remarkable) Don’t let distractions in life get in the way, or if mishaps
happen, always stay focused on what you want to accomplish and persist through
all the negative.

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4. Pillar Four: Become More Self-Aware
This goes back to defining your passion, understand yourself and what you are
capable of. You need to understand your weaknesses and own up to them, you can
try to work on them or you can “surround yourself with people who can help in
the ahead of your life where you’re least proficient.” (Dessi, Remarkable)
5. Pillar Five: Do Good, Give Back
At some point in all our live, we have been helped. Even if and when you are a
huge success, remember to try and give back. Be open to mentoring people, write
a helpful blog if you are considered an expert, or become an adjunct professor.
Giving back may also open you up to new opportunities.
6. Pillar Six: Use Technology The Right Way
Technology has become the second most important part of personal branding. The
first, of course is you, but with the advancements in technology, it is truly the best
way to “supplement and add value to in-person networking” (Dessi, Remarkable)
For those who may be “shy” or not as great with people as they would like to be,
technology like social media, can help people interact and distinguish themselves.
7. Pillar Seven: Get Curious
Ask questions of people who have succeeded before you. Always ask questions,
research, and try and figure out why someone may be more successful than you,
even if you have the same qualities. If you admire someone, see what they have
done to be successful, and try it for yourself.
Chris Dessi has found success by being faithful to his pillars. He continues to develop
new ideas and stay curios, and continues to grow his personal brand. Additionally he

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keeps busy acting as CEO of Silverback Social, an award winning digital marketing
agency located in Westchester, NY. He is also a fan, follower, and occasional
collaborator with this papers next expert, Gary Vanynerchuk.
4.1.3 Gary Vaynerchuk: Personal Branding Epitomized
William Arruda, and Chris Dessi are fine examples of what personal branding can do
for your career. Gary Vaynerchuk however, built his career entirely on his personal
brand, which began with a YouTube Series, Wine Library TV, where he tasted different
samples of wine, giving his expert opinion. Wine Library was the Vaynerchuk family
business, started by his father, but Gary saw the opportunity to help expand the Wine
Library brand name and reputation, while also building a personal brand, as Gary is a
character himself. He knew that video was catching on, and with his personality, the two
blended perfectly. Mr. Vayerchuk also realized that social media would be a key part in
growing his personal brand, and the Wine Library TV reach. Twitter played an integral
part in the growth of the Gary V brand. “Twitter is the cocktail party of the Internet, a
place where listening well has tremendous benefits.” (Vaynercuk, Jab)
By creating compelling content, variety in that content (text, video, pictures),
consistently staying up to date on social trends grew a following and soon began blogging
on his site, and Medium, a social blogging service, about building a personal brand on
social media. He also writes regularly on LinkedIn, Mashable and in publications like the
New York Times. He eventually shifted his focus from Wine Library TV, and began to
concentrate on consulting others in brand building, by creating his digital consulting
agency, VaynerMedia.

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Mr. Vaynerchuk believes that the staying up to date with the social world and trends is
key to building and maintaining your personal brand. “Hard work is always the best
remedy.” (Vaynerchuk, Jab) Mr. Vaynerchuk continues to find success because he
changes with his social environment. As newer social outlets, such as Instagram, Vine,
and SnapChat have come along and gained popularity, he has also realized that
businesses can use the social outlets. VaynerMedia has become a leading agency in
developing campaigns on these new social outlets, and their more established
contemporaries, such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. He hosts the #AskGaryVee
show, in which he answers people questions, mainly through Twitter dealing with
personal branding, and social media of course. He also regularly speaks at conferences
such as TechCrunch and TED talks and continues to grow his personal brand by being
active on all social platforms. He is the best representation of what personal branding can
shape a career, and open doors to a whole new facet of new opportunities.
The figure 4.1, following this paragraph, depicts all that personal branding entails in
our modern, social society. A lot more goes in the practice since the Peter’s article
because of the development of Web 2.0 and social media. Mr.’s Arruda, Dessi, and
Vaynerchuk have all found success using some, if not all of the methods below. Success
with personal branding can be much more in depth than previously thought but while it
may seem overwhelming, the cases above should help inspire individuals to begin
building their own brands.

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Figure 4.1 Building the Personal Brand
Source: Key tools available today to enhance a personal brand in social media (Harris & Rae, 2011).
qtd. in Rakauskaite
4.2 Analysis/ Interpretation
With the help of the literary review, and this analysis of cases in which personal
branding was a primary cog in success, the author has developed and identified four steps
that anyone interested in personal branding should follow for success. If individuals
choose to apply these steps, based on the conclusions of the research, they should be
more likely to effectively develop and grow a personal brand.

