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When a trademark becomes a brand. Creating a brand from scratch: the experience of marketers Can anyone become a brand

For more than 15 years I have worked in the field of marketing management in large Western companies, but a few years ago, having received an education in the field of coaching and defining my future in new sphere faced the question: what to do next? Throw everything and go nowhere, start activities in a new field from scratch, or try to offer yourself in a new capacity within your corporation? I chose the second. To be honest, it wasn't easy. The local personnel department rounded their eyes and said that there was no such “structural unit” in the company and was not expected in the near future. Then I formulated my proposal in the form pilot project and contacted headquarters. After several presentations and meetings, I received the go-ahead and over the next two years, having the opportunity to do what I love inside the company, I provided professional coaching support for the company's marketers around the world, worked with CMOs and their teams in person and virtually via Skype. After gaining practical experience, I created my own personal branding program iBrand. Why did I manage to implement my project? In part, because inside the company and outside it, my personal brand at that moment had sufficient power.

Does a corporate employee need a personal brand? If you want your opinion to be taken into account, to be valued and strive to keep in the company, to be invited to speak at an industry conference or give an interview, and that the company was ready to accept your conditions and meet you, then you definitely need strong personal brand. With a twenty-year career behind him in large corporations ( Stollwerck, Nestle, Shell), I have seen from my own experience that building your brand is not only not shameful, but even necessary if you want your contribution to the growth of your company's business to be appreciated.

Before diving into the specific steps to building your brand, remember: what are your favorite brands? In clothes, among mobile phones, cars or cosmetics? Why do you love them? For what properties and qualities do you value them the most and are even willing to pay more high price than the market average? What emotions do you experience when you use the product of your favorite brand?

A personal brand is the distinctive properties, external and internal, inherent only to you, and this is your visibility and fame in the widest possible circles. This is not only a guarantee of quality, but also the emotions that a person experiences in your presence. Brand people are recognized, they are written about, their opinion is asked, having made a name for yourself, you can capitalize it by promoting the services or products of your company: Richard Branson (Virgin),Chanel,Madonna,Oleg Tinkof,Maria Sharapova and other notable examples of how it works.

But if you are already interested, I suggest you immediately think about the pitfalls that can stop many.

A personal brand is a serious challenge to yourself and the world. Can I? Will they appreciate me? It's a challenge to your habits. If you're an introvert like me, you'll have to step out of your comfort zone and become an extrovert. But why stick out, let you and your personal opinion forever remain the property of a narrow circle of people. Indeed, why take the risk. If you want to be heard, become a brand. Brands challenge the system. Question the status quo, go against the tide, better yet – create their own. Think ten times before you start, because it is much easier to remain a cog in the system than to become a lever yourself.
A brand is a guarantee of quality. You will have to take a fresh look at the quality of your work and your life. A brand is a constant movement forward, constant development. Successful brands never stand still. If you are a brand, then your life and your ideals become known to a wider circle, you will have to keep the bar high, constantly learn and improve your professional level. As one of my clients said: I can’t give myself any indulgence now, I’m a brand, I’m in the public eye, and now I’m an example for others.
Personal branding is freedom. You can always get expert advice from professionals, but no one will ever tell you about your brand better than yourself. you dive into creative process and become your own boss. But are you sure that you will be able to dispose of your freedom? Act on the ready corporate instruction much more simple.

If you are still interested and are thinking about building a personal brand, then here are some simple steps to help you start building your personal brand both inside and outside your company.

