The 2016 Personal Branding Survey Pulsecheck Questions (* - represents optional areas) Question Title * 1. In your opinion, how important is personal branding/reputation management to business & career success? Very Important Somewhat important Neutral Somewhat Unimportant Very Unimportant Reasons Why:* Question Title * 2. Has "personal branding/reputation management" increased in importance over the last 5 years? Yes, it's a lot more important About the same importance as before No, it's a lot less important Why/Why Not?:* Question Title * 3. Are you comfortable with the term "Personal Branding"? Yes, that's what people need/should build No, people shouldn't be brands/should just be themselves N/A, don't have a strong opinion either way Why/Why Not? Alternative terms?:* Question Title * 4. Do employers value staff with strong personal brands? Absolutely, they consider them essential Consider somewhat important Neutral, doesn't really factor into employee value Consider somewhat unimportant Consider no value, potentially damaging Why/Why Not?:* Question Title * 5. How happy are you with your own personal brand right now? Very Happy Somewhat Happy Neutral Somewhat Unhappy Very Unhappy Why/Why Not?:* Question Title * 6. What are the top three reasons to invest in your personal brand? (maximum three choices) Damage Control - combats negativity/bad publicity/rumours Fulfillment - creates a happier you (e.g. personal satisfaction, recognition, ego) Exposure - enhances awareness and presence Power - elevates personal authority and autonomy Revenues - creates wealth, directly or indirectly Reputation - builds trust and credibility Leverage - benefits employer/important stakeholders Differentiation - make you stand out from the crowd Skills - exhibits your expertise and leadership Self-awareness - clarifies focus & goals Word of Mouth - build referrals and buzz Networks - fosters connections, collaborations and discussions Other (please specify): Question Title * 7. Within a business setting, which type of employee stands to gain the most from strong personal branding? (max. three choices): Finance Legal/Regulatory Sales Operations/Production Executives/CxOs Marketing Senior Directors/Managers Human Resources IT/Technology Prospective/New Hires Entrepreneurs/Small Business Owners Customer Service Junior Managers/Staff Supply Chain/Procurement CEO Other (please specify): Question Title * 8. What are the key success factors of a great personal brand? (max. three choices): Network - wide/deep/multi-channel presence and connections Appearance - style/tone/first impressions support personal brand Passion - enthusiastic, infectious delivery of personal brand Authenticity - genuineness/transparency of personal brand Purpose - noble/higher-order vision/values behind personal brand Content - interesting/provocative/widely shared media Clarity - coherent/understandable personal brand promise Credibility - substance/track record to support personal brand Commitment - persistence/stick-to-it-ness in personal brand efforts Distinctive - memorable, differentiated personal brand Affinity - likeable/trustworthy/positive image and perception Other (please specify) Question Title * 9. What are best media/content tools to promote a personal brand? (max. three choices): Articles/Guest Contributions to Media Partners Email Newsletter Offline Networking Association membership/involvement Personal Website Blog Social Media/Networks Video/Photo Sharing SEO/Links Direct Outreach to Influencers Presentations/Speaking Opportunities Authoring Book Offline Tools (e.g. business cards/appearance/giveaways) Media Appearances Awards/third party recognition Podcast/Webinars/Webcast Collaborative Forums/Wikis/Q&As Other (please specify): Question Title * 10. What are the most frowned upon/negative aspects of personal branding? (max three choices): Sameness - looks/feels like everybody else Shameless/over self-promotion Absorbed - solely in it for themselves Lazy - not willing to put in time and effort Out of sync with employer/partner brand(s) Tone wrong - (e.g. too serious/too casual) Too much time spent on themselves vs. bigger purpose Lacking authenticity/fakery Unethical behaviours - (e.g. spamming/backstabbing) Valueless - not enhancing follower/fan's lives Erratic - no consistency of focus/tone Boring - does not provoke interest/provocation Absence of credibility/substance Other (please specify): Question Title * 11. Within social media, rank the following websites/platforms for building your personal brand importance (1 being highest importance): 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A Wikipedia N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A Quora N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A Slideshare N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A Vine N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A Twitter N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A Facebook N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A Youtube N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A Medium N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A LinkedIn N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A Pinterest N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A Snapchat N/A Question Title * 12. Think fast, who do you immediate think of as (and why, if you have a reason): A "great" personal brand A "horrible" personal brand Question Title * 13. What forces may drive the rise of "personal branding" the most in the future: (max three answers): Ease in building/scaling large personal brand audiences Increased globalization Organizational acceptance of strong personal brands Rise of freelancing/free agent jobs helped by personal brand reputation Entrepreneurship as an aspirational career focus Ability to monetize personal brand Enhanced ability to measure personal brand appeal Younger generations driving more open, social culture Enhanced technology/limitless connectivity Other (please specify):* Question Title * 14. Will you be investing more time/effort/resources into your personal brand over the next five years: Yes, a lot more Yes, a little more About the same as I do now No, a little less No, a lot less Why/why not?:* Question Title * 15. What is the best habit you have seen/used for building a personal Brand? * Question Title * 16. Your Contact Details: Name Email Twitter Done
