Reflections of a Square Peg

Can You Afford Not to Have a Tiger in Your Tank?

 
I was going to pass on commenting about the whole Tiger Woods saga, but then a posting Tigers Tarnished Brand by William Arruda over at The Personal Branding Blog prompted me to comment and captured what I have been considering, so I thought I would share it too.

Here is what I had to say:

Certainly Tigers reputation has been affected by all this, his approval rating is falling faster than Obama's! What really amazed me was the initial handling of the whole event by Tiger's management agency IMG - really poor PR work.

But some of his key sponsors are standng by him - Tag Heur has said that his personal life is none of their business - so they are making the distinction between his professional and personal brand.

Gillette has respected his time to be with his family and taken him out of upcomng campaigns but they have not dropped him. Nike is being incredibly strong in their stance for Tiger - they have a massive investment in him and likely figure this is going to go away eventually.

Tigers winning brand is perhaps too hard to take a step away from. Accenture's decision is more understandable given their target market - but Gillette and Nike in particular appeal to average Joe Public, who wants to be associated with winners. The same people who have embraced Michael Vick again (unless you are a dog lover), still pay to see Kobe Bryant and voted for Bill Clinton.

The big difference with Tiger is that his personal brand was so managed and in some ways staged that when there was a crack everyone wanted to see how deep and wide they could push this - human nature is still to celebrate the fallen idol - the bigger they are the harder they fall is the saying.

Also can you really see the PGA walking away from the draw of Tiger? He has increased sponsorship investment 4 times, viewing figures for golf when he was away injured dropped by an incredible 50%. That revenue effect is hard to ignore.

We will see him back, probably initially on the almost mandatory couch with Oprah or someone else, finally telling his side of the story.

As for Tiger - the really big question is how long can he stay away from winning. There is the claim that Woods motivation for playing golf is the #18 (see previous blog post and video). It's not the number of majors he strives to win more of, but the fact that the perfect golf score is 18. For someone that driven it is going to be hard to stay away - as much as it is for the brands that associate with such a mindset.

Just my toonies worth.

Fore!

This post was prompted by a post over at Keith Ferrazzi's blog and is a copy of my comments on golf for business. Also when you get a moment drop on over to the new blog of Tim O'Connor - a former client who does just great PR work specifically for the golf industry.

I love to play golf, but with running my own business and a young family I find it very hard to justify taking the expected 4-6 hours on a weekend to play. So if the occasional business game during the week can fit great, of course here in Canada we only get a 6 month window anyway to play!

For those looking to build relationships with clients who are avid golfers and you do not personally want to get in to the game full on, there are some great alternatives that will make you very memorable to the client.

1. Golf clinic day where you hire a pro for an afternoon at a club and invite some clients along for a golf clinic to tune up their game. Great for the start of the season (especially if you are in climates where golf is a limited sport).

2. Get a former pro (like Merryll-!) and invite clients to play a round with them and pick up tips on your tab. You are there at the end to meet and greet, buy dinner etc. If the budget lets you get a high profile pro then get the pro to play 3 holes with 6 sets of clients and really stretch the investment and impact. Might be expensive but imagine the client who remembers playing 3 holes with Tiger Woods and who got him or her that.

3. Hold your own golf day or tie in with a worthwhile charitable cause and be a major sponsor and satisfy business and philanthropy at the same time.

Always remember to get some professional photos taken so that you can present those at a later date to the client, serves as a reminder and another reason to ping them.

Also as gifts there are a host of golf items that can be equally effective in terms of impact without your having to raise a club.
- tickets to top events
- golf trips
- memorabilia (great to have your gift on the clients desk every day)
- winter golf conditioning program
etc etc

 

 

 

 

Lest We Forget - Take 2 Minutes to Remember - It's a Pittance of Time

 Now is the time, ideally two minutes at 11 am to remember and respect those that gave.

And if you have to explain to anyone why - get them to watch these two videos, they'll get it then

 

 

YOU Can't Handle The Truth About Personal Branding

For me the video below is a well thought out and put together dig at what I have been seeing an explosion of this year and what is concerning me most about personal branding. Lack of depth and authenticity. It is what is causing so many online commentators to rant about it's shallowness, lack of substance, affront to the word branding, an attack on the profession of marketing etc etc.

I am certainly not claiming to be the perfect example of a personal brand, far from it, in fact is there really anyone that could lay claim to such? We are all evolving our brands and as technology advances our approaches change with it.  But the point about the technology available to us is that it is a tool to help us communicate our personal brands in new ways, to more people - IT IS NOT PERSONAL BRANDING IN OF ITSELF.

