Jennifer Andrews explains the importance of personal branding for scientists and offers a strategy for developing your personal brand.
Does a scientist (or any of us) need a personal brand? I know from LinkedIn, this can be a (mildly) controversial topic. We’re not talking about becoming a celebrity. Think of it as cultivating your reputation and making it easier for people who need your expertise to find it.
Jennifer Andrews is the founder of Fresh Leaf Marketing in Ontario, Canada. She explained why a personal brand can benefit not only you but also your company. Spoiler: your company shouldn’t discourage it.
People with a strong personal brand have a consistent presence and become known for one thing. Wouldn’t you want to be known, the go-to person for whatever you do? That’s the goal here.
Jennifer has a three part strategy to get you there.
Step one is to have a strategy. Step two is define your personal brand. Step three is use media to amplify your message.
Figure out your “why?” Why do you like what you do, the thing you want to be known for? People that know you well would naturally say this about you.
Then what is your core message - the one thing you want to talk about from every angle. Consistency here is key. You don’t want to confuse people about your area of expertise.
Finally, you have to get comfortable talking about it in the channels where your audience is listening. This can be difficult for anyone, especially some scientists.
At the end I asked Jennifer if I really needed brand colors. She explained that it is indeed helpful to use a consistent palette if for no other reason than it may help people pause scrolling their feed when they see your posts.
I’ll just add that if you have something to offer the world, and I’m pretty sure you do, it would be a shame not to share it in the best way possible.
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