BizBooks: We will begin our interview shortly.

Peter Montoya: Looking forward to it.

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BizBooks: Welcome to the 10th segment in the BizBooks Ask the Expert Series.

Today we have with us Peter Montoya.

Peter Montoya is a world-renowned and much-sought-after speaker, trainer, and media expert on personal branding. His firm, Peter Montoya Inc., is the only advertising agency that specializes in financial advisors.

Today we will be discussing his book The Brand Called You.....

Why does a consumer choose to buy Rachel Ray's cookware over another brand? Or book a vacation at the Wynn Las Vegas over the countless other hotels on the Las Vegas strip? It's because both Rachel Ray and Steve Wynn have successfully mastered the art of creating a personal brand. A personal brand reshapes how your customers perceive you and the value you provide.

Welcome Peter.....let's get started

Peter Montoya: I'm very excited to be here to discuss The Brand Called You and give some very pratical ways that professionals can use personal marketing & branding techniques to attract more clients and grow their businesses.

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BizBooks: Your book is all about making yourself into a freestanding brand. So, briefly, tell us about the brand called Peter Montoya.

Peter Montoya: Great question and thank you for asking...I've dedicated my professional brand for the last ten year to helping personally branding professionals such as Realtors, Doctors, Consultants, Financial Advisors more effectively use their personalities to attract and keep more clients. To this cause, we have developed an advertising agency, coaching and web based client communication systems. I love working with business professionals and love being part of their growth.

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BizBooks: How does having an older family member who has made a name in your business affect your attempt to make yourself into a brand?

Peter Montoya: Founding family members make a great launching pad for their families to take over. They usually are very well respected and create a lasting legacy for their families to maintain - think about Walt Disney or "Merrill" or MerrillLynch or "Calvin Klein" - - as their children or family took over the businesses their is a strong prestige attached to the name. As Founders transfer they should bring their family in early, try to place them on the same level of respect and defer client decisions early. We talk about this extensively in The Brand Called You.

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BizBooks: We're now facing an extremely weakened climate for retail, even though it's the holiday season. How can retailers harness their personal brands to upend this bad trend as far as their own businesses are concerned?

Peter Montoya: Consumers really associate with personally branded companies such as Martha Stewart, Charles Schwab or Walt Disney, part of the reason is that subconsciously we feel that their is a realy human being being impacted by the success or failure of the company. Many people will use local professionals over national brands because they like to see money going back into their community. I would strongly suggest the following:
1. Shake hands, exchange names and really engage with your clients. Try to break out of the normal "Can I help you with something" into a personal dialog. Share personal stories.
2. Tell your customers "Business is going well, but we are working hard to do better. Would you be kind enough to pass along some positive comments about my store to your friends?"
3. Develop a customer mailing list. Mail out Greeting Cards, Happy B-Day Cards, Personal Letters.
Basically, develop a human relationship! That is what personal branding and The Brand Called You is all about.

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BizBooks: What lessons can businesspersons learn regarding personal branding from politics and politicians?

Peter Montoya: The power and importance of personality. Most of the last presidential elections were won by the candidate who was more "likable". You may have personally liked the other candidate more, but most people would say...
Obama was more likable than McCain
Bush was more likable than Kerry
Bush was more likable than Gore
Clinton was more likable than Dole
Clinton was more likable than Bush I
Bush I was more likable than Dukakis
Reagan was more likable than Mondale
Reagan was more likable than Carter
Carter was more likable than Ford

Great personal brands are often built on the likability factor...such as Oprah, Michael Jordan or Walt Disney. Also being dislikable like Martha Stewart, Michael Jackson or OJ Simpson will really hurt your brand.

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BizBooks: Can you name a few famous businessmen and -women--broadly defined--who have done a particularly good job making themselves into reputable, effective brands?

Peter Montoya: Yes! There are many: Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Paul Newman, Charles Schwab, Oprah Winfrey, Rachel Ray, Walt Disney, Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Wolfgang Puck to name a few!

