We often hear the phrase “personal brand” being used– but do each of us need one? And if we do, how do we go about getting one? We recently chatted with Nina who has rebranded herself in order to transition from the corporate world to the creative one and it got us thinking –what are the benefits and what should we be doing to foster our personal brand?
When thinking about your personal brand and how you want to present yourself, both online and offline you need to first think of a broad picture, and then narrow it down to the specifics. As Nina discussed with us, you need to think about your vision, where do you want to be in the future?
“I took the time to do some deep exploration and to inquire into some important questions. What made me happy? What was I passionate about? What was I good at? When I was I most inspired in my career? What was my purpose? What were the common themes, and patterns in the direction of my own career? What was I known for? How did I want to be known? Who was my audience and where did I provide them value?”
Before you embark on your journey of personal branding, here are a few tips to get you started.
Vision
What are your goals and passions in life? What can you do as a brand do to build a future for you and your prospective employers, jobs or clients? If your niche is working for startups and your passion is tech, and you also love vegan food, build your brand around that. Add value for others who share the same passions. You need a hook that will make you memorable, so you can become the tech guy who works for startups and the go-to guy to ask about vegan food.
Marketing
What do you need to market a brand? A website, social pages, advertising, perhaps some copy are usually commonplace. A personal website is a great way for people to get to know you, especially if you have a portfolio of work to show. How can your business cards stand out at a networking event? We work in the creative space, so it’s all in the details.
Consistency is needed across your social media profiles. We suggest using the same profile photo on each platform to be easily distinguished. Podcasts and blogs can be a fun and smart way to meet thought-leaders in your space as guests or interviewees. Your digital footprint is a hard one to erase so the content you are putting out into the world should be respectful, educational and entertaining. We love sites like Buffer and Feedly to assist with automating content.
Audience
Who are your audience and what can you do for them? Ask questions, get to know them and invite them to share their thoughts on your niche subjects. This is the fun part of personal branding as you get to know your followers and make friends. Think about how to add value. What do they want to know? What are their interests?
How did you build your own personal brand? Do you think they are a necessity when job searching?