Society of Professional Journalists

Personal Branding for Journalists

Dan Brennan@TechAddict17

Todd Van Hoosear@vanhoosear

Guess Who?

What is a Brand?

NOT a company or a logo

It’s an impression!

What Impression Do You Leave?

• Smart?• Compassionate?• Fair?• Skeptical?• Well-sourced?• Unbiased?• Easy to work with?• Terrifying to work

with?

• Principled?• Tenacious?• Open-minded?• Critical?• Funny?• Wise?• Sharp?• ___________________

But Does It Matter?Top skills needed by future journalists: *

• A multitasker, juggling various responsibilities and roles, many which may have nothing to do with “traditional” journalism.

• Technologically savvy, having at least a basic understanding of programming, web tools, and web culture.

• A gatekeeper for a particular beat, directing readers to the most current and trustworthy news, regardless of who wrote it or where it’s housed.

• A versatile storyteller, who knows how to present a story online in various formats.

• A brand and a community manager, who cultivates a constant and interactive conversation with their readership.

* PBS MediaShift, 2010

http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2010/06/what-skills-will-future-journalists-need160/

Brand Journalism vs Branded Journalists

Brand Journalism• Focused on the

corporation’s brand• The journalist acts

as a community manager for the company

• The story comes first

Branded Journalists• Focused on the

journalist’s brand• The journalist acts

as a community manager for himself/herself

• The journey comes first (how the story came about)

Why Brand Yourself?

• Next to your research and writing skills, your social graph is your biggest asset

• All three of those skills should survive any job transition – why leave any of thembehind?

• And…

The #1 Reason

… or should we say …

The +1 Reason

The +1 Reason

The #1 Reason

$

Syndication

The 5 Scales of Branded (Print) Journalists

1. Visibility: Individuals vs Entities

2. Depth: Shallow vs Deep

3. Truthiness: Rumor vs Truth

4. Personality: Personal vs Professional

5. Scale: Hyperlocal vs Global

Visibility

• Low Resolution: Corporate Brands–

• High Resolution: Individual Journalists–

Depth

• Shallow: Micro-blogs– Breaking News on

• Deep: Features/Columns– Any paper of record

Truthiness

• Rumors: Micro-blogs, Blogs –

• Opinions: Blogs–

• Truths: Business media–

Personality

• Personable: Citizen journalism–

• Mix: Columnist–

• Professional: Business press–

Scale

• Hyperlocal: Town paper (local broadcast)–

• Regional: Paper of record–

• National/Global: Business press–

THANK YOU!

Dan Brennan@TechAddict17

Todd Van Hoosear@vanhoosear