Using conscious

self-marketing
to convince others

Sponsored by
Using conscious self-marketing to convince others

Table of Contents
Introduction
3
1. The Secret of Successful Self-Marketing
4
2. The Four Types of Services
6
3. Do good and talk about it! Yes, But How?
9
4. Design Your Online Marketing
14
5. Conclusion
16
6. Sources
16
7. Author and Contact
17

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 Using conscious self-marketing to convince others

Introduction
You need to market yourself convincingly if you want to be seen,
attract attention and assert yourself in the perception of others.
However, successful self-marketing is not a question of talent or luck:
it requires skill, tact, perseveranceand a systematic approach.

Self-marketing works externally. By designing and presenting a

clear, attractive image of your personality and achievements, people
around you will act more positively towards you; your employees
will espouse your objectives more easily, and your superiors will be
more likely to seek your advice in personnel decisions rather than
that of your colleagues. Important supporters and opinion-formers
will recommend you. Your strong and unique image may even make
companies more willing to pay you a higher salary.

However, self-marketing isnt just a means to become more

professionally successful it also works internally. By deeply
analysing our strengths, self-marketing makes us more confident
and increases our motivation and job satisfaction. It gives us the
opportunity to put our talents and skills to the test and to contribute
and implement our ideas.

But how do we market ourselves professionally and at the same

time personably? How do we speak on- and offline about our
successes and draw attention to ourselves? Youll find the answers
in this white paper.

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 Using conscious self-marketing to convince others

1. The Secret of Successful

Self-Marketing
In order to better market ourselves, we must first know how people
actually buy things. The psychological mechanisms behind our
choices are the sameregardless of whether were buying into a
product or person.

To raise your awareness of the hidden mechanisms of self-marketing,

Id first like to familiarise you with the three most important
principles of good self-marketing:

Rule 1: People only buy whats genuine

This is the rule of authenticity. Good self-marketing thrives on

being a credible person, because people only buy whats genuine.
Something fake is quickly exposedand rejected.

A person is deemed to be authentic when they live in harmony

with themselves and their innermost beliefs and values, and act
in accordance with their own drive. We consider a person to be
authentic if theyre credible and dont put on appearances.

Credible people have a clear profile. They think as they speak, and act
accordingly. The messages they send out are consistent and leave
no room for doubt. Just like successful brand-name products that
stand for a specific proposition, each person has his own profilehis
personal brand.

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And where does the fake facade, the bluff, begin? Our personal
well-being reveals whether were authentic or not. People who are
inwardly free and dont need to constantly prove themselves feel
comfortable in their own skinand radiate this, too. On the other
hand, a false life is unconsciously perceived as alienating and arouses
unease in us and our surroundings.

Rule 2: People only buy what touches them emotionally

Why is Nespresso so successful? Because its much more than just

coffee: namely, luxury, sensuality and individuality. And because its
infused with a little bit of George Clooney.

People always buy two things: the solution to a practical problem

and a good feeling. Accordingly, successful brands always make a
double promise: the promise of a certain functionality or quality, and
an emotional promise relating to ethics, values and their associated
feelings. Its like an iceberg: the tip corresponds to the functionality,
whereas the far more important part below the waters surface
represents the emotions.

This psychological mechanism not only applies to products, but

also to people: the stronger the world of emotions that transports
a person, the greater its attraction and therefore its power. In short:
emotion makes the difference. Only emotion can capture peoples
imagination and hold them over the long term.

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Rule 3: People only buy things that offer them a benefit

We have a habit of narrowly focusing our attention on ourselves:

What do I want? What do I need? Although this behaviour is quite
human, its regrettably wrong from a marketing perspective. Because
others only buy something from me when they have a use for it,
when they stand to benefit from it.

From a marketing perspective this means: it doesnt matter what I

consider to be relevant or how I see myself or my performance, but
how my counterpart sees me. Only that which provides a benefit to
the other person is genuinely attractive.

We need to rethink: rather than concentrate on the benefits we get

from a particular situation or accomplishment, we need to consider
how our stakeholders will benefit from it. And we need to shape and
advertise our achievements accordingly.

2. The Four Types of Services

The rule of thumb is: not every accomplishment can be sold in the
same way. Whether an accomplishment can be marketed depends
on whether it was expected of us and whether we can use it to
collect extra points. Extra points means the service is attractive or
valuable to the other person.

