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    In today’s digital world, everyone is talking about Personal Branding, right?

    But I’m sure you might be figuring out the answers to all the questions around it.

    This post is a summary of all answers to personal branding in terms of questions, doubts, and perceptions.

    Yes, you get answers to all these questions and step-by-step strategies in building your personal brand.

    • I’m an individual. Is word branding related to only celebrities and & businesses, right?
    • Why should I invest time and effort in building one?
    • What are the core benefits of creating a personal brand for myself?
    • Which medium should I use?
    • Should I be active in all social media?
    • Having a website is mandatory for a personal brand?
    • How will it help me in advance in my career and in life?
    • What is it take to build a personal brand?

    This is based on the learnings and I also shared my personal experiences for you to make an informed decision.

    What is Personal Branding?

    While most people think of businesses when they hear “BRAND”, all individuals can also have personal branding.

    Stats show that around 85% of hiring managers report that a person’s brand indirectly influences hiring decisions.

    Around 65% of the people first will check out the brand and reviews before making sale decisions.

    Branding is like a magnet. It attracts job opportunities, supporting networks, co-founders, customers, and even life partners.

    Personal branding

    Business vs Personal Brand

    It is in many ways like a corporate brand. In simple words, imagine how the company you work for projects itself as the best organization to work for in every opportunity right?

    Likewise, you create a persona brand why they should hire you in the first place.

    Personal branding for individuals is all about yourself, what you do and what you do unique in your niche/field.

    What are your personality, experiences, your expertise & specialties?

    Moreover, your thoughts & core values, your talent, and the skills that you bring to the table?

    Personal branding for individuals is about the value and knowledge that you share, the problems that you solve & solutions that you provide, the credibility you bring when one owns it.

    Everyone wanted to have branded products or work in branded organizations.

    You don’t need to be an influencer or a celebrity to build a personal brand.

    As Jeff Bezos once said, “Your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room”.

    Let’s take Gary Vaynerchuk. He has a personal brand that’s quite more recognizable than those of his many businesses.

    It is because his personal brand is what created successful organizations in the first place.

    Personal branding is more digitalized in today’s era.

    Personal branding is your own STORY.

    So, make sure you are projecting the best and they’re saying something good.

    Benefits of creating a personal brand

    Developing a personal brand might sound challenging. But, look at the list of benefits it carries.

    1. Helps to showcase your versatility and an expert in a niche
    2. You are seen as Authentic – Your story
    3. Helps to stand out from the crowd – More visibility
    4. You develop Confidence – More learning; More skills
    5. You create Opportunities – You sell yourself easily
    6. You are valued more – Be in the spotlight.
    7. Differentiate from your competitors – Expert Niche
    8. Trust, Respect, and admiration increases
    9. Attract opportunities globally
    10. You plan your goals by being consistent
    11. People come forward to support / Increased network
    12. Increased income or sales

    There are lot many advantages to creating a personal brand. It is a process that needs to be followed consistently.

    How Personal Branding helps you to attract clients

    Digital means making use of online media in terms of paid ads, SEO, social media, Email & Content marketing etc. which enables you to reach the target audience globally and instantly.

    You can connect with your audience in a two-way engagement.

    Going Digital is cost-effective with ease of measuring the ROI.

    What does it mean? Do you know every audience of your brand goes through the funnel journey of Awareness, Interest, Desire & Sales/Action?

    Let’s start with being aware of your product to deciding to buy your product.

    Then you can track your customer’s data points to build powerful predictions about human and consumer behavior.

    Customer Funnel

    Easy 5 Steps to create a Personal Branding

    Step 1 – Area of Interest / Niche

    First, identify your areas of interest.

    • What do you want to project to this digital world?
    • What are skills that you want to showcase?
    • What solutions are you providing to your audience?
    • Which areas of interest you would like to grow?
    • Around what do you want to create your content?

    Finally, what do you want to be known for? Do remember that a person who catches two rabbits catches none.

    This is the first step in building your personal brand.

    Step 2 – Identify your audience

    Second, Identify your audience?

    This question helps in fine-tuning your niche and aids in building the right portfolio.

    Your audience decides the opportunities that you attract and in turn the wealth.

    Do you know “how”. Yes, your audience is the customer persona.

    It helps you to bring your personality into your personal brand.

    Step 3 – Give life to your Brand Identity

    Give identity to your brand. Brand identity means your unique visible elements.

    It can be anything but not limited to below. 

    To name a few,

    • your vision
    • your website name
    • your website design
    • your logo
    • your tagline
    • your product
    • the problem that your brand solves
    • the expertise and skills that you bring in
    • your core values
    • your competitive advantage, etc

    Everything that distinguishes you from others.

    Digital Brand Identity

    So, it is important to give yourself an identity.

    This is done via social media platforms or having your own website/portfolio.

    There are a lot of benefits to creating a website for yourself, instead of depending on social media platforms.

    The reason is, think of Tik Tok.