Conduct a SWOT analysis focusing on your most strengths, and write a development plan. In the marketing of goods and services, we always strive to turn the product to the consumer in the most beneficial way, and in personal branding- exactly your most strengths set you apart from other people. What do you value most in yourself? What do you do best? And a plan for your areas of development - training, working with a personal coach, reading special literature - will allow you to strengthen the strength of your personal brand.
Define your goals - how do you see yourself in a year, in three, in five? What would you like to do next? How do you see your career? What will be for you best result in terms of personal development for the next year? What do you want to create for the company?
Define your target audience. Who should know about you? And most importantly, what do they want? Make a list and plan for when and what you will talk about. It is far from always that the efforts of a single employee become known to someone else, except for his immediate supervisor, especially if the company is large. Make it a habit to periodically meet with key people from your list and tell them about your activities and successes. Also talk about your innovative ideas and ask for advice, this will give a reason to contact the person again.
Create a new project. Given your goals, your deep understanding of the internal processes in the company and the difficulties that it faces, what would you suggest to improve in it? Communication processes are always a very problematic area, contacts with customers and partners, employee development programs, work with distributors, cooperation with suppliers. All these areas can and should be improved. Before my eyes, companies made a name for themselves precisely because of the projects they implemented. Why not be the innovator in your company? You can come up with and run a test project and, having tested it in your department, present it for implementation in other departments.

Almost all small and large companies, having acquired a “good” (one that the director or owner likes) logo, begin to trump with the phrase “our brand”. This is especially noticeable on the pages of B2B companies in the sections: About us, Mission, Vision, History, etc. It is interesting that the user usually does not read these pages, and he, as always, is right.

Gentlemen, business owners, and especially their consultants and agencies who call themselves brand creators, should understand that having a beautiful wrapper does not guarantee that the candy will be tasty.

Brand or no brand?

Trademark, logo, brand book and brand guideline, corporate colors and text on the company page - this is still not a brand! About that, I already wrote. And if you agree that a brand is something that exists in the imagination of the consumer, you should also agree that the head of the consumer and your head are very different. Spending 100,000 to create a brand book is only the first step towards becoming a brand. Let's think about when a brand becomes a brand...

When does a brand become a brand?

So, from the time of paying the bill to the brand agency and printing business cards with a new logo, some time should pass. This time is necessary for you (just for you, and not for a logo or corporate font) to convey the main ideas of the brand from the brand book to the mind and feelings of your customers.

It will take some time for these brand attributes to take root there. And you wanted to be called a brand in a month? That won't work, alas. A brand, company or product must go some way. Now we will try to understand when it is already possible to start adding a word with the letter “B” to the name of a company or product

When other TMs equalize or try to differ (build up)

This means that you have already created a certain clear (or not so) image in the market. And competitors try to either be like or unlike you. Please note that the competition is moving to a new level. Not by price, but by new abstract categories (comfort, status, youth, etc.)

She has fans

Fans are consumers who love you and are ready to forgive a lot. If you have fans ready to prove to anyone that this Trademark better than that, which means that some attributes of the brand were successfully conveyed to them.

Brand loyalty is stable

For example, you can take, mmm ... At least Bentley. Is it a brand? Who will argue? One of the attributes of the brand is highest quality, others status. Once, a new car got on a test drive and the journalists were surprised that the trunk did not have a closer! The trunk of the new Bentley slams like other cars, instead of silently closing. It was a shock! But, of course, the car came to consumers already with closers. Despite the publication of such a "egregious" case, no one doubted the quality and status of Bentley. I'm exaggerating a bit, of course, but that's the gist of it. If you are believed for a long time, then a certain “margin of safety” is created.

The brand is perceived in almost the same way by fans, consumers and not consumers

Not everyone can afford to buy a Harley Davidson, a Mercedes S class or a bottle of Coca-Cola (for example, my health will not allow me to drink “soda”, but someone has a status). But! Even for those who are not consumers of the brand, its image coincides or almost coincides with those who use it. Mercedes - an expensive, comfortable and high-quality car? Everyone thinks so, even those who drive fiats. Mercedes spent a lot of time and money to convince all of us of this.

