Why are You Still Unemployed?

I need to be careful in this post as I am going through the process of hiring a new team member in my department. But I wanted to give some feedback to those of you who may be unemployed and can't seem to break through to an interview, or even a job offer. And, as always, I'll bring this around to why non profits continue to struggle with their marketing and what they can do to fix it.

First, your resume is your elevator speech. It is your first and last impression. It needs to be packaged to set you apart from all the other noise. For example, I am hiring a graphic designer and we've had more than 40 people apply for this position so far (actually, I think we have more than that -- those are only the resumes I've seen). My first pass was to go through the resumes and remove any resume that wasn't designed. If you can't package your own content, how should I expect you to package my company's content?

While not everyone is applying for a graphic design position -- you are applying for something and trying to sell yourself. How have you packaged your content? How do you stand apart from the rest of the crowd? Are you one of many, or one of one? Non profits have the same issue when it comes to their direct mail and other promotions. Have you packaged yourself in the same envelope, same tri-fold, same flyer as everyone else? How do you stand apart?

Second, in your resume and cover letter you have to make me the subject of your focus. Nearly all the resumes I review are focused on the person. Well, it's the standard convention, right?!? However, occasionally there is one that stands apart because it talks about what you will do for me, what I get from hiring you, what the benefit to me is. Those that make this leap from self-focus to value proposition make the second cut.

Non profits spend a lot of time talking about themselves, the work they do, how important it is, and how good they are at doing it. Yes, that's all fine and well, but so what? At the end of the day there are hundreds of thousands of other companies also performing in a similar fashion and saying the same things. Tell me how your work will improve my life. Tell me how supporting you will benefit me. The value of answering these questions in this way demonstrates you understand your audience and that you can solve their problems or address their needs. Doing so puts you light years ahead of everyone else.

Finally, deliver on the promise. Your resume has been picked and you're scheduled for an interview. An expectation has been set -- by you -- based on the impact and positioning of your resume content. Make sure you meet that expectation, and over deliver against it. Prep, study, learn, absorb. Don't come into the interview cold. Have questions ready, read blogs, search the Web for links, Google the interviewer; whatever you do, don't do nothing!

Non profits who capture the hearts, minds, hands, and pocketbooks of their audiences must also be sure to deliver the experience that target is expecting. Recently I got a group of people together to donate money to a cause that buys livestock for people around the world. The brochure was amazing and I was looking for an equally amazing high once I put in my credit card information and hit the send button. I was less than thrilled with the confirmation screen and follow up since then and am not as jazzed to support them again. Something got lost between the promise, and its delivery.

So, why are you still unemployed? I am sure there are lots of really good reasons. It's a tough economy and a tight job market. I get that. But you need to make sure you're not sabotaging yourself by missing these simple three points.

-- David Kinard, PCM

What Brand are You?

A lot of mileage has come out of the concept of turning ourselves into brands. And for good reason. The idea that we can transform ourselves from marketplace automatons into vibrant, passionate and focused super-doers has a lot of energy around it. In fact, so much energy that more and more people today are heeding the call to brand themselves.

But what is a brand and how do I become one?

While there are many definitions, I have always like this one the best: A brand is a promise held in the mind of a consumer of an individualized, personal and consistent experience from a product, person, or organization. In other words, a brand says, “You can count on me. I am dependable, and will meet needs that no one else can. I am unique and special, and that there is no one out there like me.”

Key to understanding the power of a personal brand is understanding four aspects of the above definition.

1. Experience—brands are not icons, names or the product or service. They are the experience someone has using that product or service, or engaging with that person.
2. Individualized and Personal—great brands connect to people in ways that are unique to each person. They’re intimate, emotional, and special.
3. Consistent—strong brands can be counted on to deliver the same experience over and over again. Consistency in delivering a good experience drives loyalty.
4. Promise—likely the most important part of the equation, brands are promises made by the provider of the type of experience the user will receive. Promises are commitments and consistent delivery on the brand promise increases trust – the number one factor of any brand’s success.

With all this in mind, it isn’t hard to see how we can turn ourselves into brands. Think of people who have become brands—Oprah, Martha Stewart, Michael Jordan, Richard Branson, Jerry Garcia, Elvis, Madonna,…and the list goes on. These individuals actualized their potential to deliver an individualized, personal and consistent experience to the world.

But you don’t have to wait until you’re rich and famous to be a brand. You can start wherever you are by simply changing your mindset from employee to owner, resident to citizen, follower to leader. Becoming a brand means you become CEO of your life and contribution. You turn yourself into ME, Inc., and consistently deliver on the promise of you.

Keith Wyche, president of Pitney Bowes Operations, created an incredible chart which helps to outline three critical elements of a personal brand. He calls it his PEP model: Perception, Exposure, Performance. I interviewed Keith awhile back on my radio program. You can listen to the interview here.

I also interviewed Sherri Thomas, author of 5 Steps to a Powerful Personal Brand. In her interview, she offers specific strategies to move forward in your career by building your personal brand.

Both Sherri and Keith will provide you some excellent ideas on how to build and develop your own personal brand.

