Sorry for the delay, but since coming back from Chicago, my mind has really been focused on finding a job. Who am I kidding? It is always focused on finding a job – since I do not currently have one. I guess I was being a bit lazy. Over the weekend, I got to spend time with some old friends who I haven’t seen since my Ohio State days. A lot has happened in the 5 ½ years since I last saw them. I started dating Shirin. I moved to NY for 5 months to start a magazine and wound up working for Sports Illustrated. I moved back home and experienced life at a true start-up company. I went to and completed graduate school at the VCU Brandcenter. I worked for EA SPORTS for the summer. While all of those things have helped mold me into who I am today, there are some things that haven’t changed:
· I am an Ohio State Buckeye
· I love the Giants and Lakers
· I can’t quite get into Baseball
· I play soccer (occasionally)
· I hang out with the same group of friends since South Lakes
· The best times are with those you want to be around
· I have two loving parents and a brother – oh, he got married, so now I have a sister too
I am writing about me because I thought it would be a good idea to do a post on personal branding. This blog, along with my Twitter account and my Facebook account are ways to increase one’s online brand identity. If companies want to get a glimpse of who I am they can read this blog or sign up to be a Facebook friend or LinkedIn connection. Now my girlfriend on the other hand has an opportunity to grow her business using personal branding. She is an up and coming Makeup Artist for MAC Cosmetics. She works in one of the well-known department stores in the area and has enjoyed it very much, so far. Being that a Make-Up Artist can make additional money freelancing, I thought it would be helpful if she branding herself a little stronger…so here are my recommendations:
The obvious idea is for Shirin to video herself applying makeup on herself or others. You can find this kind of self-marketing all over the web: This would be a very efficient way to promote her skills and allow for her to practice teaching the skill as well. The other obvious thing though is that others already do that. While she would not be the first, it would still be a good idea for her to promote her skills and show others how she applies makeup.
The not-so-obvious idea would be to follow Gary Vaynerchuk. If you are not familiar with Gary, you should be. He is someone who is passionate about wine but has become even more passionate about self-promotion (in a good way). Gary spends multiple hours a week dedicated to video taping wine-tasting to promote his family business but also entertain his audience.
He is constantly asking others to step up in their respected industries and attempt to do what he does…Shirin has that opportunity with makeup.
Blog
Okay, okay, who hasn’t mentioned that starting a blog is a great way for self-promotion? But in Shirin’s case, it could truly grow her business. In fact, it could also show off her other talent, painting. I would recommend blogging about different techniques, her experiences at work, training and other areas where she can expose her knowledge of being a Makeup Artist.
LinkedIn
If you read my blog, you know I am a believer in LinkedIn. Considering Shirin is starting her professional career, it would make sense to sign up for LinkedIn’s free service. Until she needs to start networking, she can get by with a free account. With that said, in a quick search, there is a group of Stylists (including Makeup Artists) that is close to 1,000 members. That would be a great way to network in itself. She can update the group with her blog postings and videos.
MAC Ideas
This recommendation has less to do with self-promotion online and more to do with making a name for herself within the department store and MAC as a brand. We were talking over the weekend and realized that the mannequins in department stores go faceless almost all the time. It would be a unique partnership for MAC to makeup these mannequins in order to better promote the individual artists. I can imagine it rotating on a bi-weekly or monthly shift, but allowing each individual to showcase their skills.
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I am interested in your thoughts and also recommendations for companies to tackle. Hope everyone is doing well.
