We were honoured to be invited to the Natwest Entrepreneur Accelerator Brighton Hub to talk about the importance of awards for personal branding and thought leadership.

Hosted by Natwest Entrepreneur Development Manager Kristina Pereckaite, the #PowerUp your Personal Brand event was a wonderful opportunity to talk to aspiring entrepreneurs and business leaders, giving them actionable takeaways to improve their personal brands.

WINNING AWARDS TO BUILD YOUR PERSONAL BRAND

August CEO Donna O’Toole took to the stage to inspire the room to take their personal branding seriously and enhance their reputation!

Donna shared her entrepreneurial story and demonstrated how you can use your unique story and business results to win awards and raise your profile, no matter the size of your business.

Gaining external credibility and recognition from awards verifies your achievements and gives you third-party credibility, which instils trust in your expertise and ultimately business. Winning awards gives you valuable PR opportunities, fantastic networking events, and provides a step-up to the next level in your entrepreneurial journey.

PERSONAL BRANDING 101

The panel consisted of five personal branding gurus. All focusing on their own area of expertise;

• Donna O’Toole our very own awards expert, talked the audience through getting into the right awards competitions and how to write your entry for the best chance of winning.
• Kerry Watkins founder of Social Brighton ran-through some thought-provoking activities about the impact of personal LinkedIn profiles on your personal brand.
• Jude Bolton, founder of Speaking Works demonstrated the importance of voice, breathing and balance when public speaking or presenting in business pitches.
• Louise Stevenson, CEO of Speakeasy Coaching demonstrated how to exude confidence when speaking, and how to inject humour for audience engagement.
• Personal Branding Coach Vicky Booker explained how physical appearance (clothes, make-up, grooming etc.) impacts on how you are perceived, and what message your image gives to prospective customers and partners.

It was great to hear from each one of the fantastic speakers. Everyone in the room was excited to take their hints and tips and start improving their personal brands and we are looking forward to seeing the accelerator entrepreneurs start winning awards for their achievements soon!