Branding is one of the most powerful tools we often overlook not just in business, but in our personal and professional spaces too. Whether it’s branding yourself, your business, or your club, how you present yourself to the world determines how the world perceives and interacts with you. You can only be known for what you consistently put out and that’s your brand.
Toastmasters is no exception.
As a corporate club under Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC), UNOC Toastmasters Club has walked a journey filled with challenges, resilience, and transformation. And if there’s one thing we’ve learned, it’s this: branding works.
Let me take you back to a memorable meeting on 21st August 2025, the first meeting after the installation of our 2025-26 Toastmasters program year Club President, Ms. Angela Ambaho. The installation ceremony was a massive success. So powerful, in fact, that we had the privilege of hosting the Chief Executive Officer of UNOC, Ms. Proscovia Nabbanja, along with three other members of the Executive team. This spoke volumes not just about the credibility of our club, but the incredible potential of Toastmasters when positioned and branded right.
During that meeting, something happened that deeply confirmed the power of branding for me.
As the Vice President Education, I was standing in for the President that evening. Like every meeting day, our club had taken intentional steps to make our presence known. Teardrop banners were placed along the roadside. Pull-up banners stood tall at every entrance of our main building. Screensaver flyers were visible on every staff computer across the office. Our branding was everywhere—visible, consistent, and unmistakable.
At the end of the meeting, during the recognition of guests, I noticed a new face. Being someone who has visited many clubs and met countless Toastmasters, I knew he was not one of the familiar members. When I asked if we had any guests, Mathew raised his hand and introduced himself as a Toastmaster from BlackRocks Toastmasters Club in London.
I was shocked. A Toastmaster from London in our UNOC meeting?
Naturally, I asked him how he got to know about our meeting.
His response left me speechless.
He said, “This morning I was doing my jog along Yusuf Lule Road and saw a Toastmasters teardrop banner. I asked the Askari (Security Guard) at the gate when the meeting was happening. He told me, ‘Today at 5:00 PM.’ So I made sure to come back.”
Imagine that. A single teardrop banner brought an international Toastmaster to our club meeting.
Even our security team knew the meeting schedule, that’s how deeply embedded our branding has become. That one experience sparked an idea: to request management for a permanent signpost that reads: “Toastmasters Meet Here.”
Because clearly, branding speaks even when you’re silent.
Here’s what I’ve learned: your brand is your power. You are known by what you consistently show the world. Whether it’s through your appearance, your tone, your messaging, or your visibility, your brand tells your story before you ever get the chance to speak.
So, I leave you with this question:
What is your brand?
Because someone is always watching, always listening, and always deciding whether or not to show up just by what they see in your brand.
Orishaba Elizabeth – Vice president Education UNOC Toastmasters Club