Creating a Personal Brand to Own Your Future

Personal branding is where your passions meet your brand and your vision meets your audience in a consistent online presense.

What Is A Personal Brand?

Are you wanting to build a better presence online?

Then personal branding a good place to start.

Personal branding is a synergetic blend of YOUR identity, expressing and manifesting who you are while simultaneously positioning yourself along with your career or business brand.

It’s more than just a website, logo, photos, or videos.

It’s more than just a website, logo, photos, or videos, it's about your connection to the audience. This is your digital marketing voice. The audience will want to continue following you and your content.

It’s not enough to just be sharing inspirational quotes or use original generic content. It’s about standing out and using content that is authentic and your personal message. – It's about your “WHY.”

What's My WHY?

Your WHY consists of things are that are unique to your passions, vision, lifestyle and how you want people to see you. If you want the world to see you then you need to manage your visibility. Mindfully create content in a way you’d want to see yourself. What you put out there is what your audience interprets. So, make each message clear and about your personal brand.

Personal Brand and Marketing

So, what does this have to do with Personal Brand and Marketing? Well, let me tell you. Personal brand and marketing go hand in hand. Digital marketing and personal branding are so hot right now in the business industry. Which makes this an immediate marketing playground for those wanting to build a business presence online. Synergizing your marketing and your personal brand to grow your business is key. The content, style & connection are critical to building your audience.

“Remember your visibility is directly related to your profitability!”

With SO MUCH content and SO MANY small businesses popping up online, a brand that connects to a person’s face is much easier to trust faster. It takes less time and effort to build a relationship with a personal brand as compared to a business brand.”– Pia Silva

Creating Your Personal Brand

There is a pivotal moment in your life as to “why” you started your business. This is called your brand story. Start by creating content around your brand. This could be taking professional photos in the brand style you are in. This helps captivate the audience and see you in your element. It also means sharing on social media what your personal brand is all about. Personal brand needs to also stay passionate but neutral on controversial subjects. We all know what the touchy subjects can be with religion, politics, race, ethnics or culture.

Unless your personal brand message is about these subjects then it’s best not to create opinions about your brand if that is not the direction you want the audience to go. So, in my opinion, be mindful of what content is going out on your websites, personal and professional for the world to see. It takes little to no time for an opinion to form. First impressions are still a must even through online content. I mean, the end goal is to captivate as many people as possible, right? Also, be authentic and genuine. This will also help build your brand while creating an online business presence.

It Opens Up Opportunities

This is great for both your personal and business brand. When your audience is captivated, this could lead to more business development and opportunities. This is the goal. You want the audience to choose you! The possibilities in the business realm are endless. It could lead to an amazing following, referral, partnerships, profits, and collaboration. You want your audience to grow right alongside your business! When your audience feels connected to you, they want to work with you.

“Having a personal brand is important for an entrepreneur because now more than ever, it’s important for CEOs and founders of companies/brands to come out to the forefront and connect with their audiences. People connect with people.” – Kevin Stimpson

How to Audit Your Brand?

Where do you start?

It could seem like this task seems too daunting. Bur, for starters it’s important to always check in on your passion, goals, and your WHY to keep your personal brand growing. Be an expert of your own personal brand. End by making it a practice, show up for your brand. Always be putting your personal brand into action and putting it first.

Ask yourself these questions:

• Am I representing my brand?

• Does my mission align with my personal brand?

• Do my business goals align with my visions?

• Am I practicing and building my personal brand vision daily?

When you visualize your brand then you eat, breathe, and live it.

Embody Your Personal Brand.

What does that mean?

When you express your personal brand and embody everything your brand is – you end up living on-brand.

Let it be known your passions and vibe. Let the audience into who you are! They will eventually learn to love you and trust you. Let them know who you are! Live your brand. Be your brand. Embody your brand.

You want the audience to relate or see the value and buy into your brand. This builds a relationship gives the audience ease when choosing your brand.

The goal is to create a connection with your audience.

Consistency Is Key

Your Brand = Your Future

Content

After you continue to develop a personal brand, keep it up! Consistency is key.

Frequency

Managing your posting and commenting frequency (how often people see you and your content) is just as important as your offline presence.

Optics & Voice

You must demonstrate consistency across all lines of communication and appearance. This is where many marketing tools start to fail. People are constantly watching for online presence and use it as a tool to use your services in the future.

Personal Brand is the New Reputation

Live your brand – one of the ways to build your personal brand is to not separate your brand from your personal life.

This is a valuable piece of advice when it comes to personal branding and managing yourself and your future.

Wherever you go, your brand should follow and represent who you are. This allows your personal brand to manifest into who you are and amplify into the audience you are speaking to. Continue to captivate your audience and this will continue to build your personal brand.

When you show up and mindfully manage your personal brand daily – you create on-brand content consistently, direct your reputation, and create your future!

Meet The Author

Christa Ohnstad is one of the Business Development Managers at Midwest Nest Magazine. She not only has a Business and Marketing Degree from Concordia University, St. Paul but also is a Certified Health and Life Coach. Her love for life, mixed with a passion for architecture, design, real estate, and cozy “hygge” living is why she loves her new alignment with this magazine.

Her expertise resides in business brand building, freelance writing, sales, marketing, and all things fitness. She resides in Harwood, ND with her husband, daughter, and son. Along with all of that she is an outdoor lovin’, lake life, ocean breathin’ kind of gal, and mom chauffeuring while enjoying the riches of life AKA coffee, one cup at a time. All things coffee is a way to her heart!

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