36. 36
5. Conclusions and Recommendations
5.1 Conclusions
After conducting a literature review, in depth case study analysis, and through the
survey and interviewing business professionals about the practice of personal branding
the author identified 4 key steps that can help any individual wanting to build a personal
brand find success;
1. Identify Your Specialty/Service
This involves figuring out what one is passionate about. It is your personal brand,
so make it something that you enjoy and truly love to do. If it is something
completely irrelevant to your current job position, that’s fine. If you are
passionate about your brand, you should be able to talk about your specialty and
be able to discuss different opinions and deal with a variety of feedback for the
content put out through social platforms.
2. Properly Position Your Brand
Make sure to be active in the right places. Once you have determined a specialty,
check social media site to see what others who share similar interests are doing. If
you see that many you admire contribute regularly to LinkedIn, then try and
create posts for the site. Posting on LinkedIn is free, and can be of great benefit
for people to see your content. It can help build a reputation and assist with a job
hunt. Positioning your brand and content is pivotal in making sure you are
reaching the right audience.

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3. Manage Your Brand
Simply put, this means being aware of any changes with your brand or the
specific sector you may be a part of. Be aware of what may be working on social
media or in your industry and always try to be ahead of what others are doing in
your sector. This may be the most difficult step, as managing a brand can be
different for everyone, but always be aware of what is trending or might be
changing. In this day and age, change is truly inevitable.
4. Reflect on Your Brand
This final step goes hand and hand with managing your brand, but reflection is
one of the most important steps in successful branding. Go back and look at your
efforts, “reflection can be an important tool to improve practices and assure
personal development.” (Khedher) Reflection is the best way for professional’s to
grow and know what their audience may be more attracted too. For example,
Gary Vaynerchuk noticed that when he would post written content or videos he
would have people interacting and commenting on this material. However, he also
had many people asking questions, and answering each question would slow his
workflow. So he decided to create the #AskGaryVee show, where he could take
all the questions from posts and answer them. He also was able to reach a larger
number of people, since some people would take the chance to ask questions
using the hashtag #AskGaryVee, on Twitter.
Following these steps will help individuals develop their personal brands. Looking
inward and deciding what you want to do with your brand is vital, and once that plan is
set, reflecting on the brand and content is the best way to go about growing the brand

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and shaping it for your audience. In terms of expenses, personal branding depends on
how much time one puts into developing content, writing, and doing the research
required. Social media makes it possible for all to build a personal brand. However, if
people want more help, the experts mentioned in this paper, William Arruda, Chris Dessi,
and Gary Vaynerchuk can be consulted on the subject, with each stetting their own price.
However if one does have the financial ability to hire one of these experts, that individual
should find the most success, if they are willing to put in the time and work.
5.2 Recommendations
The following recommendations are to be followed once one has begun building their
personal brand.
5.2.1 Building on a Reputation
Personal branding can seem overwhelming when one is just beginning. One
thing that helps is having an established reputation, as a credible and respected
professional. This may be easier for those beginning a personal brand a few years
into their career, as professional networks have already been established.
According to Kenneth Koprowski, an adjunct professor at Manhattanville College
School of Business, with over 30 years’ experience in the Communications field
says;
“You need to have strong name recognition, backed by trust and
credibility to be hired, read, or listened to seriously. This may put
people off since building a reputation may take time, individuals
need to be willing to put in the time and build a reputation and
avoid too much self-promotion, since this may put your audience
off and detract from growing your personal brand. Starting a
personal blog, preferably with your name as the website, can help

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enhance build a reputation if you are inexperienced, or even a
student looking to get into a particular field.”
5.2.2 Provide Benefit for your Audience
Any individual practicing personal branding should always look to help their
audience. Don’t worry about self-promotion with your content, try to create
content that will benefit people. Make sure that what you write, record, or
contribute is engaging and relevant with your audience. Developing content that is
relevant with what is going in your industry, or area of interest can help grow
your personal brand, since it will be of interest to your audience.
A prime example would be William Arruda, who regularly puts out posts on
LinkedIn regarding personal branding and how you can help your own brand.
“Effective personal branding requires authentic differentiation. You can’t
manufacture a set of colorful differences based on what seems to generate media
attention. Instead, you have to stand out by what makes you YOU.” (Arruda,
How) By providing benefit for your audience, your personal brand has a much
better chance of being seen differently, since you will seem as someone trying to
help, not just promoting yourself.
5.2.3 Protecting your Brand
As proven, personal branding can help a career, change a career, and can even
offer a safety net in case of job loss or any other circumstance. However,
protecting your personal brand is also very important. Individuals need to know
which topics to discuss, avoid hot button issues, as these will always bring out
your supporters, but will also help in gaining enemies, since not everyone think