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The following infographic illustrates the different types of services

and how they relate to self-marketing:
Low Expectations High

2 Solid Added Value 3

Performance Belongs to the core activity
and offers the other person
Expected basic performance. additional benefits.

1 Ballast Heroic Feats 4

Doesnt belong to my area of Unexpected and amazing
responsibility, isnt expected or performances that are neither
isnt considered relevant. required nor expected.

No Extra Points Yes

Source: Petra Wst, Profil macht Karriere. Orell Fssli, 2010.

As long as we dwell in the left-hand quadrants and only do our jobs,

well never be able to stand out from the crowd. Only when we provide
services that create added value will we differentiate ourselves.

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Ultimately, only you decide which box you want to occupy. However,
if youd prefer to improve your self-marketing, I recommend boxes
3 and 4preferably a combination of both. Practice shows: those in
their area of specialism who regularly provide services with a value
for their stakeholders and occasionally perform a heroic deed are not
only successful in their jobs, but also have more fun and experience
more satisfaction through work.

tip
Regularly ask yourself:

What do I stand for?

What feelings do I wish to evoke in the people around me?
What expectations do they have of me?
What is of benefit to them?

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3. Do good and talk about it! Yes, But How?

Most people acknowledge that good self-marketing is essential.
However, even when the awareness is there, the question of how
often remains unanswered: what do I actually need to do if I want to
promote myself?

Praise yourself!

Do you adhere to the motto that modesty is a virtue? Thats a

shame. And it does you a disservice. Because those who perform
in silence risk going unnoticed. Its not by accident that false
modesty is among the top 10 career killers.

tip
Make it a habit to say something positive about
yourself or your performance once every dayto
different people!

It requires tact to praise oneself. The challenge is to talk about

your own successes without bragging. Below youll learn how to
put yourself and your accomplishments into perspectivein a
sensitive, winning way:

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Be pleased with your successes

If youre obviously happy about your successes, others will also

become aware of them. During a coffee break, say, for example,
radiant with joy: My product presentation this morning went
really well.

Emphasise your performance

Show others what youve contributed to a positive outcome.

Inform your boss as follows: I have good news: Mrs. So-and-so
has just awarded us the contract for the project. I was afraid that
our quote was too expensive, so I phoned her again last week and
explained the benefits of our offer to her, which convinced her.

Say it loud and clear

Inform your boss regularly about your completed tasks: Id just

like to bring you up to speed on the status of the Fit project.
Despite the server crash, we were able to complete the testing on
time and stay on schedule.

Or talk about planned activitiesin such a way that your

counterpart benefits from them: Our annual sales conference
is in three months and for the first time, Im responsible for
organising it. Do you have any requests with regard to the
conference that I should consider?

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Tip
Speak confidently about yourself and your performance and avoid
phrases that play down your performance. Say: Ive succeeded with
this! rather than: I believe Ive succeeded with this.

Do it in writing

To avoid having to constantly bother your boss with success stories

or in the event that you rarely see them, you can also inform
them of your successes in writing. Send an e-mail to report your
successes. Keep it brief and focus on your key achievements. The
following applies: less is more.

Seek feedback

The fact that things are running well is taken for granted and
rarely consciously perceived by superiors or clients. In order
to make them aware of my good work, I can specifically
elicit feedback: Are you satisfied with the way the project is
progressing? That way, the other person has to consciously
consider the projects development.

If you suspect your boss doesnt know that youve helped to

organise this years conference, ask them at some point during
the day: Are you happy with the way things are going? Explain to
them then that youre responsible for organising the conference:
Im pleased as well that everythings going so smoothly. It was a
challenge to plan the day to fit in all the contributors.

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Be present

Boost your awareness and enhance your reputation by being

present at conferences and business meetings not just
there and speak up when your subject is discussed. Write
articles for trade journals or the company newsletter not only
demonstrating competence and commitment to your company,
but also keeping yourself front of mind.

Use every opportunity

Random encounters with key people can occur at any timein the
hallway, the lift or the cafeteria. Take advantage of these situations
for your own self-marketing. An important person is standing
behind you in the queue at the cafeteria? Talk to them. If that
person doesnt know you, introduce yourself and tell them which
department you work in. And if they already know you, be pleased
that youve run into them, inquire how they are, or briefly update
them on the status of your work.

