I wrote about this some time ago but since I have been receiving a lot of questions around branding I thought I would revisit. According to a UCLA study, 85% of all decisions are made with our eyes. Think about how visual our society is today and the lengths we go through in marketing to visually appeal to consumers.
Visual appeal is one element that drives your personal brand. Before you sell anything, you sell yourself first. By taking the time to do this correctly, you can create a desirable and in demand brand.
The way you dress and carry yourself has a remarkable impact on the people you meet professionally and socially and this greatly impacts how they treat and respond to you.
With a well-defined personal brand you gain tremendous advantage over the competition in the market place. The personal brand you project affects others’ decisions as to your intelligence, character and ability, and determines whether or not they want to do business with you.
Think of yourself as a company with one employee – you. Ask yourself this question: “How much time, money and energy have I spent in developing a “personal brand” that is unique enough to sell to my market?” Many people have invested thousands of dollars in education, professional development and their personal image as a part of their brand development.
To project a strong personal brand, you need to brand yourself and your business (no matter how small) the same way large companies brand their businesses. This is not a hobby or part-time job; this is your business so make your brand recognizable just like the bigger companies in the marketplace.
Large, successful companies understand the power of “branding” a product. They spend a lot of time, money and energy to create a “brand” that is appealing enough to sell their product because they want to make sure that the buyer has a strong connection with that brand.
You can make your personal brand do the same thing for your business or career as well, by:
- Taking a good hard look at yourself-inside and out. Take a self assessment if you need to get to the root of you.
- Examine your honesty and integrity, as well as your outward appearance.
- Remove or repair the things that you wouldn’t like if you saw them in another person or business, and strengthen those things in which you place value upon and admire.
This is what creating and projecting your own personal brand is all about and will set you apart from others. Think about how you want your customers, clients or colleagues to perceive you, what about you will convince them to buy or do business with you, and then make whatever changes are necessary to live up to your brand image.
In Closing…
Personal Branding is a lifelong journey whether you are branding yourself to represent an employer or your own business. Regardless of what you do or where you go, your personal brand follows you and it becomes a calling card to others as to what you are known for in your niche. Spend the time you need to nurture and develop it and it will represent you well.
Supporting You One “Savvy Step” at a Time!
Share with me below one thing do you want to be known for.
Looking forward to hearing from you!
