Brand Message | Peter Sterlacci | Believe. Become. Be Your Brand

Personal Brand ‘Mechanic’ Interview: Craig McBreen

February 18, 2013 By Peter Sterlacci Leave a Comment

Craig McBreen tells us to “Get Past the Fear”

There are a very small handful of bloggers out there who have a message in almost every post that just simply resonates. Craig McBreen is part of this ‘elite’ group in my mind. Seriously. I spend a lot of time skimming and deleting post after post from many of the ‘A-listers’ out there, but I ACTUALLY READ AND ABSORB WHAT CRAIG WRITES ABOUT! Here is one of my favorite quotes from a post Craig wrote titled ‘Looking for Your Next Big Idea?’:

“A rigid, inflexible plan can result in a stinky, dead fish that smells of desperation, because it sucked your life blood right out of you.”

Preach it brother! And this is just what Craig does – he preaches the shit that we need to be reminded about. This is why Craig is my latest ‘mechanic’ of personal branding. Read any one of his posts and you will walk away with something to help make your brand irresistible.

In my interview with Craig he talks about

Why getting past fear is crucial for branding yourself
How to engage the readers of your blog
Why writing has become his elixir, and
How talent + personality is a formula for success.

Enjoy Craig’s interview and make sure to subscribe to his blog. You will actually look forward to seeing his name in your inbox! [Read more...]

Filed Under: Authenticity, Blogging, Brand message, Personal Brand Mechanics, Personal Branding Tagged With: blogging, Craig McBreen, engagement

5 Press Release Mistakes Fatal to Your Personal Brand

January 28, 2013 By Richard Knobbs Leave a Comment

BeYB welcomes another awesome guest post from Richard Knobbs!

Richard Knobb’s previous guest post on 5 ways a press release can boost your personal brand was a hit. So, I have asked him to share his insight on common mistakes he has found in press releases that are FATAL to your personal brand. Take note of these and do your best to avoid them like the plague! If these two guest posts on press releases have been helpful, I recommend picking up Richard’s eBook Attention! The art of creating attention-grabbing press releases available on Amazon. Click here to get your copy. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Brand Communication Plan, Brand message, Personal Branding, Publishing Tagged With: Press Releases, reputation management, Richard Knobbs

5 Ways a Press Release Can Boost Your Personal Brand

January 24, 2013 By Richard Knobbs 1 Comment

BeYB welcomes a guest post from Richard Knobbs!

I first featured Richard Knobbs on my site in my 30x30x30 Personal Branding Blogathon in June 2012. His post, A Minimalist Approach to Personal Branding, was a hit and I encourage you to give it a read. I am pleased to have Richard as a guest once again. Richard is a writer, brand consultant, and designer. I love what he says on his about page: “I’m obsessed with details, love bikes, writes compulsively, drink tea, ride skateboard and surfboards very badly, read insatiably, and cooks pretty well.” AWESOME personal branding! Richard also knows a lot about writing damn good press releases. So, I will feature two guest posts on the power of press releases for personal branding.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Brand Communication Plan, Brand message, Personal Branding, Personal branding tips Tagged With: Attention!, Press Releases, Richard Knobbs

3 Things That Give Direction to Your Business Brand

December 31, 2012 By Maria Florio 1 Comment

BeYB welcomes a guest post from Maria Florio!

I got to know Maria Florio from a great post she wrote back in November called The Box Issue in Social Media. I absolutely loved her message and decided to invite her to be a guest writer on my site as well. Maria calls herself a “versatile entrepreneur” with various specialties and interests. She is a writer, copywriter, e-commerce inbound and outbound marketer, Italy travel specialist and event planner. Perhaps she is a Renaissance Woman? Enjoy Maria’s post below about three very important ‘personal’ factors that help to give direction to your business brand.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Brand Identity, Brand message, Corporate Branding, Personal Branding, Values Tagged With: Business Brand, Maria Florio

10 Actions to Update Your Personal Brand for 2013

December 29, 2012 By Peter Sterlacci 4 Comments

So how many of you have started thinking about your New Year’s Resolutions for 2013? Isn’t it about time you got a move on this? Aren’t you ready to proudly broadcast to your family and friends that you are gong to lose weight, work out more, read more, or just be a “better” person? But let me ask you the all important question:

Have you really ever stuck to these resolutions? Come on be honest!

