Exit 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) Skills - exhibits your expertise and leadership Revenues - creates wealth, directly or indirectly Reputation - builds trust and credibility Leverage - benefits employer/important stakeholders Damage Control - combats negativity/bad publicity/rumours Exposure - enhances awareness and presence Differentiation - make you stand out from the crowd Word of Mouth - build referrals and buzz Self-awareness - clarifies focus & goals Networks - fosters connections, collaborations and discussions Power - elevates personal authority and autonomy Fulfillment - creates a happier you (e.g. personal satisfaction, recognition, ego) 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): Sales Human Resources Marketing Finance IT/Technology Supply Chain/Procurement Legal/Regulatory Operations/Production Customer Service Executives/CxOs CEO Entrepreneurs/Small Business Owners Prospective/New Hires Junior Managers/Staff Senior Directors/Managers Other (please specify): Question Title * 8. What are the key success factors of a great personal brand? (max. three choices): Credibility - substance/track record to support personal brand Authenticity - genuineness/transparency of personal brand Content - interesting/provocative/widely shared media Commitment - persistence/stick-to-it-ness in personal brand efforts Distinctive - memorable, differentiated personal brand Appearance - style/tone/first impressions support personal brand Passion - enthusiastic, infectious delivery of personal brand Purpose - noble/higher-order vision/values behind personal brand Affinity - likeable/trustworthy/positive image and perception Clarity - coherent/understandable personal brand promise Network - wide/deep/multi-channel presence and connections Other (please specify) Question Title * 9. What are best media/content tools to promote a personal brand? (max. three choices): Authoring Book Presentations/Speaking Opportunities Direct Outreach to Influencers Media Appearances Offline Tools (e.g. business cards/appearance/giveaways) Blog Awards/third party recognition SEO/Links Offline Networking Podcast/Webinars/Webcast Video/Photo Sharing Personal Website Social Media/Networks Articles/Guest Contributions to Media Partners Association membership/involvement Collaborative Forums/Wikis/Q&As Email Newsletter Other (please specify): Question Title * 10. What are the most frowned upon/negative aspects of personal branding? (max three choices): Lacking authenticity/fakery Boring - does not provoke interest/provocation Shameless/over self-promotion Unethical behaviours - (e.g. spamming/backstabbing) Tone wrong - (e.g. too serious/too casual) Valueless - not enhancing follower/fan's lives Absence of credibility/substance Erratic - no consistency of focus/tone Sameness - looks/feels like everybody else Too much time spent on themselves vs. bigger purpose Absorbed - solely in it for themselves Lazy - not willing to put in time and effort Out of sync with employer/partner brand(s) 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 Pinterest 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 Twitter 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 Slideshare 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 Quora N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A Snapchat 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 Wikipedia N/A 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 N/A LinkedIn 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): Younger generations driving more open, social culture Increased globalization Organizational acceptance of strong personal brands Enhanced technology/limitless connectivity Entrepreneurship as an aspirational career focus Enhanced ability to measure personal brand appeal Ability to monetize personal brand Rise of freelancing/free agent jobs helped by personal brand reputation Ease in building/scaling large personal brand audiences 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
