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Old Rule:
| Wear the “Dress for Success” Uniform .
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New Rule:
| Have a Signature Look.
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Excerpt from Chapter 4
Use the Principles of Visual Identity To Create a Powerful Self Brand Package
Have a Trademark
A good tactic for self branding is to develop a signature item as a trademark of your visual style. You’re creating a branded element that identifies you, like the logo on a product. Having a trademark item will set you apart from the crowd. Chosen well it can covey a brand message to others and even change the way you see yourself.
During his first trip to Europe, Ben Franklin followed the fashion on the continent and wore a wig and brocade jacket for state functions. Ever one to understand the value of self promotion, Ben bucked the trend and donned simple American broadcloth when he went to France as the U.S. representative after the Revolution. Rather than a wig, his signature look was loose gray hair under a marten fur cap.
Franklin’s memorable image and coiffure only heightened his popularity and fame. Franklin was hailed as a homespun philosopher and became the most famous person on the continent.
Is there a signature item that can brand your visual identity? The examples of signature items are endless. Jackie Kennedy had her pillbox hats and later her oversized sunglasses. Margaret Thatcher had her purses. Larry King has his suspenders. George Bush has his cowboy boots. Katie Couric has her big smile. Barbra has her nose. Donald Trump has his hair. Bono has his tinted wraparound glasses, a trademark for his self brand as recognizable as McDonald’s yellow arches.
Your trademark item can simply be something you dispense with that everyone else wears. Katharine Hepburn eschewed skirts and pants became her trademark in an era when most ladies didn’t wear pants.
John F. Kennedy’s presidency took on mythic proportions after his assassination, for many reasons. But sartorially, his trademark was his hatnessless. This was at a time when men wore formal hats everywhere, even to casual activities like base ball games.
Neil Steinberg, the author or the book, Hatless Jack, says “Kennedy was lauded as this dashing, hatless guy whose adoring public followed is example and tossed away their hats.”
Brainstormer
Creating Your Trademark
Here are some areas to explore in developing a signature item:
- Is there a family heirloom or something personal from your family?
- Do you have different taste in accessories? (bow ties,suspenders, hat)s
- Is there a feature or body part you can emphasize? (glasses, hairstye)
Write it down.
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Here are ten guidelines to keep in mind as you develop your visual identity:
- Think of clothes as packaging. Use clothes to enhance not undercut your brand message.
- Have a signature item. You want a trademark that people associate with you.
- Look different. You don’t want to look like everyone else. You want your own vibe.
- Look the part. Fulfill expectations of the role you are filling and the style of the institution or target market you’re appealing to.
- Use hair as a branding device. Think Dolly Parton, Anna Winotur, Albert Einstein or Donald Trump. Each has a branded hairstyle that is unmistakable.
- Have a consistent look. Don’t send mixed messages. Everything should tie tog3ether for a consistent visual identity (business, casual, formal events).
- Have a signature color or palette. Build your wardrobe and brand marketing around a related palette of colors for maximum impact.
- Make a strong presence. How you stand and carry yourself can give you a strong presence and help you to be remembered.
- See if you can leverage your height, shape or profile. Build your visual identity off who you are.
- Stay relevant and fresh. Evolve your brand so you stay up-to-date.
The whole point of visual identity for people is to maximize the non-verbal messages you are sending out about yourself.
Look at yourself as a package. Is your brand saying on the outside what your self brand is on the inside?
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