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alike. When creating and posting content, be sure your information is correct,
even if it’s your opinion, be prepared to defend it properly, or you risk your
audience losing trust in you.
One prime example is Justine Sacco, former senior director of corporate
communications at IAC. Ms. Sacco had not really developed a personal brand, but
in the social world we live in, a personal brand can be created for you if you are
not careful. On a flight to South Africa, Ms. Sacco tweeted “Going to Africa.
Hope I don’t get AIDS. Just kidding. I’m white!” She tweeted this before her
flight, by the time she landed she was “the No. 1 worldwide trend on Twitter.”
(Ronson) She would lose her job, her friends, and her reputation would take a hit.
She has recovered somewhat professionally and is back to work, but her personal
brand, whether she wants it to or not, will always be linked to this incident. With
all the technology in use, it is important to remember that anything put onto social
media, will always be there for people to review and scrutinize. While this may be
an extreme example, Ms. Sacco is a true example of how one mistake can affect a
personal brand forever.
5.2.4 Put in the Work
Through all the research, analysis, and interviewing done for this paper, what
always came up when discussing personal branding was the fact that it takes a lot
of effort and work. This means it is important to put in the work in order to
become an expert in your field of choice and when this is done, with building the
personal brand. Patricia Nelson, one of the three business professionals
interviewed, says;

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“I think a personal brand is not just about how well you
promote yourself online, but about having the knowledge and the
ability to be an expert in your field, who provides a specific value
and or has a stable platform that is true to their background and
knowledge base. Everyone has a brand and how an individual
will and/or wants to be perceived is something we now have
more freedoms around, with the shift of individuals to internet
presences.”
Ms. Nelson has first-hand experience working with Gary Vaynerchuk, as she
was employee No. 20 at VaynerMedia. When speaking with her, she said
“Gary built himself through hard work and adapted to changes in an ever-
changing social world.” He would put in the work and study to see what
would work on social media, he always had time for followers, going back an
answering all comments personally on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and
Facebook.” Ms. Nelson ended by saying that personal branders need to
“spend less time promoting, and more time working.”
5.3 Summary
Personal branding has gone from a popular article, Peter’s “A Brand Called You”, to
one of the most written about topics in the past twenty years. One of the major changes
was the rise of social media, which opened the door for everyone to connect and become
an influencer with their audiences. Social media did not necessarily make personal
branding easier, but it made it more accessible to individuals who may not be as
experienced. “The internet has forced everyone in the world to become a marketer”
(Giridharadas)

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Aside from the literature review, the author performed interviews, and studied cases in
which personal branding was a main proponent of success. Through this work, the author
developed four steps to creating a personal brand;
1. Identifying your Specialty and Service: What is it you want to do with your
brand? What is it that makes you stand apart?
2. Properly Position Your Brand: Making sure to be on the right social platforms.
Contributing to the right blogs.
3. Manage Your Brand: Keeping up with what is going on in your social circle.
Making sure your content is relevant and engaging.
4. Reflecting on Your Brand: Learning from how you have done things in the past,
the best way to grow is by learning from mistakes and successes.
Following these steps should lead to success in creating a personal brand. In addition
to steps for starting a personal brand, the author provides additional recommendations to
help maintain and grow the personal brand. These recommendations included; (1)
Building on a reputation, (2) providing benefit for your audience, (3) Protecting Your
Brand, (4) Putting in the work. These recommendations will aid in connoting with the
building of your personal brand. Creativity, patience and persistence are just a few of the
qualities needed for anyone interested in personal branding. Even though there is no
guarantee of success, you do help yourself with the practice, as it could lead to new
opportunities or even a promotion at your current position.

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5.4 Originality
This paper presents a unique insight into personal branding through combined first-
hand knowledge from experts, while also providing cases of individuals who have found
success with the practice. Through research and analysis a clear four step guide to
developing a personal brand was created, and in the recommendations section, clear
directions on how to further help your personal brand once you have begun creating it are
laid out. The unique four step guide will benefit any reader who may be interested in
personal branding, and can be used to get one’s personal brand started, with hard work by
following the steps, readers are sure to find success with personal branding.
5.5 Contribution to the Body of Knowledge in the Field
Personal branding may not seem like a difficult concept to grasp, but a lot can go into
the practice. This paper offers a unique insight by providing original research with
personal branding experts and provides professionals with limited or no experience a
clear understanding of the practice. Since it is a relatively new concept and instructions
are still being written, this paper provides a new four step process to build a personal
brand. People in business, those looking for a career change and even those who may be
unemployed, and want to enhance their careers and be opened to new opportunities with
a personal brand stand to benefit from this paper and the four step process to building
one’s own personal brand.

