Have you found your forte??

OK, so for those of you who are wondering (or even care) what I do with my time besides write a lousy blog, then here it is in a nutshell…

I develop brands! AKA the Brand Developer of a young digital design and marketing agency.

About now is when I see the confusion sweep over your face as I announce my job title - “What exactly is a Brand Developer?” And the truth is the title is a little vague because my job description is also. I am still searching for my ‘forte’ as some would call it.

The title came about when an opportunity arose within a digital design agency to become part of their creative team. The exact job title was unconfirmed however, and to my surprise they asked me what I would like to specialise in. PR automatically sprang to mind as it was a discipline I thought I was good at when at university (until you hit the real world and realise you actually don’t have a clue). 

The term ‘PR Executive’ however sounds very industry standard and a little bit ironic for a creative person to be titled something so boring and drab. And so I got started on coming up with some possible titles. They asked me to incorporate the term ‘brand’ so I that I didn’t pigeon-hole myself, but really it was because neither they, nor I, really had a clue of what it was that I was good at, what my speciality was? 

Here are some of the titles that I proposed to the team:

Brand Guru

Brand Innovator

Brand Technician

Brand Engineer

Brand Imagineer

Until finally, it was agreed…             Brand Developer 

Personally I thought Guru sounded more creative but perhaps a tad on the unprofessional side – there is a fine line between the two in this business but that calls for a separate discussion! 

So referring back to the question, “What exactly is a Brand Developer?” I would simply respond with, “Oh, I do a little bit of everything from drafting press releases, to organising events and updating social media”. This does of course all apply under ‘Brand Developer’; however I couldn't help feel a little jealous that I didn't specialise within a specific discipline. Our Creative Director spent hours designing artwork, she was known as a Designer, but for me, I just continued doing ‘a little bit of everything.’

UNTIL one day it came to me. Like an epiphany hits Einstein (well not quite), but I found that I LOVE writing. And yes, this also can involve a little bit of everything from writing press releases, creating social media posts, posting blogs, or producing copy write for brochures and newsletters. Hmmm copy write? Perhaps copywriting is my forte?

They do say that asking someone in their early years of school to tell you what they want to be when they grow up is like asking the British public what their thoughts are on independence. CLUELESS!

And so it was decided that some things are best just left as they are. Who wants to be titled a boring old Copywriter anyway? Perhaps I’ll just stick with what I have. Keep them guessing. After all, curiosity did eventually kill the cat.