Branding Yourself & Your Business
You a direct sales or small business owner looking to stand out from other boutique and business owners who sell similar items or services, right? Well, BRANDING yourself is the key to success in setting yourself apart.
Branding makes you unique, not just from other consultants in your business, but from the corporate entity you represent as well. Think about real estate agents, do you use the brokerage firm because of who they are? Or do you pick an agent, based on who they are? Branding also helps you to target your ideal client and find your "niche." While the product or service you sell may be something everyone needs and/or desires, there is a sub-set of the public that YOU are going to have that special "chemistry" with; they are going to understand your sense of humor and personal struggles. These people are going to be your people, your tribe, your ideal client.
What does it mean to brand yourself?
Branding yourself means you are designing a unique identity for yourself in relation to your business. This persona is not necessarily unique to the person you are in your personal life- you still want to be authentic, but the persona is the more professional you.
It also means designing a coherent "appearance" in your messaging. This includes color schemes, avatar usage, product usage, font styles and can even be something such as a motto, personal sign-off message or style of writing.
Branding makes you unique, not just from other consultants in your business, but from the corporate entity you represent as well. Think about real estate agents, do you use the brokerage firm because of who they are? Or do you pick an agent, based on who they are? Branding also helps you to target your ideal client and find your "niche." While the product or service you sell may be something everyone needs and/or desires, there is a sub-set of the public that YOU are going to have that special "chemistry" with; they are going to understand your sense of humor and personal struggles. These people are going to be your people, your tribe, your ideal client.
What does it mean to brand yourself?
Branding yourself means you are designing a unique identity for yourself in relation to your business. This persona is not necessarily unique to the person you are in your personal life- you still want to be authentic, but the persona is the more professional you.
It also means designing a coherent "appearance" in your messaging. This includes color schemes, avatar usage, product usage, font styles and can even be something such as a motto, personal sign-off message or style of writing.
How do I brand myself? How do I set myself apart from other consultants?
I'm glad you asked :-) I've been following the Socialite Suite on Facebook for several years. It's a free social networking coaching community that teaches social selling strategies, social media platforms and so much more! They have several fee based courses and a fee based elite coaching community but also have a lot of FREE content- who doesn't love free!? One of the those free courses is brand new and is all about...you guessed it- BRANDING! Check out their blog here. There are some really great articles there!
I'm glad you asked :-) I've been following the Socialite Suite on Facebook for several years. It's a free social networking coaching community that teaches social selling strategies, social media platforms and so much more! They have several fee based courses and a fee based elite coaching community but also have a lot of FREE content- who doesn't love free!? One of the those free courses is brand new and is all about...you guessed it- BRANDING! Check out their blog here. There are some really great articles there!
How to Brand Yourself: 12 Steps to Creating a Powerful Personal Brand
Wondering how to brand yourself? One of the best ways to articulate your skills, experience, knowledge, and overall worth in today’s competitive job market is to create a personal brand that helps you stand out in the crowd.
According to management expert and author Tom Peters, “We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer of a brand called You.”
This article explores 12 steps to branding yourself successfully.
Step 1: Determine your unique value proposition
Spend some time thinking about what makes you different than your peers — your strengths, your passions, and your goals. If you left your job today, what would your company and colleagues miss? Know who you are, as well as who you are not.
Step 2: Find out how others see you
Ask trusted colleagues, co-workers, and friends for four or five adjectives they would use to describe you. What are you good at? What are your strengths? In which areas do they view you as “irreplaceable?”
Step 3: Identify your goals
Where would you like to be in six months? One year? Five years? Ten years? Defining your goals is necessary to crafting a message that helps you reach them.
Step 4: Identify your target audience
Just like Starbucks knows that their target audience is coffee drinkers, you need to define to whom you want to send your message. This will not only help you hone your message, it will help you deliver it to the right places.
Step 5: Reorganize your priorities
You’re probably used to putting yourself behind your company, co-workers, and clients. You still want to be loyal to these groups, but be loyal to yourself, first.
Step 6: Pay attention to the details
Everything you do ultimately contributes to your personal brand. Once your brand has been defined, make sure that the little things — the way you dress, your body language, how you behave with co-workers, the emails you write — are consistent with your brand message.
