On Brand

Today the focus is on Brand and the work it takes to keep up with it.  While there are a lot of definitions of the word “brand” I usually think of it as what your stakeholders /customers / prospects perceive you to be. That could be anything from a great employer to some unknown warehouse where they sell wire.

I usually make the effort to search my brand (personal and professional) a few times a year. This could take a little while if you include Google, LinkedIn, Glassdoor, and other Professional social media.

I found that several former Norfolk Wire & Electronics employee reviews were good, and a couple were bad. That’s the opposite trend from what I notice in most reviews. It seems to me that if you are mad you may want to “get even” by posting a negative review somewhere on the internet, but if you are happy it’s simply the reason you normally go to your favorite place of business.

Some people LOVE Starbucks, while others believe it to be too bitter or at least too expensive. Few people seem very surprised to find a cup of coffee there. Similarly, many good reviews seem to reflect truly surprising service, or highly unusual products.  Making the effort to give great service is now expected and not necessarily rewarded with praise online.  

In the case of my employer, Norfolk Wire & Electronics, Google shows over 14 million results. That includes any combination of the words Norfolk, Wire, and Electronics so I usually filter Google (click on tools under the search box) for a setting called verbatim. It’s pretty much the same as surrounding your search term with quotes for exact matches. That cuts it down considerably.

Even so, it’s often shocking to see big data at work. Try looking up yourself or your company information on a site like rocketreach (dot) co. (not dot com – it’s “CO”) I found almost all the 80 some odd employees of  Norfolk Wire & Electronics and my information clearly had unrelated “personal” email addresses available. The first 5 are free. Wow.

Amazingly I found 50% off “verified coupons” for Norfolk Wire & Electronics. It’s amazing because I would be the only person to create a coupon for the company, and I most assuredly did not.  

Thankfully I did not find anything particularly damaging. There was one review on an employment site obviously submitted by a disgruntled former employee complaining that Norfolk Wire & Electronics allows or encourages alcohol use in the workplace. Sometimes I wish it was true… just kidding!