Resolutions are basically a silly cultural ritual we go through each year. As if this year is really going to be any different and you will actually lose that 10 pounds, or workout 4 days a week, or read a new book every month. Give it up. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Brand Communication Plan, Brand message, LinkedIn, Online Identity, Personal Branding, Personal branding tips, Visual Branding Tagged With: brand story, ego-surfing, personal branding, reputation management

The Lazy Person’s Guide to Overnight Riches

December 25, 2012 By Dr Amit Nagpal 1 Comment

BeYB welcomes holiday post from Dr. Amit Nagpal!

For Christmas I am happy to welcome a ‘fun’ post from my good friend Amit in India. Amit shares a story about how to to be lazy and use short cuts to success. I hope you see the irony in what he says because in the end it is all about being authentic not taking short cuts or using image manipulation. Strong brands whether they are products, places, or people are based in what is true, genuine, and real. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Amit and I wish you all a happy, healthy, and genuine New Year. Stay tuned for the release of our new eBook, Personal Branding Views from India and Japan due out in early 2013.

How to Establish an Online Brand in a “Boring” Industry

December 21, 2012 By Sara Aisenberg 2 Comments

BeYB welcomes guest post from Sara Aisenberg!

Building your online visibility and credibility is crucial for business and career success. The reality now is if you do not show up on Google search you simply do not exist! In this very useful post, Sara outlines four ways professionals in even the most mundane industries can build an online brand that consumers can get excited about. Enjoy and connect with Sara on G+

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Blogging, Brand message, Online Identity, Online reputation management, Personal Branding, Visual Branding Tagged With: online branding, online identity, Sara Aisenberg, social media

Personal Brand ‘Mechanic’ Interview: Marsha Petrie Sue

October 17, 2012 By Peter Sterlacci 2 Comments

“Don’t let people suck the life out of you!” says Marsha Petrie Sue

I came across Marsha’s website last Spring and knew I had to dub her one of my ‘mechanics’ of personal branding. Marsha is known as the Muhammad Ali of personal responsibility and leadership development. She can dance and look pretty, and she uses the entire ring, but she knows how and when to land a knockout punch! She is the author of Toxic People: Decontaminating difficult people without using weapons or duct tape, The Reactor Factor: How to handle difficult work situations without going nuclear and many other programs and books.

As a former Corporate Executive she understands that solid content and humor are the magical component of successful presentations. Her sense of humor comes out loud and clear in her interview and she certainly had me laughing a number of times.

In this interview, she offers some great sound bites that pack a punch including “Pay attention to how people brand you”, “Don’t let people suck the life out of you”, and “Take responsibility for your own marketing”. Marsha also covers her top 3 tips to take personal responsibility for your choices. For more information about Marsha, please visit her site MarshaPetrieSue.com or her blog DecontaminateToxicPeople.com

Vlogathon Day 23: How to Find the Story of Your Brand

September 23, 2012 By Schuyler Kaye 7 Comments

Vlogathon Day 23: September 23rd – Schuyler Kaye

Day 23 of the Personal Branding Vlogathon is here and I am really excited to have Schuyler Kaye contributing his insight. Schuyler runs a really cool company called T4Execs where he focuses on the power of story to help executives to brand themselves. I was first introduced to Schuyler because of his amazing infographic called Superhero Branding for Ordinary People. I absolutely love his message here so definitely check it out. In his video below, Schuyler offers a 3 exercises to help you find the story of your brand. He shares some powerful examples where stories have been used to communicate an important message including Mother Goose and The Bible. Apply these 3 exercises to your personal branding process and your story will be told!

Enjoy Schuyler’s video and let us know what you think by commenting below. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Be your Brand, Brand message, Personal Branding, Personal branding tips, Vlogathon Tagged With: brand story, personal branding, Schuyler Kaye, storytelling, Vlogathon

Vlogathon Day 21: 5 Secrets of an ICONIC ‘Blue Moon’ Brand

September 21, 2012 By Tanvi Bhatt 6 Comments

Vlogathon Day 21: September 21st – Tanvi Bhatt

I am pleased to have my friend and fellow Reach Certified Personal Branding Strategist in India, Tanvi Bhatt, contribute her insight on Day 21 of the Personal Branding Vlogathon. Tanvi is leading the charge in personal branding in India through her consulting business Panache Studio. Tanvi was featured in my 30x30x30 Personal Branding Blogathon in June where she contributed a great post, Be Brandtastic! 5 Golden Rules for an ICONIC Personal Brand Experience. What I love about Tanvi is that she exemplifies in every way what it means to have a clear, consistent, and constant personal brand. In her video below, Tanvi highlights her 5 secrets for how to be an ICONIC ‘blue moon’ brand, or as she calls it “a brand as rare as you”.

Enjoy Tanvi’s video and let us know what you think by commenting below. [Read more...]