People and Management People and Management Subscribe

LEAD STORY CONVERSATIONS AND DELEBERATIONS Marcom – Today & Tomorrow D eveloping a personal brand is essential for career advancement, and development as a leader. Unfortunately, personal branding has become a “commoditized” term that has lost its intention as people have used social media as a platform to build their personal brand and increase their relevancy. They believe social media can immediately increase their market value for their personal brand rather than recognizing that the process of developing their personal brand is a much bigger responsibility, a never-ending journey that extends well beyond social media. As a public relation or MARCOM professional, most of the job involves getting clients in the right place and at the right time, to garner the best and most appropriate attention possible. “Most appropriate” because there are those who still refuse to accept the fact that not all press is good press. We have seen Fortune 500 businesses, CEO’s, community organizers, political representatives and others fall prey to the woes of inappropriate and poor media coverage. With that said, it is also the PR Agency or MARCOM’s job to create, protect, and preserve their internal & external client’s brand guidelines at all times. People and Management organized a conversation & deliberation with MARCOM & PR professionals to arrive at what are the common challenges of these professionals and how their job entails building their internal stakeholders brand and aligning it to the Organization’s brand and what this means and the way ahead. organizations participated and shared their perspectives on the topic: MARCOM - Today & tomorrow. Mr. Deepak Behl Director HR, The Park Hotel, chaired the roundtable. The following points are necessary for protecting BRANDS: Never be afraid to say no All press is not good press. Likewise, all collaborations are not great collaborations. Be sure to consider which media outlets you are aligning your clients brand with, before pitching or accepting a story or feature. In addition, pay attention to brands you associate with your represented brand. Do they share similar goals and visions? Is there a sound, useful reason for connecting a “different” brand? If you cannot answer these questions when considering a press source or collaboration, you should most likely consider saying no to the opportunity. Surveys are your friend To know how the represented brand is perceived, We must ask around. Surveys can help secure an understanding of just how the brand is communicated and perceived by all audiences. Ask everyone who matters: customers and clients, press, employees and never be afraid to ask competitors. Compare the feedback to an internal understanding of brand messaging. Do u fi nd any disconnect? Keep it simple Regardless of whether you are representing a company or an individual, a huge brand with commercial history or one in the making, there are steps that every MARCOM & PR professional must take in order to maintain the integrity of the brand image. Over-sharing online is the fastest way to ruin the brand image. Keep it simple. Stick to key messages and carefully constructed associations. Social platforms can be a great outlet when used correctly. If at fi rst you do succeed, repeat again Marketing & Communication professionals from Holisol Logistics, DXC technology, Ufl ex, Jaipuia Group, entrepreneurs, authors, startup professionals from various 10 | Vol. 10 Issue 2 • FEBRUARY 2019, Delhi NCR If Few good press features for the brand and social media efforts seem to be going well then continue to stick to the key messaging. Find creative ways to tell the story to

People and Management People and Management Subscribe | Page 10