By Carol Grothem

I recently attended the AWM Foundation's Symposium in Washington, DC. The topic was: Diversity: Defining Different in a Changing Society. There were three outstanding breakout sessions; I'll showcase content from the final session entitled, "Diversify Your Brand."

Molly Wythes, Senior VP and General Manager at Katz Marketing Solutions, did a great job moderating an interesting and inspirational conversation with the following panelists:

• Kenetta Bailey, TV One

• Renessa Boley, America's Premiere Life Designer

• Layla Masri, Bean Creative

The reality is that all women in media need to become more versatile in dealing with the social media landscape. We need to "Diversify Our Brand." The conversation centered on ways to create, promote and protect our personal brand every day.

1. Creating a brand: Investment. Invest in yourSELF. We all need to invest in ourselves to create a strong brand. Your brand is not your title. Build a brand destination - content is king. Layla Masri noted and highly recommended that All Women in Media need to "Invest in the person you want to invest in." She also said that, "When you communicate online... and you do it right, it's genuine." You are your brand and your brand is your action.

2. Promoting a brand: How do we, or should we promote our professional brand? Be YOU. Kenetta Bailey believes that All Women in Media need to know that. She doesn't separate personal and professional brands, but makes sure that all content meets her standards. As an avid Facebook and Twitter user, I completely agree with her assessment that we should always be the same person online as we are offline.

3. Protecting your brand: How do we protect it? Renessa Boley recommends for All Women in Media, "Be careful what you say, how you say it and how it will be used to protect your brand." Much of this is just common sense. Your brand is your reputation, and you have to make sure everything you do enhances your brand in a positive way. Remember that your brand is always evolving.

My favorite quote was from Kenetta, "Don't underestimate the value of what you bring to the table!" We all have to fight the urge to be complacent. We are all talented, and need to bring our special knowledge, expertise and confidence to every business situation.

We will be able to expand even more on this topic when the AWM Foundation brings the next Symposium to Minneapolis Sept. 13th at The Woman's Club of Minnesota: "Building the Brand That is You." More details will follow in the coming weeks - we hope to see you there!

Carol Grothem is VP/Associate Director of Media Investments with Compass Point Media, a division of Campbell Mithun. She also serves on the AWM National Board of Directors.