PERSONAL BRANDING FOR BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL SUCCESS

If you have been following me for a while now, you will notice that I have focused a lot on corporate branding and marketing strategies in my previous posts. But today, I want to write about something different, another topic that I not only find very fascinating, but realize that a lot of people struggle with, and that is personal branding. There are plenty of ways to define personal branding but to put it simply, Personal branding is basically how you sell yourself. If you are to consider yourself as a product and your target audience as the customers, how well do you think you would you fare on the market? What would be your value on the market? Would you “sell like a hot cake," or would you "sit on the shelves for years?" As you ponder on that question, I would like to add that there are plenty of advantages to having a successful personal brand. Take the example, of the CEO of Virgin group , Richard Branson, who, by understanding the power of personal branding, rose from being a mere school dropout to become one of the world’s leading business men. Cultivating an excellent personal brand therefore, could land you your dream job, salary or even clients. The opposite is true. If you do not brand yourself well, you are likely to be overlooked in favor of better candidates. We all know of people who are great "products," but who have been overlooked when it comes to opportunities because they failed to brand themselves appropriately. If, for some reason, you find that you fall in that category, I would like to encourage you by saying, not all is lost. I am here to redeem you with a few tips that you can use to create a memorable, likeable brand that you can even cash-in on. 

Number One: Be bold, confident and self-promote. Self-promotion is not bragging and the two should not be mixed up. Self-promotion is simply letting people know about; your accomplishments, what’s going on in your life, special events, values and dreams. Bragging on the other hand is shoving your accomplishments down other peoples' throats with a superiority undertone, and the two should not be confused for each other. Self-promotion is all about positioning yourself for opportunities. No one will know how talented, brave or smart you are, until you make an effort to be seen.

Number two: Open up. The other key to developing a great personal brand is to be honest, authentic and open in your dealings with your followers. Richard Branson, (whom I have already talked about above,) is a master at creating content that connects with people. “Whether it is writing books, creating videos, or writing blog posts on LinkedIn, he has done it all. He documents most of his professional life and shares it with his audience. The Key to building a great personal brand, therefore, lies in being ready to open up a part of your life to the public. Many people struggle with questions of privacy and do not want to show any part of themselves to the world. However, when you find your sweet spot in terms of what you are comfortable sharing, find your community of staunch supporters and discover what kinds of content help in building your brand, it will become easier."Joshi Swati.  

Number three: Tell your life story. Your story is what sets you apart and makes you different. You could write a blog or produce a weekly podcast about your industry experiences. If you have worked on numerous innovations in your industry, for example, share your perspective without obviously revealing proprietary information. These are things that people want to know about or learn about. It’s very important to do this with a mindset to add value and you will be rewarded for it.

Number four: Create relationships and network as those relationships are what will lead to opportunities. Whether you are online or out in the real world, treat every person you meet as a possible future reference or customer. That Facebook friend could be your next employer, business partner or hire you to speak at their event. Nurture your relationships, help them grow and be genuinely interested in other people. That is where opportunities will come from. 

Number five: Talk about and celebrate other people. Talk about their events, ask your network to support their causes, charities and ideas. When the turn comes for these people to support you, you can count on them to rally behind you and toot your horn. By recommending and caring about other peoples' work other than your own, you position yourself as a valuable resource and influencer.  

Number six: Don’t shy away from hard work. If you ask anyone who has found some considerable success in what they do, they will all tell you that they worked hard, harder than anyone else. All your plans to create a great "personal brand amount to nothing, if you don’t take action and put in the good old hard work. It is as simple as putting up your first blog post or asking to speak at an event and then following through consistently. 

For more branding and marketing inquiries send me an email at [email protected] #personalbranding #brandlikeaboss #brandstrategy #personalmarketing #marketingconsultant #brandstrategist #businessdeveloper #MBA #CIM #MMDM