-- David Kinard, PCM

But What If We Were Feeding Starving Children?

As a marketer, there have been plenty of stressful times in my career when my team is trying to get that brochure out, a Web site up, or launching a new national campaign. There have been times when the trivial became monumental and a quick perspective check was needed. In those moments, I usually pulled my team together here and asked a simple question – “Hey, is what we are doing as important as feeding starving children?” The answer has always been ‘no’. Those moments of clarity usually helped the team realize there are far more important things in life happening than a brochure, and ad, or an email campaign.

But what if what I was doing was indeed feeding starving children?

In early November I was laid off from my job. I’ve had the chance to look into a lot of jobs at some amazing companies, with amazing products, and equally amazing people. But one thing that has resurfaced for me is my passion for making a real and fundamental difference in the lives of people. I spent seven years as a consultant with non profits, and I continue to be drawn back to the desire to do work that has meaning.

What if I could do something that fed starving children?

I am blessed. I have never gone to bed hungry from a lack of food in the house. Nor have I ever slept outside because I had no home. And even in the hardest of times, my family has always had good health and a wonderful group of friends and family that have been there to see us through to the other side. Each night my wife and kids and I sit at the dinner table and share a meal. Some evenings we play games; everything from Apples to Apples to Zooreka. Sometimes we pop some corn and watch home movies, or just hang out and do our own thing while music plays in the background. We don’t have a lot, but we have more than most. And likely the most valuable thing we have are options. Many in this world do not.

Yesterday I excitedly applied for a job with Unitus. They’re a microfinancing nonprofit based in Seattle with a goal of reaching 15 million families by 2010. They need a communications director – a job that seems to be ideally suited for my every capability. I read through the description with a growing sense of anticipation as I could capably meet each of the requirements. But what struck me more than anything else was the answer to the question I’d asked a thousand times in my career – is what I am doing as important as feeding starving children?

I think I’ve found a place where I can finally say yes.

-- David Kinard, PCM

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You can learn more about Unitus, microfinancing, and ways you too can help make a fundamental difference in the lives of others by visiting:

**Unitus Headquarters: http://www.unitus.com/

**Wikipedia entry about microfinancing

**BBC Interview with Nobel Peace Prize winner to Bangladeshi economist Professor Muhammad Yunus on Microfinancing

**Micro Financing to Reduce Poverty

Tough Market Needs Tougher Marketers

It is a comforting thought that if you do your best, work hard, and can attribute results to your efforts, that you will be rewarded and have a good level of security in today's tumultuous economy. However, that comforting thought may not be reality.

Last week I joined the ranks of many qualified marketers who have recently found themselves laid off. After four years with my last employer (almost to the day) I was told my position was being cut. Though I was disappointed and surprised, I wasn't dismayed. I knew that I've spent my time developing a solid resume and network that will -- hopefully -- see me through this employment gap and on to my next role with another company.

What this situation reminds me of, however, is the need for marketers to be tougher than the times they face. It is very easy for marketing professionals to rest on past accomplishments, go at the pace of their competition, or even lag behind in their own learning and education. Rather, marketers need to lock down those new skills on a regular basis, constantly review their work for better ROI opportunities, and innovate their strategies and tactics so that they lead the competition rather than walk alongside or fall behind.

Tough economic times call for tougher marketers -- professionals who have resumes packed full of quantifiable results. Even in the toughest of times, businesses still need good marketing people. In fact, in those tough times they need marketing professionals who have delivered solid results in the past with a brand promise of repeating those results in the future.

If you've found yourself out of a job in these tough times, what are you doing to ensure your marketability is high, and that you're a preferred candidate for the jobs you're applying for?

-- David Kinard, PCM

The Accidental Marketer

There is a great movie called The Accidental Tourist (1988) starring Gina Davis and William Hurt. It's about a guy who is a travel book writer. Though he doesn't realize it in the beginning, he's written about how to travel with minimal impact and fuss. As a result, the traveler ends up going to amazing places without letting what they're experiencing really make an impact. There's far more to the story, but this is the part I wanted to eek out in my first blog entry.

It's easy for us marketers to go through the motions of marketing and not really make an assessment of what we're doing. When we fall into this rut, this routine, we end up not letting our marketing impact us, teach us, change us. We become stagnant, valueless drains on our organizations and deserve the criticism of being cost centers, repetitive, and meaningless.

I've taken a long, hard look back at the last two years of my life. Each is so different from the other. Two years ago I fell into a rut, becoming complacent and giving up. Organizational mindsets toward the role of marketing vary and for me I had four bosses in four years all with very different views. Rather than be tossed by the whims of this executive only to have them replaced by another made it easy to minimize my input, thus minimizing my impact.

But this last year I began the journey of taking back the mantle of what good marketing is and what marketing should be. I've done away with the complacency and have reenergized myself. Yep, its pretty much a daily struggle sometimes, but one that is worthwhile because there is power in what we do. As marketers we weild powerful tools to shape opinions, promote ideas, sell value, and build empires.

Thus, the beginning of MarketAbility -- the blog about how marketing and the real world collide, and what to do when it happens.

Let the journey begin.

-- David Kinard, PCM