How to value 'you' as a brand in financial terms

Personal branding and identity management are hot topics these days - it's all about identifying brand You, focusing on your market and making you stand out from the competitors. However once you get past the brand definition stage how do you then value that brand? I can use Coca Cola as an example - the brand definition was to create a refreshing beverage for everyone and it's now worth billions. But how do they come to this value and what drives the price up and down?

For Coca Cola or any other popular product or service a brand is as powerful as the level of demand perceived for it by the market. Coca Cola is not a useful product, there are many other drinks that are similar and it's not the least expensive. However it is the most popular because it is seen as cool and trendy to some and reliable and safe to others. It's a brand with multiple faces and for that reason produces income streams from millions.

Now back to brand 'You'. Most of us are perceived as an employee, a role filler by employers to which a financial value is attached. The financial value is directly related to the income you produce for your firm. This is your brand financial value if this is the only organization that has demand for your services. However you can increase your brand value by increasing your earnings potential through two ways (1) gaining more skills that can be utilized by the market and (2) increase the value attached to your current skills perceived by the market.

Look at David Beckham. He was as good a footballer 10 years ago as he was 5 years ago, and better then he is today. However his earning potential has increased exponentially over the last 10 years. His 'brand' is worth all the monies bought in from selling phones, football apparel, sunglasses etc. So look at what money you can bring in and consider either increasing your 'in demand' skills or looking at ways at convincing the market that they 'need' your current skills. Just as important is ensuring you focus your attention on developing your brand to the appropriate market.

Managing financial stress

I believe the entire concept surrounding personal investment and investment strategy is flawed for the reason that there is not enough analysis of the motivations and values behind each individual. Individuals also do not take enough responsibility for their personal finances. We all get told about 'dollar cost averaging' which advises constant investment deposits regardless of how the markets are moving - based on the assumptions that (1) markets will trend up in the long term and (2) you cannot time the market and beat the 'professionals'. We are also told the same rubbish by so-called investment experts over and over again that in fact are so basic at the core that a ten year old could figure this out. The one name that comes to mind is Suzie Orman. My problem after reading her columns is not because what she communicates is wrong - it's that she is made out to be an expert, that many millions of people look to for advice, and the stuff she writes and makes millions off is elementary school finance.

The basic message is this - if you get financial advice that is not aligned to your 'self' then stress will be created that is not manageable. You need to understand what kind of 'investor' you are and establish a risk profile that works for you not for your advisor. The key question for today is 'what would you be willing to lose to make $1,000'.