In This Issue

Nelson Mandela's Leadership Principles

Key Marketing Terms and Phrases - What Do They Mean?

The Top 10 Branding Mistakes Entrepreneurs Make

Congratulations to Our Winner!

Your Comments on "What is Happening to 'Brand Thailand?'"

 

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How YOU Are Like Shampoo for Job Seekers
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How YOU™ Are Like Shampoo for Job Seekers

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Where in The World is Brenda Now??

Author, Speaker, Trainer and Coach Brenda Bence travels extensively to present her unique approach to corporate and personal branding at conferences, conventions, & corporations all across the globe...

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If you'd like Brenda to speak or train at an upcoming event, conference, or meeting, please

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Here's where Brenda has engagements scheduled in the next few months:
 
Calendar

2010


July 22: Bangkok, Thailand

July 30 - Aug 1:  Hua Hin, Thailand

Aug 9-14:  Singapore 

Aug 16-17: Bangkok, Thailand

Aug 31 - Sept 5: Singapore

Sept 15-19: Sydney, Australia

Sept 26 - Oct 11: U.S.A.

Oct 18-21: Prague,

Czech Republic

Oct 29: Bangkok, Thailand

Oct 30 - Nov 6: Phuket, Thailand

Dec 17: Bangkok, Thailand

Brenda is now booking engagements for the rest of 2010.


Write to Brenda if you would like her to speak, train, or coach your team.


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Brenda Bence - Achieving Greater Success for YOU and Your Company Through the Power of Branding
  July 2010


Greetings!,



Thanks to the World Cup, all eyes have been on South Africa over the past few weeks. With that in mind - and as a parting "Ode to the World Cup" - I thought it would be interesting to revisit a 2008 interview with Nelson Mandela regarding leadership. Published in Time Magazine, the article outlined eight leadership principles that Mandela used to build his distinguished career - and his very powerful leadership personal brand - as an activist and politician. All eight are interesting, but I want to focus on two of Mandela's principles in particular and how they apply to building a leadership personal brand in the business world.


Also in this issue, you'll find the top 10 tips for successful entrepreneurial branding, you'll get help to clear the clouds around potentially con -fusing  marketing and branding terms, and you can read the results of our "Brand Thailand" blog question.

All the best - and here's to YOU™!


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Brenda Bence

[email protected]



Nelson Mandela's Leadership Principles


Nelson Mandela

A 2008 interview with Nelson Mandela about leadership, published in Time Magazine, outlined eight leadership principles that Mandela used to build his distinguished career - and his very powerful leadership personal brand - as an activist and politician. All eight are interesting, but I want to focus on two of Mandela's principles and how they apply to building a leadership personal brand in the business world.

 

Principle #1:

 

"Lead from the back - and let others believe they are in front. The trick of leadership is allowing yourself to be led too. The chief's job, Mandela said, was not to tell people what to do but to form a consensus. 'Don't enter the debate too early,' he used to say."

 

What Mandela is doing here is advocating a democratic, or participative, leadership style. Let's face it: As a business leader, there may be times when you have to use an authoritarian style and make a fast - and sometimes lonely - decision. But, most of the time, it makes sense to include direct reports in the decision-making process. Otherwise, why did you hire them in the first place? Great leaders know that they, too, are learning and growing every day in the job - even from those who are in subordinate positions. Click here to read Nelson Mandela's second principle.



Key Marketing Terms and Phrases - What Do They Mean?

Key Marketing Terms and Phrases - What Do They Mean?

Over the years, I've seen a lot of confusion around what the various elements of branding and marketing are. So, if you're confused, too, don't worry - you're far from alone!

 

It's my hope to clear the clouds about many different aspects of brands. By doing so, you can unleash the power of branding and learn how to use that power to advance both your business and your career. So, let's look at what the difference is between "a brand," "brand positioning," "branding," "marketing," and "sales."  Yes, they are all quite different!

 

What is a "brand?" You may think a brand is a "product" or a "trademark." But it actually isn't that easy. A brand goes beyond the mere physical attributes of a product or trademark. In fact, a brand is actually intangible - you can smell the aroma of a Starbucks cup of coffee, you can taste the flavor of a chewy Mentos, you can see the golden arches of McDonalds - but you cannot touch a "brand." A brand has both rational and emotional appeal, so it provides a total experience enjoyed by customers. That, in turn, helps the brand create a perception of added value, leading to customer loyalty.

 

Not clear about the difference between a "brand," "branding," and "marketing?" Click here to find out  . . .




The Top 10 Branding Mistakes Entrepreneurs Make

The Top 10 Branding Mistakes Entrepreneurs make

When you're growing your own business, every error you make means money out of your pocket, so why learn the hard - and expensive - way? Why not learn ahead of time which pitfalls to avoid?

As a corporate brander and an entrepreneur for the last 25 years, I've seen a fair number of branding and marketing mistakes. Not only have I learned from a few brand blunders I made myself, but in my work as an executive coach and marketing trainer for other entrepreneurs, I've developed a list of the most common branding mistakes - as well as many great branding successes.

Click here to find out the Top 10 most costly branding mistakes that entrepreneurs make.



Congratulations to Trish Meecham, our winner!

Congratulations to Our Winner!

Many thanks to those of you who responded to the call for questions that appeared in my last e-newsletter. We had some great questions that came in on the topics of both personal and corporate branding.

 

Our winner this month is Trish Meecham from Credit Suisse. In return for her question, Trish received a complimentary copy of the book The Power of the Platform: Speakers on Purpose that I wrote along with other professional speakers such as Jack Canfield, Brian Tracy, and Les Brown.

 

See Trish's question and my response below. Thank you, Trish, for writing in - it pays to ask great questions!


Trish's question:

"What are the recommended process steps to align company brand and [employee] behavior?"

 

My answer:

What you're talking about here is what I like to call successfully making the personal brand/corporate brand connection. Let me share an example.


Making the Corporate Brand / Personal Brand Connection

When speaking at conferences on this topic, I share a true story about the high-end Ritz-Carlton hotel chain. This particular story is about how a hotel guest, who left his laptop at the Ritz-Carlton in Atlanta, had his much-needed computer returned to him in Hawaii - personally - by an Atlanta-based housekeeper who flew all the way there just to bring it to him. This housekeeper was empowered to do that, without hesitation, because key leaders of the hotel chain had established a clear credo and had set up a system to enable any employee - whether a housekeeper, receptionist, driver, or guard - to do what was required to communicate the very specific brand of customer service the hotel wanted to craft for itself.

 

I like that story because it illustrates how much of an impression every single employee - and his/her individual personal brand - can make on a corporate brand.

 

So, how well do the individuals - the unique personal brands - of you and all the people you work with reflect the total brand of your company?


Click here to read more about making the Personal Brand/Corporate Brand Connection.



Your responses to my last e-newsletter question "What is Happening to 'Brand Thailand?'"

Many thanks to you all for the mix of comments posted on my blog in response to the question "What is Happening to 'Brand Thailand?'" The outcome is an interesting collection of responses from a wide variety of people including past tourists to Thailand, people who make Thailand their home, and from people who have never visited the Kingdom. To read what others said, click here.



All the best, and happy branding!

Brenda Bence

Brenda Bence
[email protected]
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You also have my permission to use these articles on your website or in your own e-newsletter but you must include the following: Brenda Bence is Founder and President of Brand Development Associates International, Ltd, a firm which helps companies and individuals build growth-oriented corporate and personal brands. She is author of the award-winning How YOU™ Are Like Shampooseries of personal branding books.
For more information, visit www.BrendaBence.com
 
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