1.
Build Your Brand
Anne Zando

2.
Agenda
I. Introduction
II. About Personal Branding
III. Brand Development Tips
IV. Elevator Pitch
V. The Small-world
phenomenon
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3.
Introduction
“Branding is what companies stand
for. It’s reflected in how that company
acts, how it serves people, the value
that the company shares, and how the
company projects those values.” --- Dr.
Sean Gresh, a faculty member in
Northeastern’s Master of Science in
Corporate and Organizational
Communication program
Personal branding is more than
reputation. It is intentional and
requires effort.
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4.
About Personal
Branding
The Basics

5.
What is a Personal Brand?
• Company’s brands communicate
its value to customers and
differentiates it from its competitors
• Similarly, personal brands
communicate a unique identity and
clear value to potential employers
or clients.
• Your personal brand is who you
are, what you stand for, the values
you embrace, and the ways in
which you express those values .
• It exists in your online presence
and IRL!
• It is a continual process.
• Personal branding is an
opportunity to share your value
proposition.
• Your personal brand should
highlight your strengths, establish
a reputation, build trust, and
communicate the unique attributes
that you bring to your current
(desired) industry.
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6.
Why is Personal
Branding Important?
• An amazing 85% of hiring managers report that a
candidate’s personal brand influences hiring
decisions.
• If cultivated well, your personal brand will signal to
employers whether or not you’ll be the right fit for an
open position.
• In addition to an impactful resume, highlighting your
transferrable skills, your personal brand helps you tell
your story to potential employers
• Crafting a strong authentic personal brand is key to
securing more interviews, being considered for more
promotions and giving people a memorable sense of
who you are, even when you’re not in the room
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7.
Tips for
Developing Your
Personal Brand
Tips & Tricks

8.
Some things already discussed…
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Figure out who you are
Determine what you
want to be known for
Define your audience
Research your desired
industry and follow
experts

9.
Ask For Informational Interviews
Reaching out to professionals
As you consider
companies you want to
work for, consider
reaching out to ask for
an informational
interview.
Don’t be afraid to ask,
you might be surprised
how generous and open
people are willing to be.
They usually take 20
minutes but can be of
high value.
Employers will be more
likely to think of you
when jobs become
available.
Some questions to ask:
• How did you break into the
industry?
• What steps would you take if you
were to do it all over again?
• How do you see the industry
evolving?
• How do you stay up-to-date with
industry trends?
• Are there any professional trade
associations I should join?
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10.
Embrace Networking
• 80%+ of all jobs are filled through
networking
• Network regularly to grow your
professional circle.
• Connect with peers and industry
leaders by going to formal and informal
networking events
• Don’t be afraid to follow up and reach
out.
• Your network can include anyone!
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11.
Grow/Manage Your
Online Presence
• Many claim your online presence as one of the
most important aspects of personal branding
• LinkedIn serves as a professional social media tool
most associated with defining your brand.
• The best way to use this network is to
participate in groups, make introductions with
people who interest you, and ask for (and give)
recommendations.
• Find more tips at:
https://www.northeastern.edu/graduate/blog/bu
ilding-an-effective-linkedin-profile/
• I recommend platforms like Handshake. Available
through educational institutions.
• Can we think of some other ways in which
managing your online presence would be vitally
important?
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12.
Prepare Your
Elevator Pitch
• An elevator pitch is a 30- to 60-
second, easily-understood story
about who you are.
• It’s intended to captivate your
audience and help open a dialogue.
• Your elevator pitch should be
practiced but not rehearsed.
• Your elevator pitch can be used at
social events and
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13.
Process For Writing Your Pitch
Write it out.
1
Consider your
value
2
Seek the input
of others
3
Determine your
motivation
4
Prioritize
5
Practice and
get feedback
6
Polish your
pitch
7
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14.
Elevator Pitch Dos &
Don’ts
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• Make it meaningful to the
person you are speaking
with.
• Paint a picture to help your
pitch get noticed. This could
include highlighting an
interesting accomplishment
or sharing a unique
perspective.
• Be specific.
• Be authentic.
• Use a conversational tone.
Avoid sounding too stiff or
seeming like a sales pitch
• Go into too much detail. It
should only be enough
information to pique
someone’s interest.
• Take too long. Try to keep it to
30 seconds.
• Focus too much on
inexperience. It should be
about your passion.
• Use cliché terms. Phrases like
“state-of-the-art” or “thinking
outside the box” are overused
Do: Don’t:

15.
Elevator Pitch Examples
Highlighting
Previous Successes
• I’m a marketing manager
who helped launch a
successful nutrition app
that sold three million
copies in its first year. I’m
looking to use what I’ve
learned in the corporate
world to help a health-
focused nonprofit grow
its donor base.
Sharing Your
Passion
• I’m currently a corporate
chef, and my favorite part
of my work is concocting
new recipes. I’m looking
to become a personal
chef so that I can
continue bringing job to
my clients through food.
Starting a Dialogue
• Do you ever get the feeling
your doctor has one foot out the
door when you start asking
them questions? As a practice
manager, I actually work to
build better relationships
between patients and doctors. I
helped my last practice earn a
position as one of “Boston
Magazine’s list of Boston’s Best
Doctors”, and am looking to join
a practice that shares these
values.
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16.
It takes courage to be
kind.
Maya Angelou
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17.
The Small-World
Phenomenon
• In the 1960s, Stanley Milgram, a Harvard
scientist, conducted an experiment called
the Small-World Phenomenon (aka six
degrees of separation).
• Milgram gave letters to people in Omaha,
Nebraska, with instructions to get the letters
to specific people in Boston who they did
not know.
• Subjects could only send letters to a friend
who they thought might know the target.
• When the letters arrived, he found they had
changed hands only six times.
• Confirmed by Duncan Watts, a research at
Yahoo, in the 1990s who conducted a
similar experiment using e-mail
• https://hbr.org/2003/02/the-science-behind-
six-degrees
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18.
What do
you want to
be known
for?
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Resources
A. https://www.northeastern.edu/graduate/blog/ti
ps-for-building-your-personal-brand/
B. https://www.forbes.com/sites/goldiechan/2018
/11/08/10-golden-rules-personal-
branding/?sh=120e049358a7
C. https://hbr.org/2022/02/whats-the-point-of-a-
personal-brand
D. https://www.canva.com/learn/personal-
branding/
E. https://www.entrepreneur.com/starting-a-
business/corporate-and-personal-branding-
what-is-the-difference-and/429713