Your brand defines the lifestyle

This is generally aerobatics. There can't be two opinions here. When a company begins to change the world around it and influence the behavior of the masses, it is surely a brand. Let's remember (and knock on wood and spit over the left shoulder):

Google- a new concept of "google" has appeared. The new generation now thinks first of all "where to find a solution" than "how to solve a problem"
Nike- a whole new philosophy of rivalry, struggle and victory. For low-income categories from the American ghettos, Nike has become something of a guiding star, suggesting that such sneakers are worn by those who could “break out” into a better life.
Nokia- just a synonym for a reliable phone. Remember the legends about the "indestructibility" of Nokii. How many times have we heard: “this is Nokia”.

With each, not even a year, but a day, the competition becomes stronger and stronger. Giant companies are emerging, biting off a big piece of the pie from cream-filled customers.

Small competitors appear, who also pinch off a piece of the market with a dessert spoon.

In order not to lose this race, there are over 5000+ ways of marketing.

But if you plan to go for a long time and steadily, then it's time for you to deal not only with chips, but also with more long-term tasks. Namely, think about how to create a brand from your company.

If you think that the word “brand” means the process of creating a logo or, then you are mistaken.

Everything is much more global than it seems. Also, if you think that a brand is pathos and a huge amount of money for, I hasten to disappoint you.

Often this is wrong famous companies who aggressively promote their brand to the masses.

In fact, much more is hidden under the word brand: the company's values, its recognition among consumers, etc.

This is all part of why a customer decides to buy from you.

And, as I already said, if you plan to do business "in debt", then without creating your own brand you can't go anywhere. Although at the beginning of my marketing journey, I thought very differently.

Do I need it?

Let's go right away. If you do not want to create your own brand, then either the market will force you to do it, or it will throw you out of its orbit.

Naturally, you can earn little money from sales without a brand. This also has a place.

But if you look at major players, then among them you will not find a single one that works without it.

You already have a company, a name, and maybe even a logo. If you have been working for a long time, then there is form style, and maybe even .

Offhand, we can say that you have an established brand. Well, let's check not by eye, but by science.

Right now, please answer the questions below to evaluate which of us gets candy for being right in our thoughts:

Does your company have a mission? What?
Do you know your clients? Who are they? How do they feel about your company?
What are the benefits of your product and company?
What impression should your customers have of you?

Stop! This raises the question: “Why is the mission, values, customers, benefits, and also the impression mentioned in the brand evaluation?”.

All questions are philosophical, without specifics, it's true. Because the very concept of “brand” in the world is often misinterpreted.

For most entrepreneurs, this is just a logo and a slogan that is advertised everywhere. But in fact it is much broader.

Brand- these are associations, ideas, fantasies: and even emotions that arise in the mind of the consumer when you mention your company.

In fact, this is an abstraction that pops up in the head, which is precisely created due to the logo, colors, slogans and other things.

We will discuss what it takes to develop a company brand in the next chapter. Still, the article should be with clear instructions, and not sketchy knowledge.

But before that, I want to warn you. Creating a company brand is only a small part of a big task called branding.

Branding is the work of creating and “promoting” a brand to create and associate in the minds of consumers.

If you manage to do everything according to Feng Shui, then the result will make you a king copper mountain. The risk will be justified by the list of advantages that you will receive by going through this voluminous work. Here are some of them:

Correct perception of your company;
Increased awareness among competitors;
Reduction of drawdowns during the crisis;
Growth in the number of loyal customers;
Increased employee loyalty.

All this leads not to mythical benefits, but to quite measurable ones, which will be reflected in the company's personal account.

Therefore, the process of creation must begin now, although no, it should have started yesterday. And there is only one reason for this.

The road is a lifetime

Bad news. Branding implies a rather long sequence of actions for the development of the company.

No one knows exactly what it takes to create a strong brand for the ages. This work has blurred boundaries. The only thing we know is that it happens in 5 directions:

Brand positioning. This is where the brand is born. What place will he occupy and where will the company go. Remember the famous Steve Jobs and his Apple company.
If it’s easier for you, you can divide the brand into: product, place, price and promotion. This is if it's really rude.

