2023 is here and it’s the year to focus on the year of Personal Branding.
If you want to be seen as a trustworthy expert in your field, your personal brand can make a huge difference to your success. But what is it, and why is it so important?
What is a Personal Brand?
Your Personal branding is the unique combination of skills, experiences and personality that makes YOU who you are.
It’s essentially how you project yourself and your values to the world, making it clear to your audience who you are, what you stand for and why it’s worth choosing you over the competitors.
When it comes to creating a personal brand online, your honesty, transparency and authenticity will set you apart from everyone else.
Show your audience who YOU are through the content you share, and the interactions you have with your audience online.
Why is Personal Branding important?
When you have a strong personal brand, it can help you stand out amongst the crowd, creating a solid identity that will get you noticed.
Everyone has a personal brand and how far you take that brand is entirely up to you.
You can choose to ignore it and let it develop organically through how people look at you, how your social media content portrays you and the impressions people have gained from just knowing you.
But, if you nurture and build on it, it provides the opportunity to make sure you’re being seen in the light you want, showcasing your strengths and allowing potential prospects to get to know the real you, not a version they subconsciously create.
It can also help you to create a consistent image and message across various platforms, making it easier for others to connect and engage with you.
So, How Do You Grow Your Personal Brand?
If you’re looking to expand your personal brand and chase the benefits of growing one, remember to set yourself realistic goals to keep pushing forward.
It could be as simple as nurturing your social media profile, regardless of how many followers you have or if your profile is public/private – It can become your brand’s landing page.
Look at who you are trying to reach? What does your audience look like? How do you speak their language?
Use the space to create content that speaks to that audience.
Business owners often struggle with their messaging as their personal brand can be confused with what they’re selling or their call to action but it’s separate from all of that.
It should be about defining and promoting what YOU stand for as an individual, not your products/services.
When you start showing your audience a personal side of you that’s separate from your business, it helps to build up trust with them. They begin to see you as an individual and eventually your audience will start buying into you, leading to more sales and recognition in the long run.
Don’t forget to stay active on your profile too.
Engage with your audience through likes and comments, and start conversations. Those conversations can help to build up relationships with your audience, that in turn could lead to more successful sales for your business.
No matter how you choose to build your personal brand, creating a strong brand requires work. Get to know yourself and the values you want to promote, and focus on creating consistent, unique content.