• Twitter
  • Linkedin
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • email
Sensei MarketingSensei MarketingSensei MarketingSensei Marketing
  • HOME
  • SERVICES
    • Influence Marketing
    • Web Design & Development
    • Loyalty & Rewards Programs
    • Advocacy & Community Programs
    • Pay Per Click
    • Conversion Rate Optimization
    • Content Marketing
    • Customer Analysis Report
    • Email Marketing
    • Social Media
  • BONDAI PLATFORM
  • OUR WORK
  • BLOG
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT

When Personal and Corporate Brands Collide

By Sam Fiorella | Sensei Perspective | 0 comment | 17 June, 2012 | 0

This past week I was introduced to another case of personal branding colliding with corporate egotism; an increasingly common fender-bender in our over-connected world where the line between personal and corporate personas are becoming thinner and thinner.

Last week Dave Reynolds, an extremely popular DJ at 99.7 The River in Campbell River, British Columbia (a Vista-owned radio station) was nominated and received a “Coastie” award (Campaign of the Year). It was awarded in recognition of Mr. Reynold’s personal social media campaign to leverage his social graph to draw attention and donations to his employer’s Christmas Food Drive. Now the station has little-to-no social presence and apparently, no social media strategy. His personal efforts drew global support and attention, which aided the campaign to surpass the Food Drive’s goals AND generated an amazing about of earned media for the local radio station.

Win/Win right?
However, on the day of the award ceremony, 99.7 The River’s parent company issued a cease and desist letter to the award committee demanding they change the nomination and award from Mr. Reynold’s name to that of the radio station. Upon his return to work after accepting the re-named award, Mr. Reynolds was terminated “with just cause” and little other information  Read more here.
My personal disgust for the corporate egotism displayed aside, this post is really about a question that has been bubbling under the surface of many conversations I’ve had with executives planning “social business infrastructures”: can personal and corporate brands coexist?
The Rise of Personal Brands
From the day of the first business incorporation, “corporate branding” has been a priority for marketing departments and corporate executives. Corporate Branding by its strictest definition is the practice of using a company’s name, logo or other visuals as a product brand name. Then there’s Individual Product Branding where each product has a unique brand name and the corporate name is not promoted to the consumer. With each, the general goal is to create an emotional connection through instant recognition of the business or product names and their associated iconography or personel. In some cases, brands hire spokespeople or chose individuals within the company that they elevate to brand spokesperson. Key point: each is in the control of the business.
Modern social media channels and their fervent adoption globally have now given rise to a third brand that businesses are being forced to deal with:the personal brand. But first they must first learn to understand it and more importantly, to not fear it.
Individuals, without the marketing and brand strategists afforded big businesses have seen their personal brands evolve simply by engaging in social communications with their family, friends and colleagues. By design or by accident, personal brands can become bigger than life – and certainly bigger than many of their employer’s brands, which in my opinion was the case with Mr. Reynolds.
The Corporate-Personal Brand Conflict
Through various social streams, I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Dave and, along with his hordes of followers can attest to the unselfish nature of his fame. His popularity has risen as a result of his honest desire to be friendly and engage with others on a personal level unlike many other media celebrities who engage in calculated social conversations for the purposes of elevating their status and persona. Should such honest engagement or even a little self-promotion to be celebrated within a brand when it ultimately drives the exact result that the corporate brand strategy is striving to achieve?
While all the details surrounding the dismissal of Mr. Reynolds from 99.7 may never be released, the one public fact remains: he was fired on his first day back to work after receiving a personal social media award earned for a personal campaign to support a business fundraising effort…an award that his employer forced the awards committee to change from a personal award to one in their name.  It begs the question: can a strong personal brand coexist with its employer’s brand? Or is the corporate ego simply too fragile?
If the employer’s brand is weak, can it or should it support strong personal brands from within its ranks?  If an employer does not have strong social media awareness or presences, should it support or quash personal social media efforts?  Is this an HR issue or Corporare Risk issue?
Question: Can a personal brand coexist within a corporate brand? Should corporate brands actively discourage and punish them,  “manage” them to subordinate positions, or actively promote them?
Related: Read part two of this series: Should Corporations Fire Personal Brands? 
Sam Fiorella – Sensei
Feed Your Community, Not Your Ego

The #bizforum Twitter debate will challenge business leaders to argue the pros and cons of this very issue this Wed Jun 20th, 2012 between 8 and 9 PM Eastern. Join us by following #bizforum in your Twitter steam or by following www.tweetchat.com/room/bizforum.