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5.6 Limitations
The author encountered two limitations when working on this paper:
1. During research, much of the information found on personal branding was
similar, with only a few difference. This made sourcing difficult, as many of
the sources had similar information.
2. The four steps to create a personal brand and the recommendations developed
as a result of research have not been applied and tested. This information was
developed through research and theory. The information needs to be tested
and the four steps should be followed and reflected on in order to provide
results and additional information.
5.7 Scope for Future Research
Future research can test the four steps provided for creating a personal brand and the
additional recommendations developed for ongoing maintenance and growth.
Additionally, future researchers may benefit from exploring further into how social media
has changed personal branding. With new social platforms like Instagram, SnapChat, and
Vine, amongst other, the way individuals position there brand will change. These social
platforms will be a part of that, and the personal branders using older social platforms
like, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook will have to be adapted as the newer social
platforms grow in popularity and users.

45. 45
6. REFERENCES and BIBLIOGRAPHY
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Khedher, Manel. "An Inspiring Resource For Developing Personal Branding
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7. Appendix
7.1 About the Business Professionals Surveyed/Interviewed
The author conducted a six question survey with the business professional below. The
survey focused on the practice of personal branding, and their feelings and knowledge on
the topic. The author additionally spoke over the phone. with two of the three
professionals, Matthew Sawyer and Patricia Nelson, to get more of clarification on their
answers and get to know more about their careers;
7.1.1 Matthew Sawyer
Matthew Sawyer is Strategic marketing and content development professional
with foundation in “classic” consumer marketing who — over the past five years
— has built brands and grown revenue for early-stage, natively-digital, mobile,
Business to Business (B2B) and technology companies. Matthew teaches courses
in business strategy, marketing, and entrepreneurship at Columbia University and
Parsons School for Design. He has worked for companies such as Snapple,
Digitas, and Pitney Bowes. He regularly writes on LinkedIn, is a very active
speaker, and he has his own website where he tries to advise in one of his areas
of specialty such as; Global branding, integrated marketing, content strategy,
mobile applications, advertising, business development, client acquisition,
partnerships, SEO/SEM, digital marketing, market research, analytics, and social
media.
7.1.2 Patricia Nelson
Patricia Nelson believes hard work, time, and dedication are needed for
anything/anyone to succeed. She learned these values from working with Gary

48. 48
Vaynerchuk at VaynerMedia, where she was employee No. 20. She took all the
knowledge and experience from working with VaynerMedia and made a
successful business for herself as she is currently a Digital and Social Marketing
Strategist. She is able to gather clients through “good and honest” work, as all her
clients have come through word of mouth, and through referrals from past clients.
She believes that personal branders should take less time promoting themselves,
and more time putting in the work to get the results they want.
7.1.3 Kenneth Koprowski
Kenneth Koprowski is a highly effective and creative communications consultant,
writer and educator with more than 30 years of crisis, financial, media, marketing,
organizational, and citizenship communications to grow energy, financial
services, professional, industrial, and non-governmental organizations. He is a
much sought out communications expert in the tri state area, who spent much of
his career at General Electric, and was president of the Westchester/Fairfield
chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). He is an avid writer,
who posts on LinkedIn, and his own website. Kenneth is also working on a book,
although he is the early stages of the book writing process.
7.2 Topics Covered During Survey/Interviews
The author developed six survey questions and emailed them to the business
professionals. The questions developed were;
1. What are your thoughts on Personal Branding (PB)?
2. Do you believe it has become a more common practice in recent years?
3. What is your personal experience with PB? How have you used it?

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4. What do you believe are a few of the best practices for PB success that you
may have used?
5. Can you think of someone who personifies how beneficial PB can be for
professional success?
6. How do you believe PB will be utilized in the coming years? What may
change?
The three professionals answered the questions and sent them back in. The author spoke
over the phone with Matthew Sawyer and Patricia Nelson. The two interviews lasted 15
minutes each, and were helpful in getting to know more about their individual
experience’s in their careers and with personal branding. Lastly, the survey and
interviews were a pivotal part in the creation of the authors 4 key steps to building a
personal brand.
7.3 Interview Release Statements
The final three pages, are interview release forms that were signed by Matthew Sawyer,
Patricia Nelson, and Ken Koprowski. The form is to make clear that they can be quoted
and used as a source on this paper.

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7.3.1 Matthew Sawyer

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7.3.2 Patricia Nelson

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7.3.3 Kenneth Koprowski