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BizBooks: How about a few who have done a less-than-good job? What can we learn from their mistakes?

Peter Montoya: Yes, there are many here too. It is much easier to falter than have a flawless career because the media is so scrutinizing these days. Here are some that have less than stellar brands: Donald Trump (mixed), Martha Stewart, OJ Simpson, Michael Jackson, Britney Spears, Paris Hilton, Bill Clinton, Elliot Spitzer and Tara Reid. What is their to learn? Building a world class brand takes amazing intelligence and discipline. Most the mistakes make by these people are the normal mistakes that many people make (except Michael Jackson). The light of the national spotlight is amzingly harsh.

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BizBooks: How is your general theory of personal branding in particular applicable to small business owners?

Peter Montoya: Personal Branding is very applicable to anyone who needs a personal relationship in order to sell or maintain their services. These businesses include; Actors, Agents, Architects, Artists, Athletes, Attorneys, Authors, Caterers, Chiropractors, Consultants, Coaches, CPAs, Dentists, Financial Advisors, Engineers, Fashion Designers, Graphic Designers, Interior Designers, Insurance Professionals, Media Personalities, Mortgage Brokers, Musicians, Network Marketers, Physicians, Photographers, Real Estate Professionals, Therapists, Travel Agents, Speakers, Trainers, Stockbrokers, Veterinarians, Wedding Planners, Wholesalers, Writers. It is next to impossible to sell these services without purchasing the person as well. We wrote The Brand Called You specifically for these types of professionals.

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BizBooks: What first prompted you to think and write about personal branding? What makes you continue to?

Peter Montoya: Most professionals say the following "The reason my clients work with me is because of me" or "This business is all about relationships", but then they often times hind behind a Corpate Style brand (such as Global Financial Services or Platinum Realty or NeverEnding Health Chiropractors). I wrote the Brand Called You so these professionals would start to understand the imporance of personal branding AND also to give them permission to start using their brands. I continue to work in this area because it is so heartbreaking to watch businesses fail that just aren't noticed. : (

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BizBooks: How can the Internet and social media be harnessed to improve one's personal brand?

Peter Montoya: These are new and very excited areas of marketing. First, EVERY BUSINESS MUST HAVE A WEBSITE. PERIOD. The reason is that consumers use the web to determine if they want to continue with their inquiry based on whether you have a professional web site or not. No web site, they are going on to someone who does. New sites like Linked-In, Facebook are great for making connections to get hired and they are starting to be used to make connections with decision makers in companies. Their acceptance is certainly growing.

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BizBooks: You mention Steve Wynn, who owns several of Las Vegas's most popular resort-casinos, as a prime example of someone with a solid personal brand. While several of his hotels have their own specific theme, one is actually called the Wynn Las Vegas. Is that too much? Is there such a thing as personal brand overkill?

Peter Montoya: Yes, you can overkill a personal brand for a period of time. Just like a song they play too much on the radio, a person can have too much attention. We start to resent hearing about them. Some who have had too much attention in recent memory are: Rush Limbaugh, Paris Hilton, the Clintons and Martha Stewart. The smartest national brands are very careful to limit their exposure. Some who are especially good are Oprah, Tiger and Michael Jordan.

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BizBooks: In what industries does personal brand count for the most? Why?

Peter Montoya: Actors, Agents, Architects, Artists, Athletes, Attorneys, Authors, Caterers, Chiropractors, Consultants, Coaches, CPAs, Dentists, Financial Advisors, Engineers, Fashion Designers, Graphic Designers, Interior Designers, Insurance Professionals, Media Personalities, Mortgage Brokers, Musicians, Network Marketers, Physicians, Photographers, Real Estate Professionals, Therapists, Travel Agents, Speakers, Trainers, Stockbrokers, Veterinarians, Wedding Planners, Wholesalers, Writers.

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BizBooks: How does personal branding translate into the world you advise--the financial industry?

Peter Montoya: Of all the professions, the success of a Financial Advisor is directly determined by the level of like and trust between the client and advisor. Financial Advisors fail when their clients don't like or trust them. That is the essence of Personal Branding.