But what to do?

It is important to understand the specific creation algorithm, the sequence of steps and actions that will bring you closer to a strong brand.

We have considered the directions that generally describe the situation. Now let's look at each one under a microscope.

And we will define 11 steps (all books are reduced to them), each of which is responsible for one of the previously studied areas.

big idea

What the brand is created for and what image of the company will be promoted with its help.

It can also be called the key message that you will convey to your customers in all your communications.

In our case, it is "only A complex approach(marketing, sales and personnel) will lead the company to stable and predictable sales.”

Example 1: The footwear company "Geox" broadcasts the idea of healthy footwear. In addition to the fact that it is made of high quality materials, it is made taking into account the physiological characteristics of a person.

And in this struggle, a properly created brand becomes a pretty good help and weapon, which, albeit in the long term, will still ensure the company's growth and consumer loyalty.

Creating a personal brand in 2017 was officially recognized as a trend. Leading international business publications have publicly stated that you risk being left out if you don't work with a personal reputation. But what exactly needs to be done so that you are recognized everywhere, alas, no one has explained. The most striking example of where an entrepreneur's personal brand can lead is undoubtedly Donald Trump. A man who spent decades working on his public image, using almost every personal promotion tool available, now occupies the Oval Office in the White House.

In Russian reality, the concept of "personal branding" is rather negative. Work with a public image is usually associated with show business or politics, but not with a business direction. And if they do remember, they call the names of Chichvarkin and Tinkov, hinting that for their own promotion, you need to do shocking things. However, more and more Russian entrepreneurs begin to find value in working on personal promotion. The most obvious goal is to draw attention to your product at the expense of interest in the individual. Between a faceless company and a company where there are people "in sight", there is a high probability that they will choose the latter. An additional benefit for entrepreneurs, especially in small businesses, is the opportunity to attract additional investments.

According to Valery Zolotukhin - CEO trading and manufacturing company VIVO and investor - a personal brand is key to investors. The project may have great idea, strong team, good financial indicators, but if there is no trust in the first person, a reasonable investor will not invest money. And rightly so, because the personal motives that drive a person can ruin a thriving business of any size. There are plenty of examples.

The second point why you should rely on a personal brand in investing is practicality. A thorough due diligence of a company costs time and money, and only gives a general idea of the state of affairs. In practice, even the largest investment funds and banks "throw" them. Therefore, the key investment factor is trust in the founders and top management. Ultimately, the investor still needs to make a decision in the uncertainty mode. By the way, the most famous and successful investor in the world, Warren Buffett, came up with this formula for success many years ago - he personally knew the management of all the companies where he made the main investments. Carefully studied all publications and interviews in the press. And he held shares of 10-15 companies, not spraying himself and regularly asking the management how things were going.

The desire to protect employees and even partners from incorrect actions of competitors is the main reason why Russian businessmen today choose to work on a personal brand. Thanks to social networks publicity can dot the "i" in a few hours.

Stop list in personal branding

Unfortunately, a personal brand is not a magic pill that everyone needs. There are a number of limitations that demonstrate that sometimes it pays to stay in the background. The most obvious reason is the reluctance of a person who will have to be constantly in sight, to be public. Unfortunately, labored actions lead to very mediocre results and greatly exhaust the promoted person. After some time, the same representatives of the promotion department will appear on the carpet and heads will start flying, because the promised “wow effect” is not there, and a lot of time and resources have been spent.

The second point, which is often forgotten, is expertise. Before you get on stage, write books, and speak to the media, it's important to make sure you're already a professional, that is, you're well versed in the subject and have something to say. And each of your thesis must be supported personal experience. Otherwise, you can easily lose the very trust that the adherents of personal promotion are hunting for.

