Context For Our Personal Brand

When we consider our personal brand, insight can be gained from context.

As a marketer, I’ve used the 5Cs analysis most of my career.

When we think about a company, we look at these 5 dimensions:

1. Company – Objectives, strengths & weaknesses, culture, technology, etc.
2. Customers – Value, needs, satisfaction, segments, etc.
3. Competitors – Opportunities & threats, products, strategies, tactics, etc.
4. Climate – Trends – Economical, political, social, environmental, technological, etc.
5. Collaborators – Connections, shared interest, alliances, suppliers, distributers, etc.

We benchmark. We refine. We find connections across the 5 areas.

Insights emerge. Ideas are brainstormed. A vision comes to life.

My Perspective

I’ve been thinking. What if we applied this framework to our personal brands?

We could use the technique for all kinds of “brand projects”.

Updating a LinkedIn profile.

Providing thought leadership at work.

Articulating our parenting style. Searching for a new job. And more.

The dimensions might change slightly. The insights would still emerge.

A vision and ideas would be uncovered. Here are my thoughts on the adjustments to consider:

• Company – This is us. Our strengths & weaknesses, values, vision, objectives, and more.
• Customers – These are the people we serve in our life – a boss, a project team, a spouse, children, a volunteer group. Paid or unpaid, depending on the situation we can dig in and understand their needs. What does the world look like through their lens?
• Competitors – The competition is situation dependent as well. If we are searching for a new job, understanding others in our field that would also be searching can help define how to stand out. We could benchmark LinkedIn profiles when making updates to our own. We can seek inspiration from other parents of children the same age as ours to see what techniques are working for them.
• Climate – Trends – Based on what we are working on, we can consider how the world around us might impact the change we are looking to make.
• Collaborators – This dimension helps us identify who can help us on this journey. We can tap into our networks (personal or professional), join shared interest groups, find an accountability partner.

Your Turn

Have you used the 5Cs at work?

Do you see how you could apply this technique to your life? 

What goal do you have right now that you could apply this technique to?