Personal branding statements

I recently joined a LinkedIn discussion group on marketing called Sticky Branding, founded by the Mississauga-based marketing consultancy of the same name. (“Attracting customers like bees to honey.”)

I have signed up for several such groups on LinkedIn, in the ever-hopeful expectation that there might much to learn from these no-holds-barred virtual meetings of minds. I usually lose interest and never return. With more than 3500 members and several people I know and respect belonging to Sticky Branding, I thought I would give the concept one more try.

A discussion thread sparked by the site’s founder, Jeremy, attracted my attention at once. In it, he challenges the 3,500 group members to describe what they do in 10 words or less. This isn't just a stunt; in today’s world of high-speed communication and diminished attention spans, anyone who can't describe what they do, briefly and compellingly, is heading for trouble.

As Miller explains, “Your customers have choice. Spend a few minutes online, and you can find virtually anything. That means your customers aren't looking for a complex story about your business. They want to know what you do fast. They are looking for simple clarity.”

That simple “dare” attracted more than 400 comments. But I was disappointed at how uninspiring most of these descriptions were. Even if you're asked to describe something in as few words as possible, you should still make use of the basic building blocks of attention-getting communication: excitement, drama, rhythm, personality, examples – and that most magic word, “you.”

Here are 10 examples of the mission statements I found. They all make at least one of three basic mistakes. See if you can figure out what’s wrong with them.

• Inspire, influence, & convince customers.
• Engage an audience to take action while making a point.
• My service is leveraging the technology to achieve the best results!
• Defining Health Technology.
• I put smiles on faces.
• I install and Repair all Plumbing systems.
• Our product improves lifestyle, empowers people by taking ownership of their lives.
• Local development in rural territories, using collective brands to add value to traditional products.
• "News - Interviews - Reviews - Social Media Tips... Now you know!"
• I provide bookkeeping services to individuals and small businesses.

These are the common problems I see:

1. Too vague. Even after you read or hear these “positioning statements,” you're still not sure what most of these people do.
2. Too bland and impersonal. Only a few of these statements contain any creativity, personality, or spark of life.
3. No differentiation. The purpose of a mission statement is to explain not just what you do, but why customers choose you. Few of these statements identify who the customer is, or why they choose you. What makes you special? What’s your secret sauce? What unique benefits do you provide to your customers?

I admit it’s hard to condense all that into 10 words or less. But we can at least try.

Congrats to Anne Murungi, a sales manager with Kempinski hotels in Kenya, for coming up with the best all-round positioning statement of the bunch: “Ushering you to the most luxurious hotels and lodges nestled in selected touristic destinations in East Africa.”

Yes, that’s more than 10 words. But when you can pack that much promise into 17 words, no one will ever complain.