#bizforum, branding, Corp Social Media Policy, Corporate Risk Management, Social Experience Design

Sam Fiorella

Sam Fiorella is a Partner here at Sensei Marketing, a consulting and technology firm focused on aiding global companies grow their business value through improved customer experiences. Professionally, Sam has also co-authored: Influence Marketing: How To Create, Manage and Measure Brand Advocates and is a Professor of Marketing at Seneca College and an Adjunct Professor at Rutgers Center for Management Development. Sam is also the co-founder of YellowIsForHello, a not-for-profit corporation that seeks to decrease the rate of suicide among students through peer-to-peer connections.

More posts by Sam Fiorella

Related Post

  • Should Corporations Fire Personal Brands?

    By Sam Fiorella | 0 comment

    Earlier this week I posted When Personal and Corporate Brands Collide, in which I outlined a case study of corporate egotism rearing its ugly head in the face of an employee’s personal brand and publicRead more

  • Competing With Your Employee for Consumer Loyalty

    By Sam Fiorella | 0 comment

    This week I’ve been exploring the conflict between employee and corporate brands here on Sensei Blogs and during our weekly Twitter debate. The discussion has taken many twists and turns touching on HR policies, corporateRead more

  • Brand Ideology in the Age of Disruption

    By Sam Fiorella | 0 comment

    The latest posts here on Sensei Blogs have been inspired by our insights into businesses that have been living through the age of disruption, which references the interruption of a business’ outbound communications (branding, publicRead more

  • Do Social Media Sensibilities Impact Your Brand’s Reputation?

    By Sam Fiorella | 0 comment

    Last evening’s #bizforum Twitter debate focused on the impact of social media-powered customer service on the business. We saw an excellent exchange on both sides of the various resolutions that were being debated but oneRead more

  • The 7 Deadly Sins of Market Leaders.

    By Sam Fiorella | 0 comment

    I responded to the recent news of the resignation of RIM’s Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis with mixed emotions. As a Blackberry user and fan, it signals a possible change in direction to what IRead more

Leave a Comment

Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CUSTOMER ACQUISTION

Pay Per Click
Web Design & Development
Content Marketing
Web Conversion Optimization
SEO
Email Marketing

CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

Customer Insight Analysis
Customer Experience Management
Loyalty & Rewards Program
Advocacy & Community Programs
Influence Marketing
Social Media

RECENT BLOGS

  • How to Grow Your Influencer Community Through Data
  • How Social Monitoring and Influence Marketing Can Benefit from Human-Powered AI
  • How to Identify and Use Brand Influencers Effectively
  • Why You Need Context When It Comes to Big Data and AI
  • 2020 Customer Experience Trends Not to Overlook

PARTNERSHIPS & ACCREDITATIONS

SOCIAL MEDIA

ABOUT

About
Our Work
Blog
Speaking Events & Workshops
Contact Us

ADDRESS

100 University Avenue
Suite 500
Toronto ON
Canada
M5J 1V6
Phone: 1.416.484.1400
  • HOME
  • SERVICES
    • Influence Marketing
    • Web Design & Development
    • Loyalty & Rewards Programs
    • Advocacy & Community Programs
    • Pay Per Click
    • Conversion Rate Optimization
    • Content Marketing
    • Customer Analysis Report
    • Email Marketing
    • Social Media
  • BONDAI PLATFORM
  • OUR WORK
  • BLOG
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
Sensei Marketing