Until recently, brand identity was something that corresponded almost exclusively to the world of business and companies. However, in recent generations, we have begun to learn that almost any public actor can have a brand, from entrepreneurs, managers of organizations, to political parties.
Like a well-known brand, personal branding expresses specific attributes that will define you as a public figure. But effective personal branding isn’t about putting yourself out there like a show or work on display, it’s about cultivating the right perceptions, and making an impact in your environment.
While people turn to companies to purchase products and services, today it is the people behind those companies who entice consumers to fall in love with a brand.
What is personal branding?
Tom Peters coined the term personal branding in 1997. Peters asserts that we are all CEOs of our own personal brand, and that means we should promote ourselves as vigorously as any product or service.
Expressing your identity through personal marketing means taking into account all the elements that define you: your name, tone of voice, reputation, manifesto, symbols and even colors. All these details are what differentiate you from the crowd.
How to transform our personal brand effectively
1. Find out how it is relevant to your industry
The first thing is to take into consideration what your abilities are as a person, and what are the main elements that make you different.
Once you have an idea of this, you have to analyze how your identity could be relevant to potential audiences and consumers. You have to think bigger than your company and look at the industry as a whole. What benefits can your field offer you with perseverance and dedication?
2. Build your online identity
Use different social networks such as LinkedIn, Facebook, or any other specialized in your industry. If you don’t have a well-optimized website or profiles on these social networks, then you won’t make it as an influencer in your industry.
Another way to strengthen your personal online marketing is by networking with people you can learn from and who can connect you with new opportunities.
3. Develop content for your brand
There are several ways to create content. You could contribute to an open source project, produce a streaming cycle, write a white paper, create a group on your social network, or generate meetups that raise discussions or opportunities on topics relevant to your brand.
Another option for writing a document is to develop a case study, explaining how you solved a problem, saving the company time or money.
These types of experiences are vital for your audience to identify with your story, learn from it, and thus create a direct connection with your personal brand.
4. Keep updating your content and brand
Experts agree that Googling your name to see where you are is a good way to see how you’re doing.
If you’ve been working on your personal marketing plan, you should start to see some exposure, but this is just the beginning of the journey.
Once you have established a solid identity, according to the characteristics of your person, and have managed to assertively express those qualities to create an online reputation, continuing to develop content and experiences that nurture your audience is the best way to maintain that connection and continue adding followers.
5. Help people understand why they need your services
To develop an effective personal marketing strategy you can’t just tell them what to do, you have to create the conditions for them to have the desire to take any action on their own.
recommendations
Although we have mentioned the basic steps to develop a personal branding strategy, generating personal marketing tactics are the keys that will lead your brand to success.
You need to identify your marketing goals to craft a message that will help you achieve them. Where do you want to be in 12 months? What do you have to say and communicate to others? What exactly do you want to achieve?
If you’re looking for a job or a new opportunity, your marketing goals are likely to center around performance during interviews, building and nurturing your professional network, and updating contacts to find job openings and get that goal you want. you are looking for
A SWOT analysis is a structured strategic planning model often used for a project or business venture. SWOT stands for: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.
You can use the SWOT analysis for personal marketing purposes.
But lastly, also determine the geographic scope of your marketing efforts. The more segmented your strategy is, the more effective your reach will be.
Conclusion
For some industries, personal branding may be even more important than you think. After all, modern consumers want to hear the story behind the company and get to know the leaders who make up an organization’s culture.
People want to engage with those inside the companies they buy from. By learning about their struggles, failures and successes, you generate a strong connection with your target audience, thus giving an extra boost to the company’s brand positioning.
The bottom line is don’t rest on your laurels. The best professionals never do. They are always educating themselves and expanding their professional horizons, and so should you.