Many other professions are hindered when their clients don't like them, but can usually endure. You may not like your CPA, Doctor or Attorney, but you may continue to use them.

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BizBooks: How has the financial crisis affected your clients from a branding perspective? How are you advising them to cope with it?

Peter Montoya: Yes, it has affected Financial Advisors positively or negatively. Financial Advisors who have good relationships, have kept in contact with their clients by phone, email and mail have stregnthened their relationships. They have attracted more assets and garnered more referrals. Financial Advisors who are hiding underneeth their desks are losing clients and assets. Its counter-inuitiive to some financial advisors, but right now is the best time to attract new clients and assets. My best clients are growing like crazy right now. We have several action plans detailed in my book The Brand Called You.

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BizBooks: Is merely having a solid personal brand enough, or are extra steps necessary to sell on its basis? What extra steps are they?

Peter Montoya: A Brand isn't a "Thing" - rather it is a relationship that has to be built and maintained. So yes, smart personal brands are working to maintain their relationships daily via the web, email, direct mail, TV, radio, BLOGS and personal relationships. We detail all 22 marketing channels in our book The Brand Called You.

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BizBooks: That is all from us, let's take some questions from our readers.

Peter Montoya: Sounds good - look forward to hearing from the readers.

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Chicago, Ill.: Please discuss the relationship between cultivating a personal brand and the brandee's personal life.

Peter Montoya: Much/most of your personal life is reflected in your professional brand. Some of the most common elements are where you live, spouse, children, hobbies, religion, personal style and dress, friends, family. You may try to hind various aspects - - you will be successful at this if you only have a local brand. However if you ever reach the National spotlight, everything will eventually come out. For example do you know the religion, marital status and personal details of the following? Oprah, Tiger, Obama, Paris Hilton? Most people probably do.

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Pittsburgh, Pa.: I'm 29 and I don't know anyone of my generation that would want to buy an American car. Not because they are going broke. But because of their reputation for being gas hogs and having constant maintenance problems. I've heard American cars are pretty comparable to Japanese cars now but, to me this seems like an insurmountable branding problem. Can U.S. automakers really build a brand solely around patriotism?

Peter Montoya: No, they can't build it soley on Patriotism. Patriortism will help - people may be willing to give them a second chance - a second look, but they must start building cars based on value, environmental and quality. Maybe most importantly, they've got to design exciting cars! Foreign cars like Mercedes, Lexus and Infiniti turn my head! But Lincoln, Buick and Chevy's put most people to sleep. US Automakers have got to make high quality, environmetally sounds (efficient) and exciting cars to succeed.

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New York, NY: If you're a struggling solopreneur (an author and expert without a staff to help out), what are the best 2 or 3 things to do to build your brand? Thanks!

Peter Montoya: #1) Specialize. Pick a defined target market, know your specialization and get really good at it. Don't be all things to all people.
#2) Network like a madman. Once you know your specialization, talk to everyone you know about what you do to see if they know anyone who can help you.
Pick up my book The Brand Called you - - it will really help! (Sorry for the self serving plug, but it will sincerely help!)

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Syracuse, NY: I work in advertising and our office has a very casual atmosphere, so I tend to joke around more than most people. This also fuels a lot of my creativity and I work damn hard and produce results but, I'm starting to see that I have a reputation as a lazy goof-off. How I can brand myself as someone who is funny and creativity, yet a leader and hard worker? It seems pretty tough to do.

Peter Montoya: You are absolutely right - it is incredibly hard to be perceived as both funny and as a leader. Drop the funny stuff now. Remember the following: The First Rule of All Communication is DO NO HARM. Don't be foolish enough to make a joke that hurts someone else's feelings or hurts your reputation.

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BizBooks: That's all the time we have today. Thanks so much, Peter.

Peter Montoya: This was my first forum and I must say it was really fun - thank you so much for having me and pick up a copy of The Brand Called You by Peter Montoya and Tim Vandehey.

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