One of the first things your new or emerging company should invest in is personal branding. Why? Because it can help connect your business with consumers in a way that only a personal brand can. Branding is a very important part of growing recognition for your company, but doing it the traditional way is no longer logical. People today don’t resonate with brands that use logos for profile photos and speak in corporate lingo.
It’s time to put a face and voice to your brand that your audience can relate to. Personal branding is the key. You can use the following tips to help you get started building a personal brand.
Create a Vision for Your Brand
What sets apart personal brands from corporate brands is that one sells to consumers and the other speaks to them. You don’t want to focus too much on your product or service. Instead, come up with a vision and story that will set apart your business from the others. Consumers are too savvy to be marketed to, so tell them a great story they can connect with.
Consistently Engage with Your Audience
You don’t want to just talk at your audience, but with them. Engage in two-way communications with your followers, so they know you’re real and listening. This can really help create an image that your brand genuinely cares. There are different ways you can interact with your customers – via social media, forums and the comment section of your blog.
Appeal to Your Target Market
The last thing you want to try and do is fit in everywhere. There’s no way you can pull this off and you will only wear out yourself and your brand. You need to find your target market and dwell with them. Build a community of like-minded people and watch your brand grow substantially. You can use this community for feedback and inspiration for new products and services.
Partner with the Right People and Brands
Any brand or person you decide to partner with should share your same values. This goes for endorsers, influencers and sponsors. It can be tempting to partner with whomever you can when you’re first starting out, but don’t. This is a delicate time for the brand building process, so you want to start off on the right path.
Your personal brand can do wonders for your company, so don’t hesitate – start building one today!
Hugh Benjamin is an internet marketing expert who offers services to small business owners. This includes social media marketing, SEO, content marketing, PPC, ORM and business development consulting.