Work mechanics

What to do for those who nevertheless decided to work on creating a personal brand, but do not know where to start? As in any business process, it is worth doing an audit of current resources. Conventionally, it can be divided into two blocks - internal and external. The first is related to the characteristics of the person who will be the face of this long-term PR campaign. The second is with what can contribute to the success of this project: human, material and technical resources. The star of personal branding, which consists of 5 arms, will help you disassemble a potential brand into components and assemble it back into a single concept: packaging, marketing, expert development, media strategy, public communication.

For each individual item, it is necessary to understand the scope of work - what, when and in what sequence should be improved. The minimum starting period for planning is three months, during which time the first measurable results can be obtained. The next step is to incorporate routine tasks (such as visiting a stylist, beautician, or speech technician) into the entrepreneur's daily schedule.

Essential elements

Before proceeding with active actions, it is recommended to draw up a "I-Concept" - a document that will connect all the main communication messages. IN basic set includes: a personal unique selling proposition, a package of mental images (facts, characteristics, aftertaste), a biography, a list of achievements, a product line, a description of target audiences, analytics on competitors and the presence of your own original theory / term / concept. After collecting this data, you can proceed to the direct audit.

“They are met by clothes,” indeed, an old truth, but no less true for this. The visual channel of perception in humans is the most developed, so everything that we perceive through vision is of great importance.

Physical data - weight, height, athletic coherence, pronounced features of appearance and eye-catching elements.
Well-groomed - neat appearance.
Style and image - the level of brands, basic wardrobe, selection of images, according to the visual map of the image, selection of chips and bright elements.
Corporate identity - a designer personal business card, a personal logo / monogram, a set of basic photos for promo.

Personal Marketing

Most often, the emphasis is on Internet marketing, but sometimes offline activities are also used.

Search results for the query "last name first name" in Google and Yandex.
Personal website - design, relevance of information, regularity of updates, traffic statistics.
Social media - personal and public accounts in social networks.

Expert development

Activity - participation in specialized events, awards and ratings, membership in professional clubs, lecturing at universities and specialized commercial institutions, sponsorship / philanthropy, social activities.
Expert materials - professional portfolio / resume, customer cases, reviews, thanks, recommendations.

Media communication

Working with the media - creating your own newsbreaks, broadcasts on TV / radio, publications in the press and electronic media.
Own media opportunities - author's podcast, writing a column in print / electronic media, blogs.
Copywriting is an original and recognizable style.

public communication

Speech characteristics - diction, timbre, emotional range, tempo.
Non-verbal characteristics - control of facial expressions, gestures, eye contact, interaction with the audience.
Oratory skills - the ability to improvise, respond competently to questions, work in tandem with the second speaker.
Public content - 5 minute self-presentation, sales talk (20/40/60 minutes), biography in story format.

After all the elements are written into the plan format, it is important to decide when and how to track the results. The best option is a weekly reconciliation of the desired and actual KPIs for each area, as well as a monthly strategic session based on the results of the work. It is worth remembering that in both traditional PR and personal branding, when evaluating performance, it is important to track not just quantitative indicators, but also the real impact on the business.

It is already obvious that the personal brand is starting to gradually capture Russian market and in the coming years, those who take advantage of the new opportunities today will begin to reap real business benefits.

Renowned fashion marketing, branding, and PR expert Kelly Catron, founder of People's Revolution, whose clients include Longchamp, Vivienne Westwood, Valentino, Jeremy Scott, Christie's, Thierry Mugler, Bulgary, and more, provides groundbreaking advice on how to build a successful career.

You must become your own personal brand manager

I was born a publicist. At the age of about two years, I regularly got out of my crib and hobbled into the living room, exclaiming: “Johnny Carson! Evening show! — and then snuggle up on the couch with her parents. A few years later, I tried to get into the Guinness Book of Records for the longest swing ride. No one took the matter seriously until it was dinner time, and I never got off the damn swing; only then did I manage to convince mom call the local newspaper.

