Maximising your relationships (Part 1) Research shows that in service-based businesses, approximately 25% of new business should come from a company’s existing clients. Most businesses, however, forget about marketing to their existing clients and instead tend to chase after new clients. The same research shows that a further 25% of new business should be the…
Maximising your relationships (Part 2) In my last post, I started looking at how you can prove your worth to existing clients. In this post, I’ll examine how to go about getting a referral from these clients. Your client needs to know what other services you offer, other than the ones they’re already making use…
How personal branding benefits your company brand (Part 1) Businesses today have it tough. As soon as you develop something new – a competitive premise or a product/ service that will set you apart from your competitors – your rivals all copy you and that competitive advantage is quickly lost. My point is that your…
The inspiration behind my book Have you ever dreamed of sitting down to have a face-to-face conversation with some of South Africa’s leading figures in the areas of media, politics, business, entrepreneurship, transformation and academia? I did just that, talking to nine exceptional people about their stories, vulnerabilities and successes for my first book, Branding &…
How personal branding benefits your company brand (Part 2) In my previous post, I talked about why I think personal branding will benefit any organisation as a whole. In this post I’d like to address some of the myths around personal branding for employees of large organisations. There is a misconception that allowing employees to…
Effective brands take a stand Most great figures that have helped shape modern history like Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi and Winston Churchill are known and are memorable because they were prepared to stand up for what they believed in, even if there were many who disagreed with them. The ability to take a stand…
Should you believe in the social media buzz? The short answer is yes. And no. Let me explain… Social media can be an extremely useful tool. It helps you to connect to your target audience in real time and to engage on a personal as well as a professional level. Social media can help you…
Why good work is not enough There’s a common belief keeping your head down, working hard and working well will achieve you business success and recognition. It’s a nice idea, but in this extremely competitive business environment we face today, it’s simply not true. Hard work and good work are the expected standards. You need…
What Personal Branding & Marketing is Not There’s a cloud of confusion that seems to surround personal branding. People have ideas of what they think the term means, but many of those ideas are quite far off. I deal with these incorrect assumptions time and time again, so I’ve put together a list of four…
Your Personal Branding Workout Regular exercise is the key to getting fit and being healthy. Likewise, if you want a “fit” and healthy personal brand, you need to flex your branding muscles and give them a workout. Here are a few ideas on how to do that: Always warm up: Make sure you do your…