



If
I asked you what you could do to be more successful as an
entrepreneur or small business owner, you would probably list off
things like advertise or network more, improve your website or
marketing materials and close more sales, right? Would your answer
include personal branding? It should, because it absolutely impacts
your success.
First,
it’s important to clarify we aren’t just talking about big
brands. It’s the personalities that represent them that help these
companies create a brand. Why Branding is Important
When
you purposely create a brand representation for your business, you’re
incorporating several factors, including: • How others see you •
What sets you apart (your USP) • Your values • Your expertise •
Your personality • How you represent yourself in person and online
If done correctly and consistently this builds trust, loyalty, leads
and sales.
Why
else should you care?
• Research
from Nielsen shows that only 33% of buyers trust messages from a
company while almost 90% of customers trust recommendations from
someone they know.
How
to Incorporate Branding into Your Marketing
Firstly,
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: you need to know your
target audience. These are the people you want to appeal to and have
on your side.
Let’s
say you’re a career coach who is trading the corporate world for
entrepreneurship. Your target audience may be other professionals who
are leaving corporations to fly solo. From your marketing materials
to how you present yourself on social media, you always want to keep
them in mind.
Here
are 3 other ways to create a successful brand and stand out from the
competition:
1.
Show Your Expertise You want to be an expert in your field right.
Stay on top of the latest news and trends, understand who your
competitors are and attend events. Use what you know and learn to
educate, inspire and mentor others whenever and however you can.
The
more visible you are the more people will associate your face with
your product or service and trust what you’re selling.
2.
Choose the Right Platforms First, having a website is important! With
any of your online marketing efforts, your goal should be to drive
traffic back to a website that represents your brand positioning
well. In case,if your website falls short of this, your target
audience will not resonate with your business and will leave.
Next,
find out where the people in your target audience spend their time.
Let’s
say that career coach I mentioned earlier targets professional women
between the ages of 35 and 55. If research shows her target audience
uses Facebook much more than Instagram, she should focus a large
chunk of her efforts on creating Live videos and stories as well as
participate in targeted Groups on Facebook.
3.
Be Yourself… to a Certain Extent Don’t be afraid to show your
personality and use your own voice when creating and sharing content
or meeting people.
However,
be cautious about sharing content that is political, religious or
some other topic best avoided at dinner parties—unless it is part
of your persona and/or mission and values.
It’s
also important to always be honest as the face of your organization,
as vegan influencer Yovana Mendoza Ayres is finding out. She was
recently filmed eating fish in Bali, which caused a huge uproar among
her plant-based fans and followers.
You
can’t neglect your personal brand if you want to grow your leads,
sales, loyalty and reputation.
It’s
not a nice-to-have, it’s a must-have. People no longer look to big
businesses to tell them what to buy; they want to see a face and
personality that represents the product or service.
If you want to stand out from the competition, you need to have an effective strategy. From your logo to your website to your social media presence, find the expertise to help you market yourself and your organization today and in the future.



