Today, I spoke with David Armano, who is a well-known blogger and visual expert. He’s best known for his marketing diagrams and speaks at a lot of industry events. I spoke to David about how he’s grown his personal brand, what it takes to become known in a cluttered world and tips he has for bloggers who are just starting out. One of the main themes in our talk was how he separates his personal brand from his employers brand and how he’s able to make both brands mutually benefit over time. I’m in a similar situation to David, so it was helpful to see how he’s handled it.
David, in terms of the way you branded yourself online, do you feel you owe much of your success to your visual drawing? Was there some sort of viral effect with them that got you noticed?
The visuals absolutely had a great deal to do with the visibility I am fortunate enough to have. My first few blog posts were mostly about user experience and brands. There’s a lot of people talking about these topics. Then one day, I did a visual and I noticed that other blogs started using it on their sites and they would link back to me. And as I did more, I noticed the same pattern. Over time, I started building a reputation for doing this—and I enjoyed dong them. People saw value in the visuals—many use them in their presentations. One visual in particular that I created is called “influence ripples” and it pops up all over the place.
The visuals themselves have helped me to build my personal brand as they are often times immediately recognizable, but what’s more important is that I try to provide value with them. There’s a lot of change going on in the spaces between social media, marketing and even the user experience and what I try to do with my visuals is take something potentially complex and boil it down. Those who find value in this, use what I put out there and in return reward me with their attention and eventually trust. But like any brand it has to happen over time. I’ve done hundreds of visuals and posts over the past 3 years which I hope contribute something to the larger conversation.
How are you able to separate your personal brand from that of Critical Mass, your company? What parts intertwine and has your company benefited from your exposure/visibility/credibility?
On my blog it’s fairly separate as is my personal Twitter account. I make it clear when writing on my blog that it’s my personal opinions. But there is a good deal of intertwining. When I write for Ad Age, it’s predominantly for Critical Mass, but obviously I bring my personality to it. That’s one way the agency benefits from it. I also have relationships with journalists at BusinessWeek and Adweek that were originally initiated from blogging. I see the relationship as mutually beneficial. Whenever I speak at an event, I represent Critical Mass (the name of the agency is on my slides) though I often times get invited to speak because of my personal profile. But in reality, it’s co-branding.
People know me from before I worked with my current employer and that’s just a reality. I get a good deal of leeway in my job and really enjoy the people I work with, so the bottom line is that I try to treat the “co-branding” very respectfully and not take it for granted. If you are going to be in a position like mine, you have to always be looking for opportunities to have your company benefit from your profile. If they are comfortable with it, it can be beneficial to both parties.
What are your top 3 tips for bloggers who want to market their content to the right people?
- A. Focus on the content
- B. Play to your strengths
- C. Get out there in person
First thing for bloggers to realize is that their content has to be solid. They can find an undeserved niche or chime in with the masses, but there has to be something there that gets people coming back. The best marketing for a blogger is the blog itself and what others say about it vs. what they do. People will recommend good bloggers, it’s that simple.
Secondly you have to play to your strengths. Some bloggers are amazingly extroverted and social, they respond to every comment they get and engage people all day long. Others are organized and create useful lists. Still others are great on video. Find out what your strengths are and develop those vs. trying to be like others. And lastly making connections—meeting people in real life is incredibly important.
“Just like with all networking, once you’ve met someone in person it makes a more lasting impression and goes a long way.”
You use “//” and Brogan uses “[ ]” as part of your brand. Why?
I’ve been doing that since long before blogging. Partially it represents the // in Http:// which I think pays homage to my passion for the interactive medium. But also, I just think it looks cool. 🙂
What are some personal branding lessons you’ve learned over your career?
Great question. When I first started blogging, I did not feature my photo on my blog, or even on Twitter at first. I wanted to rely on the visual manifestation of my brand (logo, visuals etc.). I was wrong on this. I’ve since changed both and understand the power of a “face”. For a personal brand to be truly effective, people have to feel like there is a “person” behind it. A simple photo helps move you in this direction and it was something I learned on the fly. I’ve also learned that a personal brand can begin by accident, but it takes some work and strategy to have something that really represents something you feel comfortable with. It’s different for everyone and at some point you have to ask yourself “what do I want to be known for”?
So I make fairly calculated efforts in what I talk about and how I talk about them. While I often times talk about social media, user experience and marketing—I also try to communicate visually as much as I can, because my true passion is in the communication. I really enjoy solving problems visually. So I am learning that in order for this to be my “personal brand” I need to be careful not to over indulge on all of the “Web 2.0” talk.
“Lastly I’ve learned that having a personal brand that is sufficiently visible requires working in an environment where your employer not only comfortable with it but want to tap it somehow. This is the best case scenario and can work for everyone if both parties reciprocate.”
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David Armano has over 14 years experience in the communications industry with the majority of his time spent in digital marketing and experience design. An active thought leader in the industry, David authors the popular Logic + Emotion blog currently ranked in the top 25 of the “Power 150” as listed by Advertising Age. David’s writing and visual thinking has been cited by respected sources such as by Forrester, Crain’s and landed him in BusinessWeek on several occasions including their “Best of 2006”. David leads an interdisciplinary group of designers, writers and content strategists for the Chicago office of Critical Mass, a marketing agency focused on creating extraordinary experiences.