Step 7: Become a social networker
Set up accounts at social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Ask those in your target audience to subscribe to your pages, and update on a daily basis. Make sure your updates are germane to your branding message.
Step 8: Build your own website
Your website should highlight your professional accomplishments, your skills and knowledge, what you stand for, and your overall value. Make it primarily about you, not your company or clients.
Step 9: Blog
Platforms like WordPress and Joomla make it easier than ever to promote yourself to your target audience. Commit to posting a couple of times a week on topics that your audience will find interesting and educational, but that also highlight your unique skills and experience.
Step 10: Go offline
Be sure to promote your brand in person, too. Join and participate in industry groups, give talks at conferences, or offer to spearhead a large project that highlights your unique talents.
Step 11: Tend to your marketing network
Be sure to keep co-workers, colleagues, clients, and friends updated about what you are doing. Word of mouth is a powerful marketing tool, and what the people in your network say about you will ultimately have an effect on your brand.
Step 12: Review your brand (and how you portray it) frequently
Are you branding yourself in a way that’s concise and easily understood? Is your brand message consistent among all platforms? A regular review will ensure your message remains clear.
Sold!
If you want to be successful, creating a personal brand isn’t just an option, it’s a necessity. Whether you aspire to get that promotion or land your dream job, creating a compelling and consistent brand will help you meet your goals.
According to management expert and author Tom Peters, “We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer of a brand called You.”
This article explores 12 steps to branding yourself successfully.
Step 1: Determine your unique value proposition
Spend some time thinking about what makes you different than your peers — your strengths, your passions, and your goals. If you left your job today, what would your company and colleagues miss? Know who you are, as well as who you are not.
Step 2: Find out how others see you
Ask trusted colleagues, co-workers, and friends for four or five adjectives they would use to describe you. What are you good at? What are your strengths? In which areas do they view you as “irreplaceable?”
Step 3: Identify your goals
Where would you like to be in six months? One year? Five years? Ten years? Defining your goals is necessary to crafting a message that helps you reach them.
Step 4: Identify your target audience
Just like Starbucks knows that their target audience is coffee drinkers, you need to define to whom you want to send your message. This will not only help you hone your message, it will help you deliver it to the right places.
Step 5: Reorganize your priorities
You’re probably used to putting yourself behind your company, co-workers, and clients. You still want to be loyal to these groups, but be loyal to yourself, first.
Step 6: Pay attention to the details
Everything you do ultimately contributes to your personal brand. Once your brand has been defined, make sure that the little things — the way you dress, your body language, how you behave with co-workers, the emails you write — are consistent with your brand message.
Step 7: Become a social networker
Set up accounts at social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Ask those in your target audience to subscribe to your pages, and update on a daily basis. Make sure your updates are germane to your branding message.
Step 8: Build your own website
Your website should highlight your professional accomplishments, your skills and knowledge, what you stand for, and your overall value. Make it primarily about you, not your company or clients.
Step 9: Blog
Platforms like WordPress and Joomla make it easier than ever to promote yourself to your target audience. Commit to posting a couple of times a week on topics that your audience will find interesting and educational, but that also highlight your unique skills and experience.
Step 10: Go offline
Be sure to promote your brand in person, too. Join and participate in industry groups, give talks at conferences, or offer to spearhead a large project that highlights your unique talents.
Step 11: Tend to your marketing network
Be sure to keep co-workers, colleagues, clients, and friends updated about what you are doing. Word of mouth is a powerful marketing tool, and what the people in your network say about you will ultimately have an effect on your brand.
Step 12: Review your brand (and how you portray it) frequently
Are you branding yourself in a way that’s concise and easily understood? Is your brand message consistent among all platforms? A regular review will ensure your message remains clear.
Sold!
If you want to be successful, creating a personal brand isn’t just an option, it’s a necessity. Whether you aspire to get that promotion or land your dream job, creating a compelling and consistent brand will help you meet your goals.
Branding Bootcamp
Our team's Upline, Lisa Abercrombie has a Branding Bootcamp course that will help you learn how & why to brand YOURSELF. Click the link below to go through the course at your own pace. Once you get to this page, look for the post titled BOOTCAMP CLASS #1. Once you watch and complete that task, move on to the post containing class #2 and so on. Here is the link to the Bootcamp FB page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1822648177807992/permalink/1825528220853321/