 

In the last few months I have found myself commenting on more blog posts, more tweets on twitter and generally having more discussions about personal branding. Not because, like some others, I am just trying to associate my name with the term and get hailed as the next new media douche bag, but because I firmly believe this is a bona fide approach to career management - dare I say even life direction and focus - ultimately meaning greater personal satisfaction and positive impact with others.

It is what I did in a corporate career that spanned banking to biotech - two subjects in which I have very little formal qualifications, it is what I have done in helping numerous, similarly very capable, people achieve in industries and roles that otherwise they might not have been considered for and what I do not for employees inside some of North America's largest corporations.

Perhaps what I am doing right now is exactly what Kelly Stewart is 'having a go' at - I think not - but can YOU handle the truth about personal branding? Let me know what you think.

Tom Peters at The Art of Management

This was the person I most wanted to see at the recent Art of Management event in Toronto - Tom Peters.

It was after reading his book Brand You 50 that I started to get interested in personal branding, it's approach, how I had used many similar approaches in my own corporate career, advised others to do the same and how I could see this becoming a much bigger subject. Here are some of his observations:

Listening is a proper core value

Appreciation is a proper core value

Apologizing (effective repair) is a proper core value.

Thoughtfulness is a proper core value.

Listening, Appreciation, Thoughtfulness and Apologizing are of the utmost strategic importance.

Listening, Appreciation, Apologizing and Thoughtfulness is a profession.

There is nothing harder to sell than the obvious. Perception is all there is. The four most important words in any organization should be "What do you think?"

Ask your employees - "What is the first name of the person who cleans this building?"

 

Inside Companies:

#1 Problem - Cross function communication

#1 Opportunity - Never waste a lunch - make 40% of your lunches with people from other functions.

 

"I believe the essence in excellence is what it is all about - human development"

 

Mitch Joel at The Art of Management

I had just finished reading Mitch Joel's new book before coming to his talk at The Art of Management recently, so was very pumped to see him present. He and I had the opportunity of meeting a few years ago in Montreal and have kept in touch , particularly around the subject of personal branding. Here are some of his thoughts:

Compared to 2007, banner ads are being clicked on 50% less and all clicks are being done by 8% of the internet population.

40% of all mothers in the US are on MySpace.

81% of online holiday shoppers read online customer reviews.

Half of the You Tube audience is over the age of 34.

10% of media spend is now online.

Six Points of Separation - why get involved online?

1. Accept it
2. Everything is 'with' NOT 'instead of'
3. Don't be fleeting - build, share and grow
4. Move toward 'open'
5. It's attitudinal not generational.
6. Upload a video to You Tube - do something now.

"It's group expression - the new world is volume of voice"

"It's no longer a case of should you get involved. First figure out the why, then worry about the what"

David Allen at The Art of Management

David Allen came up as the next speaker at the recent Art of Management. I am sure that he finds quite often a challenge in that his topic can be viewed as somewhat dry and probably not under the label of inspirational. However he did a very good job of keeping the very complex details of his Getting Things Done system easy to initially grasp. The hard thing I have found is maintaining the discipline to work his system 'religiously'.

Here are some of his key points:

The strategic value of clear space is the freedom to make a creative mess.

The core ingredients for self management are Control and Perspective:

Control - Capturing, Clarifying, Organizing, Reflecting & Engaging. - What is the next action?

Perspective - Purpose/Principles, Vision, Goals, Responsibilities, Projects, Actions. - What conversation with whom at what horizon?

"You have to challenge yourself to make decisions"

Marcus Buckingham at The Art of Management

Marcus Buckingham was first up for the day I recently spent at The Art of Management in Toronto and an excellent choice to kick off the event. I have seen him present before and he is a master story teller, using a mix of research, insight and English humour.

Here are some main points:

Ask yourself - how often do you;

• do things you really like to do?
• feel positive anticipation before you start your day?
• get so involved you lose track of time?
• feel invigorated at the end of a long busy day?
• are on an emotional high in your life?

The culture of a company varies hugely on the person you directly report to, there are hundreds of cultures in a company so are you surrounding yourself with like valued people?

At work do you have the opportunity to do what you are best at, every day?

Depressed people are the most accurate at defining their own strengths and weaknesses - it's called depressive realism.

Put your own oxygen mask on first.  

