In November 2010 I was recruited in to Goodwill TalentBridge. My primary focus as a Sr. Business Development Manager was to create B2B relationships within the northern Illinois community.
Back in 2010, TalentBridge was a new business unit and we did not have brand recognition within the local community. So I asked myself, how do I go about branding our business? I remember in one of my college business classes seven key points to develop a brand in a new territory.
Get a great logo. I was lucky enough to work with a great marketing group and who doesn’t know our Goodwill smiley face!- Integrate your brand. It’s important to integrate your brand and also differentiate yourself from your competitors. One important part of my brand awareness was marketing the connection as one. TalentBridge is part of Goodwill Industries and the revenue we bring in from our traditional staffing service goes back to fund mission programs within our local community.
Create a "voice" for your company that reflects your brand. I was the voice in a big market in northern Illinois, so I decided to join networking groups that related to my business. I became the Board President of Northern Illinois Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM). I joined Human Resources Management Association of Chicago(HRMAC) and participated as a Co-Chair on the North/Northwest Committee Group. I also joined several chambers and worked really hard to be a reputable advocate for TalentBridge, which was easy to do because I believe my work matters.- Develop a tagline.
- Design templates and create brand standards for your marketing materials.
Be true to your brand. This is so important, if you don’t believe in your brand find a new position and something you’re passionate about.- Be consistent. Be consistent, be consistent!
Don’t forget to write down your brand messaging and what do you want to get out of it. Good luck!
.jpg)