By the age of eight, I was organizing real media events, such as neighborhood fundraisers for those with muscular dystrophy for the Jerry Lewis Charity Telethon, which was held every year on Labor Day, celebrated on the first Monday in September.

These weren't small events: I organized art competitions (in one of which my brother and I played Sonny and Cher2) and had my dad cook hot dogs for half of our neighborhood. On the local news, I've always positioned Jerry's Kids as one of the main fundraisers for the Jerry Lewis telethon.

If all this didn't speak for the talent that later helped me produce six shows in one day, get my clients mentioned in New York Times and even to organize their own TV shows, then I don't know what other omens were needed; however, none of the people around came up with the thought: “God, this girl will become an excellent PR man!”.

In fact, my teachers thought that I just wanted to draw attention to myself. "Student's interest in social activities surpasses interest in knowledge,” wrote one of them, Mr. Dominy, and my parents forced me to stay at home as a result (many years later, after I became a successful PR specialist, I sent Mr. Dominy a copy of my tax return). In fact, as a child, I spent a lot of time under house arrest, because I did things that later made me a lot of money.

I think it will not surprise readers now why I do not believe that the people who educate you will certainly guess your destiny, or at least encourage you to search for it. Guided own ideas about which direction your life should go, parents, relatives and teachers, quite possibly, are not even looking for signs that point to other options for your development. What, in the right context, can become an important element of future success, may seem to the people around you only as your shortcoming or a character trait that is better to get rid of. That is why you must become the manager of your own personal brand.

Don't be like everyone else

When I get to LA, I always laugh at the huge rooftop billboard. shopping center Beverly Center, which says: "DO NOT BE LIKE EVERYONE." In fact, most of us are trying to do exactly the opposite - blend in with the crowd. But if you think about it, only people who are not like others change our world. The best brands stand out from the crowd.

Think, for example, Richard Branson, founder and CEO of the British airline Virgin Atlantic - he is definitely not a typical businessman; or Oprah Winfrey, who is very different from other talk show hosts; or the late Liz Tiberis, editor-in-chief of America's first fashion magazine, Harper's Bazaar, a woman who was known in the fashion industry for being unlike most editors-in-chief of major fashion magazines, wow! She had a heart!

I believe these people succeeded because they sold what was in line with their true values and beliefs. Each of them found a job that matched his professional skills and passion, and devoted himself to it.

Take, for example, André Leon Tully, the witty and well-spoken Vogue columnist who, although he looks like a typical jumpy and unfashionable publisher, has been slicing through New York City in floor-length capes for years and is one of the most respected and recognizable faces of the fashion industry. Or take a look at red-haired Grace Coddington, Andre's slick and headstrong magazine colleague and star of The September Issue, a Vogue documentary.

My daughter's pediatrician, Dr. Cohen, is a charming French doctor who wears Paul Smith suits, Britain's most traditional designer, and cycles to see patients. Every fashionable mother living in Manhattan is eager to enroll her child with Dr. Cohen. Why? Because he is a cool Frenchman in a Paul Smith suit who comes to your place on a bicycle. What's not to like about it? Of course, Dr. Cohen is, among other things, very good specialist, that's the main thing.

No one would care about André Leon Tully's mind-blowing capes if he wasn't a brilliant author. Being myself is, in a sense, a luxury: if I were a terrible PR person, it might be embarrassing for me to show up to the office without makeup or spontaneously throw a party.

Being yourself is, in a sense, a luxury.

Today, each of us sells something, and if you do not have a clear "point of differentiation" - what makes you special, unique, effective - then you will not achieve much success in fashion or in any other competitive industry, and you will absolutely definitely not succeed in entrepreneurship. Everyone has famous brands there is a point of differentiation.

Gucci sells black chic Italian aesthetics, Dolce & Gabbana sells lace and rock and roll, and Ralph Lauren- the chic of privileged America. It's time to decide what you're selling and how you're going to make people want to buy it.