"Your strengths are your area of opportunity for growth. Weaknesses are areas of least opportunity. You might have to deal with them but don't mis-label them as an area of opportunity."

The Art of Management, Toronto, 16th October - #taom Twitter follow

I had a great day yesterday at The Art Of Management event in Toronto and will be adding some more thoughts and insights over the next week.

There were quite a number of people there tweeting live and also following as well as people like me who tweeted once they got back to their offices, homes and computers. The event # was #taom and I have put together a list of all those who have tweeted about the event and made it easy to follow if you want by using TweepML just click on this link and you can choose who to follow;  Follow Us On Twitter

@mwbuckingham - Marcus Buckingham
@gtdguy - David Allen
@mitchjoel - Mitch Joel
@tom_peters - Tom Peters
@paulcopcutt - Paul Copcutt
@TheArtofEvents - The Art of Events
@DAN_FROM_BNS - Dan Demsky
@JUSTIN_FROM_BNS - Justin Brennon Smith
@Polina888 - Polina
@AlexIkonn - Alex Ikonn
@Judy_Sims - Judy Sims
@stevecunningham - Steve Cunningham
@ShirleyPorter - Shirley Porter
@Hustlin34Owl - Paul Morrell
@Corycc - Cory Coley
@MedEdGuy - Dave Airdrie
@deepthinking - Stephen Chanasyk
@RHBDaveHowlett - Dave Howlett
@karensd - Karen SchulmanDupuis
@BildArchiv
@kbsoran - Kaan Bora Soran
@rlavigne42 - Robert Lavigne
@jenkellyjen - Jennifer Kelly
@ExecRoundtable - Glain Roberts-McCabe
@stevemast - Steve Mast
@RIGHTSLEEVE - Mark Graham
@Microsoft_TAM
@sdkstl - Staci D Kramer
@mikeorren - Mike Orren
@dbeaupre
@ellengm - Ellen Graf-Martin
@CoachPalmer - Michael Palmer
@rachelohearn - Rachel Jean O'Hearn
@chieflemonhead - Judi Samuels
@tarzansgrrl - Jayne Hoogenberk
@lydiafernandes - Lydia Fernandes
@Buffalo_MBA
@jsmarcellus - Jamie Marcellus
@sarahkatyal - Sarah Katyal
@denispaulvc - Denis P van Chestein
@liseconde - Lise Conde
@nataliecurrie - Natalie Currie
@boxofcrayons - Michael Bungay Stanier
@NawarNaji - Nawar Naji

Here is the link to the page

http://tweepml.org/Twitter-tags-Taom-who-spoke-at-tweeted-The-Art-of-Management-Toronto-16th-O/

 

Getting Online is Easy - But What Are You Doing With It?

Usually for me, there is one book that I read each year that I would say to anyone "It's a must read" - for 2009 this is THE book. With some books I buy they are hard to pick up again - with Six Pixels of Separation I found it hard to put down - in face I have started to already read it again! This book will go on my list of resources that I expect every client to read and implement as part of their personal branding development.

Mitch Joel of Twist Image has written a book on the importance of online brand building and digital marketing that should appeal to every business owner and marketer, because there are tips, resources and tools that we all can use. But it goes beyond just being for the service professional or entrepreneur, much of what Mitch talks about can be easily translated to anyone looking to manage their personal brands in a digital age.

What I particularly enjoyed was Mitch's writing style and layout of the book. An ex-journalist can be as much a curse as a blessing, but Mitch has been blogging and podcasting for over 5 years. The content and value that he provides almost daily in those mediums has transferred so well in to the book and he has interspersed this with real life examples of his own learnings (he admits he has not done it all correctly) and also has many insights in to the way that others have built and developed their brands.

Bottom line is that if you are not involved in social media, web 2.0 or any other 'new form' of connecting then Mitch almost pleads that you have to be - no question, no excuses, no option. He makes strong cases for even the smallest of business to be there and benefit from their involvement, with a very heavy emphasis that it's not about marketing and advertising, but collaborating and connecting with your customer and potential customers.  

Do not put this book on a 'one day I will read this' or buy it and then add to the pile by your bedside. Put all those other books, articles, magazines etc you are reading to one side and invest your time in a book that will shift your thinking, challenge your beliefs and cause you to take action not out of fear of missing out or being too late but out of excitement for the opportunity and the sheer fun of it all.

As the title says - "Everyone is Connected, Connect Your Business to Everyone"