Are you being remembered? How to design your CX leadership brand

Last week I was in a room with 32 account managers from a global B2B company. Smart people. Experienced people. People who genuinely love their customers.

We were working on something I find endlessly fascinating: the moment of real connection between a professional and the person sitting across the table. Not the pitch. Not the product demo. The human moment before all of that.

I introduced them to the 3:1 rule. Three real questions about the other person – their life, their world, their business – before you share one memorable thing about yourself. Questions that go beyond the quarterly review. Questions that make the other person feel seen.

The exercise worked beautifully. People got curious. The role plays were wonderful. And then came the harder part.

The “1” in the 3:1 rule.

I asked them: what is the one memorable thing you want people to remember about you? The room went quiet.

Out of 32 people, two had a concrete answer. Another participant said, after a long pause: “I think I’m a connector.”

I smiled. Because I have heard some version of that answer more times than I can count. “I’m a connector.” “I’m a people person.” “I care about relationships.”

All true. All beautiful qualities.

But let’s be honest. All completely FORGETTABLE.

What will your stakeholders say when you leave the room?

Most CX leaders never even think about this.

Not your job title. Not your NPS target. Not which projects you are currently running. What would they say about you?

Your personal brand is not what you say about yourself. It is what other people say about you when you are not in the room.

For most CX leaders, that is a confronting thought. Because we spend enormous energy creating reports, dashboards, journey maps, presentations and strategy decks. We show up. We deliver. We work hard.

But if the story people tell about us when we leave the room is vague or generic, then we are working very hard for LITTLE strategic influence. And when a strategic program comes along, the decision makers might not even name you to join the leading group.

Strategic CX leaders design their story

The shift from CX Manager to Strategic CX Leader is not just about knowing more. It is about consciously deciding who you are in this organization. What people can count on when it comes to you. What story you are building, deliberately, over time.

Most CX leaders let that story happen by accident.

The strategic ones design it.

They understand that being known for something specific is not a vanity exercise. It is a leadership strategy.

This is exactly what I mean when I talk about Authority in the ANI framework. Not authority as in hierarchy. Not authority as in being the loudest voice in the room. But authority as in: when your name comes up, people know what you stand for. They trust you for something specific. They call on you for something specific. That is the kind of authority that creates real CX influence.

Awareness is the first step to change. And in this case, awareness means getting honest about the gap between the story people currently tell about you and the story you actually want them to tell. That gap is where your work is.

Three questions to design your CX leadership personal brand

Start here. These three questions will show you exactly where that gap is.

• What do people remember about you today? Not what you hope they remember. What they actually associate with you. If you are brave, go and ask.
• What do you want them to remember? What is the version of you that you are working towards? What skills, perspectives and qualities do you want to become known for?
• What is the one personal, specific, human thing that makes you memorable? Not “passionate about CX.” Something real. Something yours.

What my own personal brand looks like

My personal brand in one picture: taken on the 13th of August 2021, in the Aosta Valley in Italy while walking the Via Francigena.

When I explain my personal brand: of course, it is the blue dress. It is also the pilgrim who has walked a thousand kilometers. And being a Dutch storyteller who will say the thing others are thinking.

Those are mine. This is not a trick. It is a consistent, deliberate choice. It says I am consistent, deliberate, an adventurer with stamina, somebody who dares to make fun of herself, creates a movement, and adds a little laughter here and there.

That is what a personal CX leadership brand feels like when it is done well. It is specific. It is human. And it is unmistakably you.

Ready to become the CX leader people remember?

This is exactly the work we do in the CX Leadership Masterminds. Building your Authority, sharpening your Narrative, and creating real Impact in your organization. Not by doing more CX, but by becoming the leader your business cannot ignore.

If you are ready to design your story deliberately, explore the CX Leadership Masterminds here.

Until next time, keep spicing up your Customer Experience leadership.