Tip
Be prepared! Regularly consider what useful, timely and
insightful information you can contribute should a chance
encounter arise.

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Let others shine with you.

When exercising self-praise, its important to find the right

balance between me and we. If you constantly speak of
our accomplishments, you run the risk of your own personal
contribution being lost. However, if you continually speak of my
accomplishments, youre quickly regarded as an egotist who
blows their own trumpet. My advice:

When youve developed something as a team, let your

colleagues shine, too. Mention the participants by name
and stress their individual contributions. Mention your own
contribution, too.

If a result was achieved by you alone or for the most part

solely by you, you may by all means portray it as your success.

And when in doubt? Its better to give too much credit to your
colleagues than too little. Theyll thank you by praising you the
next time.

Tip
The following applies to self-praise: the dose is important. If you
never speak of your accomplishments, hardly anyone will notice them.
However, if you brag about your successes every day in the cafeteria,
no-one will want to have a coffee with you.

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4. Design Your Online Marketing

As in real life, moulding ones own reputation and optimising the
impression others have of oneself also applies to virtual spaces. The
Internet offers plenty of options to publicise ones own brand and
accomplishments. You should take advantage of these opportunities.
However, you need to plan carefully. Because the Internet not only
contains stumbling blocks, its also a great time killer.

There are many ways to be active on the web. Among the most
important platforms in the professional environment are LinkedIn
(UK), Xing (Germany), Twitter, Google+ and networks such as
Facebook or web conferencing tools such as Citrix GoToMeeting.

Before building a presence on the web, you should analyse your

current situation, your goals and available resources:

Goals for my online self-marketing

What goals do I pursue on the Internet?

What do I want to use the Internet for?
Who do I want to reach online?
What contacts do I want to make?
What added value do I want to offer?

My image

How do I want to be perceived online?

What should my contacts learn about me?
Which is the best way to present myself?

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My resources

How much time do I want to spend on my online self-promotion?

Which channels relate best to me?
Where will I most likely come to the attention of the people who
support me?

Tip
Whatever media mix you choose: be mindful to maintain a consistent
appearance that clearly expresses your profile, that creates recognition
and remains firmly etched in the viewers mind.

As in real life, the following also applies to your online presence:

engage emotions and present yourself as a human being! In addition
to virtual contact, also seek personal exchanges through face-to-
face or virtual meetings.

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5. Conclusion
Performing is goodhowever, skillful self-marketing is even better.
Provide services that work and dont be afraid to tell other people
about your successes and to credit yourself once in a while. Use
profiling platforms such as meetings, presentations or online media
to draw attention to yourself. Act self-confidently and present
yourself as a positive, committed person.

6. Sources
Wst, Petra: Profil macht Karriere. Mit Self Branding zum beruflichen Erfolg. ISBN
978-3280053706, Orell Fssli, March 2010.

Wst, Petra: Schchtern war gestern. Der Schlssel zu mehr Ausstrahlung,

Selbstvertrauen und Lebensfreude. ISBN 978-3280054772, Orell Fssli, March
2010 (2nd Edition 2013).

Wst, Petra: Selbstmarketing: Sich erfolgreich positionieren. Bestell-Nr. BD567,

WEKA, May 2013.

Wst, Petra: Sei frech, wild und wunderbar. 10 mutige Schritte fr Frauen, die
mehr wollen. ISBN 978-3280055380, Orell Fssli, March 2014.

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7. Author and Contact

Petra Wst is one of the most prominent experts for self-branding
and self-marketing. She manages the consulting company Wst
Consulting in Basel and is internationally active as coach and lecturer.
For 15 years she has been enthusiastically consulting clients from
the areas of business, politics, academia and culture on the topics
of self-branding, self-marketing, networking, communication and
leadership.

In addition, the economist is author of several well-known books and

teaches at various universities, including the University of Lausanne
and the University of Basel.

Dr. Petra Wst

Wst Consulting
Malzgasse 15
CH 4052 Basel

Web www.wuest-consulting.ch
E-Mail info@wuest-consulting.ch
Tel. +41 61 271 8284

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 Using conscious self-marketing to convince others

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