    Many users who created content on the platform have gone invisible once the tool is down.

    The time and effort you put in just vanished in one day until you had a backup.

    In case you want to showcase your arts and crafts, build a portfolio website.

    You never know, you might end up taking crafts classes or selling money with your arts online.

    Using social media platforms is like renting in another land.

    The landlord can raise the price or make you leave.

    Every social media platform right from Orkut to Tik Tok has its own peak.

    Don’t be just at the mercy of other platforms to have access to your audience.

    Using social media alone is like using a middleman.

    Social media platforms keep changing their algorithms.

    You must have heard that five million blog posts are being published every day.

    So, owning a website in this digital world is very common and it is not expensive either.

    What you need to build a website

    You just need the below to set up a website.

    • Hosting platform – Where your site will be hosted on the server – For eg. Hostinger, WPX Hosting, Bluehost, Namecheap, A2 hosting, etc.

     

    • Domain Name – Your website name which you registered – For eg: Contentlashmi

     

    • SSL – Usually, this is free as part of the hosting plan itself – For eg: The tag HTTPS that secures your website comes from SSL. 

     

    • Themes – Many website builders provide many freemium themes which you can begin with – For eg: Shopify, WordPress, Divi themes

     

    • Plugins – The common plugins that you need to run a basic website are free. You can upgrade those at the least cost when you expand. – For Eg. Google Search Console, Google Site Kit, Google Analytics, Header & Footer, SEO plugins, WP time capsule, HFCM, WP Subscription, WP Form, Real Testimonials, Smush, etc. 

     

    • Email account – All the hosting accounts provide the free email account with your plan – For eg. mail@contentlashmi.com

    So don’t hesitate to spend a few thousand for creating your portfolio.

    It will take approx. INR 3K to INR 5K to set up your website.

    This excludes the developer costs who help in designing your website based on the custom design.

    It will compound exponentially for the long term say 5, 10, and 15 years.

    Step 4 – Branding Strategy

    Define the strategy for your website and use of social media platforms.

    This is the most important step as you will be spending most of the time implementing this strategy.

    Depending on either only on the social media platforms or only your website is not the right way.

    You need to leverage both the mediums in the right amount.

    To generate your audience, attract your leads, and in turn, convert them into customers.

    When you publish information on your own website, the content will grow exponentially over time.

    Every time you post something new, you’re creating a fresh opportunity.

    Social media platforms help you to be discovered.

    Usage of Social Media

    Diversity is always an asset in marketing and trust. 

    Integrated digital marketing is the secret sauce as once adopted it helps to strengthen the brand personality, retain loyal customers, generate valuable leads, measure ROI, and eventually drive the success of your business.

    To adopt a successful integrated Digital Marketing, one needs to create a strong Personal Brand through different mediums.

    This strategy requires not just a holistic view of your business, but also a set of strong, versatile skills.

    For example, from creative design, social media, SEO, SEM, email marketing to data interpretation.

    The things that we need to do for building our strong Personal Brand.

    In simple words, a single language to speak in different forums.

    Integrated Digital Marketing

    Start linear with social media. Don’t jump on all the media.

    You will eventually get drained.

    Start with one or two where your target audiences and what’s your end goal.

    Each and every media has its own usage and audience.

    • Facebook: If you are creating a personal brand with the end objective of sales, then you can use Facebook and Instagram to market your product.
    • Instagram: Use Instagram to become an influencer.
    • LinkedIn: If you are looking to get high-profile jobs, then use YouTube and LinkedIn to share your knowledge and expertise. You can also use LinkedIn for your business brand as well.
    • Use WhatsApp & telegram groups to create your own community.
    • Use Twitter to show your personality, your opinions. This in turn increases personal reputation or business brand awareness.
    • Use podcasts as an extension of your brands. You can create meaningful relationships with your audience.
    • Use Youtube to share your knowledge, entertain your audience. 
    • Use Quora, Medium to write about the articles if you are not keen on blogging. 

    Educators, Entertainers, and Creators are going to rule the world.

    Step 5 – Grow and Embrace the Network & Grab the opportunities

    It’s critical to network consistently (and effectively) to expand your professional circle while you develop your ideal personal brand.

    • Deliver and add more value
    • Build more connections and followers
    • Build meaningful connections through effective communication
    • Build testimonials and recommendations

    In this way, you can grow your online presence and build your personal empire.

    Personal Branding

    Conclusion

    While creating a personal brand takes a lot of time and effort, the benefits are huge if done effectively.

    Personal brands enable you to cultivate a network of experts who recognize your value.

    They will consider you first when new possibilities occur.

    A personal brand can help you generate business, advance your profession, find a mentor, or eliminate the need to look for work.

    Do remember that a personal brand can build or destroy your trust, credibility, and reputation.

    Being the real YOU matters.

    Thank you for the time you invested in reading this article. If you want me to help you create your personal brand, do fill out the form. I’m just click away. 

     

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