The Power of Branding

"A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person.  You earn reputation by trying to do hard things well." (Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon.com)

Wood can be branded to write a message on a sign; a cow can be branded to show ownership; American slaves were branded, also to show ownership; imprisoned Jews were branded during the Second World War.  Branding, which has been around for centuries, can definitely have a negative connotation.

www.dryheadranch.com

However, it can also have a positive connotation.  Today, business branding is commonplace.  When my nephew Bo was only 2 years old, he would shout out "Donald's" every time his parents drove past the fast food restaurant.  The golden arches are a form of branding.  When I visited Chicago a couple of summers ago, we took an architectural cruise along the Chicago River.  My favourite skyscraper was a jutting silver building with six giant letters on the side of it, "TRUMP".  Donald Trump is a genius at branding:  his name plasters his buildings, his products, even his helicopter.  Visit http://www.trump.com/ to see how the mastermind works.

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Internet branding is a technique that uses the World Wide Web as a medium for positioning a brand in the marketplace.  Websites, social media, blogs, online press releases and video marketing are some of the medium used to advertise a brand.  Visit http://garinkilpatrick.com/online-brand-building-tips/ for ideas.

whitespace.on.ca

Personal branding is way for individuals to "market themselves and their careers as brands".  It can also be called "self-packaging", a term coined by Tom Peters in 1997.  It is a way to "establish a prescribed image or impression in the mid of others regarding an individual, group or organization". Self-packaging is not a new idea; Napoleon Hill first introduced the concept in his book Think and Grow Rich back in 1937, a bestseller that has sold over 70 million copies.  For more about this book, visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Think_and_Grow_Rich.

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Personal branding is a way to identify yourself on the Internet.  It gets your name, your image, your product or your blog out there.  It helps you connect with clients for your company or career.  For tips on how to build a strong personal brand visit http://www.quicksprout.com/the-complete-guide-to-building-your-personal-brand/ or http://www.forbes.com/sites/shamahyder/2014/08/18/7-things-you-can-do-to-build-an-awesome-personal-brand/.

Personal branding helps you stand out courtesy http://www.inc.com/uploaded_files/image/970x450/personality-pano_22382.jpg.

Personal branding is a way to separate yourself from the competition.  Employers increasingly use social media tools to vet applicants before offering them interviews.  They check out applicants' Facebook pages, Twitter pages and personal blogs, to get a sense of what they are all about.

Remember, your brand should be consistent across the board.  Your blog, Twitter page, Facebook page, Pinterest page and any other social media pages should have a similar look.  For more information, visit https://support.canva.com/hc/en-us/articles/202666204-How-do-I-create-a-consistent-brand-image-.

Source:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Branding

Choosing a Blog Design

"Good design is like a nice suit.  The clothes don't make the man, but they sure can make him look good." (Professional Blogging for Dummies)

You've chosen a blog niche, a blog name and a blog platform.  Now it's time to choose a blog design. Remember, you want your blog to stand out in the crowd.  You want it to catch the reader's attention.

You have three choices.  First, you can use a standard template, which usually looks generic.
Second, you can customize your template; in this case you require a basic knowledge of HTML (Hypertext Markup Language, a standardized system for tagging text files to achieve font, colour, graphic and hyperlink effects) CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) or PHP (Hypertext Preprocessor, a server side scripting language designed for web development).  Third, you can code your blog from scratch to give it a custom look.  The latter is only recommended for experts.

How much work are you willing to put into your blog design?  How much do you want your design to stand out?  These are the questions you should be asking yourself before you set up your blog.  A standard design template contains all the files necessary for your blog design.  A good design makes your blog content more accessible, something essential if you want to attract readers.

As it says in Professional Blogging for Dummies:  "A professional blog designer can create a completely custom design, help you tweak a template, or simply create a masthead [image plus blog name] and other graphics to spice up your blog."  You can find a blog designer by checking out your software's website.  Also, you can ask your favourite bloggers who designed their blogs.

Ideally, you want to make your blog match your website.  You also want to make your blog stand out.  A unique blog design is particularly useful for blogs about photography, graphic arts and humour.  A typical blog design template contains a masthead, posts, navigational tools and sidebars. It's up to you how you want to arrange these items.  Don't forget to create badges and widgets that others can download to promote your blog (www.hongkiate.com/blog).

Remember, content dictates design, not the other way around.  You want your readers to find what they're looking for quickly.

Check out the following website to learn more about designing a blog: http://howtomakemyblog.com/how-to-design-a-blog/.

staticflickr.com

Conceive, Believe, Achieve

"Imagination rules the world." (Napoleon Bonaparte)

Since today is the first day of 2015, I thought it would be a good day to focus on goals.  Anyone who reads my posts regularly knows that my dream is to publish a book.  My goal is easily identifiable.  Is it achievable, though?

Read my post "Whoever Believes Will Achieve" (http://alinefromlinda.blogspot.ca/2012/11/whoever-believes-will-achieve.html).  What stuck out in my mind when I re-read it recently was that the mind makes little or no distinction between image and reality if the image is vivid enough.  That is powerful stuff!  

Successful athletes use visualization techniques to improve their performance.  Once such athlete, Mary Lou Retton, used to carry around index cards to help her visualize nailing a gymnastics routine. Her Olympic medal haul included one gold, two silver and two bronze.

"Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve." 

Napoleon Hill, author of the above quote, is a believer in visualization.  According to Brian Tracy, author of Goals:  How to Get Everything You Want -- Faster Than You Ever Thought Possible (see http://www.amazon.ca/Goals-Everything-Faster-Thought-Possible/dp/1605094110visualization) visualization activates "the law of attraction", drawing people, circumstances and resources into your life to help you achieve that goal.  Tracy also maintains that visualization activates "the law of correspondence".  If you change your mental pictures inside, it will change your outside world. You become what you think about most of the time.  

Brian Tracy says visualization includes four parts:

1.  frequency:  how often do you spend visualizing an image 

2.  duration:  how long do you spend visualizing an image 

3.  vividness:  how vivid or clear is your image

4.  intensity:  the amount of emotion you put into that image

If you are an archery expert, you will appreciate Tracy's analogy:  You can't hit a target if you can't see it.  The author recommends that you visualize late at night, thereby enabling your mind to accept that at a deeper level during sleep.  The other optimum time to visualize is early in the morning, before the mind is filled with the day's activities.  

"Have complete faith that your pictures will materialize."

According to Tracy, "[Visualization] can do more to help you step on the accelerator of your own potential than any other exercise you engage in."  So, as you write a list of new year's resolutions for 2015, remember:  Conceive a goal.  Believe that you can reach that goal!  Achieve it!

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