Your point of differentiation doesn't have to be "revolutionary"; it just has to be different and match your character. Most people are imitators, dressing and acting the way they think they should. But people like Dr. Cohen are not afraid to challenge accepted standards by following their own personal style. Why can't this pediatrician go to patients' homes in Manhattan in 2010? And why shouldn't he ride a bike? Why do all female investment bankers have to wear pencil skirts, pearls and Tod's handbags? And, since we are talking about this topic, why does a PR person have to lie?

Since I don't like to lie, one of my points of differentiation in an industry full of lies is total and complete honesty. My signature style is truthful and unconventional; some may even find it somewhat unprofessional. But I get results because I say things differently from the dozen other PR people who call the journalist every day. I don't just do work the way I was taught to do it or the way everyone else does it. Let's face it, qualities like adequacy and normality aren't going to get your brand anywhere.

How do you find your point of differentiation? Above all, don't try to convince yourself (and don't let others convince you!) that you are someone you are not. If you don't love the sick, don't become a doctor. If it's beneath your dignity to bring coffee and pick up clothes from the dry cleaners, don't mess with the fashion industry. On the other hand, if you hate whining, complaining men, consider becoming a dominatrix - you will make a fortune!

Learn to do one thing well

Having embarked on an intuitive, dream-inspired path of self-determination, you must gradually focus on the essentials. Once you find something that brings you satisfaction, focus on improving your skills and gaining knowledge in your chosen area. Make that promise to yourself. You don't have to do it until retirement - some people are destined to achieve several aspirations in life - but if you learn to do one thing well, it will open up wide prospects for you.

A plant will not rise high if it reaches for five or six suns, just as a good PR person will never simultaneously promote fashion, beauty, pharmaceuticals and non-profit organizations, and the therapist will not work in parallel as a cardiac surgeon and a gastroenterologist. Successful people, like persuasive brands, tend to be highly specialized. They do one thing and do it better or more interesting than everyone else.

Make up your own mind about what's sexy

When defining your brand image (whether you work in the fashion industry or in some other field), remember how dangerous it is to try to create your image "from the outside." How many girls come every day to beauty salons and ask: "I want a hair like Jennifer Aniston"? Jennifer Aniston's hair is supervised by her stylist, Chris McMillan, a true master of his craft.

Instead of creating an image within ourselves, we spend half of our teenage years cutting out pictures from magazines and pasting them on our bedroom walls, hastily putting together a collage of how we want to look. How do you want to position yourself? Instead of copying other people's images, make up your own idea of what is sexy.

These questions are not easy to answer. It is much easier to lighten your hair, make a bob and buy the “right” bag. Most women dye their hair platinum blonde and wear sneakers by the age of thirty-eight, signaling to the world that for the next miserable forty years they intend to fade into the shadows. On the other hand, I am convinced that people who have a bright individual style, just reflect their unique inner world in appearance. And they do the right thing. They have worked on themselves, they know themselves well, they are aware of what suits them and what does not. That is why my amazing flowery dress from Pucci, which I love very much, you will never see me on.

Learn to sell your brand

Finally, no matter how great and recognizable your brand is, it's of little use if you can't sell it to others. I'm talking about getting a job. The best thing you can do for your brand from the start is to align it with powerful brands that embody your highest aspirations. This is equally true for the fashion industry, and for surgery, and for the fine arts.

It takes time to sell your brand to the world (or your industry, or just your boss). We have already said that the road to your dreams may not be paved with yellow bricks; in fact, it may be littered with rejection letters. The people who succeed are not just the ones whose brand is more recognizable; these are also those who, after a refusal, do not give up, but continue to move forward.

Many college graduates see paid work as a right rather than a privilege to be earned and expect to earn $10,000 a month before they turn twenty-five. I don't want to upset you, but that's unlikely these days, no matter how brilliant and talented you are.

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