The Ultimate Guide For Building Your Personal Brand

Irrespective of our career choice, we need to build upon our personal brand on social media. What is a personal brand, you may wonder? And why would we want to indulge in something so fancy, you’re now thinking? Well, that is rather simple. Have you seen your favorite blogger putting up content oh so frequently? Or is your friend active on social media with millions of followers and you have wondered how did that happen? Your personal brand is all about you. It is more like the scrapbook we used to keep in our good ol’ days.

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Most of the time, influencers and digital marketeers are associated with personal branding when in reality, every person with any social media account is an owner of their very personal brand. Still confused? Keep reading this article to find out the answers to your questions.

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Irrespective of our age or occupation, we all possess unique skills that make us unique and stand out amongst the crowd. This skill and this personality characteristic make you, you. It is our voice, and it is a way of communicating with the world. In your personal space, you show your capabilities and share your experiences, personal and professional. With time, this becomes your personal brand.

Do you remember the times you Googled someone to know more about them? Or did you look them up on LinkedIn or Facebook to see their lifestyle? Their pages, profiles, and links are their personal brand. It speaks about who and what they are and that, my friend, is what a personal brand is.

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Are you heading an organization and now looking to create a personal brand of yours? Lucky you because you already have a following. Oh, you didn’t know? Well, your contacts, employees, partners and family are your current audience. Upon creating a professional personal brand will bring your audience to your platform. So basically, all you are actually doing is calling them to follow you on one platform such as Znaplink to support you.

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The downside of this could be that you need to plan better. Your personal brand should be well thought of, inclusive of your personal brand statement. You may have instant critics, but who cares? This is your space and your voice. Read on to the famous Gary Vaynerchuk to know what I mean.

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So now you have your personal brand, what good is it anyway? It helps in building your and your company’s credibility. You can use it to create awareness, share your life experiences, and interact with people globally to build on your connections.

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With the world as your audience, whatever you say will have an influence on your followers. You should have your niche and cater to your brand accordingly. Use the same techniques that a commercial brand uses to reach out and build its identity. Following are a few points to consider before you kick-off.

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1.     Set a tone

2.     Be consistent with your content

3.     Stand by your values

4.     Have a clear voice

5.     Identify your audience

6.     Be courageous

Link it to your business

If you have a business that you run, make it a part of your personal brand. This is a way to connect with your audience without being commercially hit. Your personal brand is like your business card and your portfolio. Your personal brand is your legacy. Someone wise once said, ‘Your business is the body. Your brand is the soul.’

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Impact on your career

In the professional world, everyone is working up to their best capabilities. It is a race that unfortunately we all run. But what makes you different from others? Your personal brand. It helps you in standing out from the crowd and making a fairly decent impression.

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According to Forbes, 70% of employers use social media as a medium to screen potential candidates before or after an interview while 43% of the employers use the platforms to keep a check on their employees.

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Connect emotionally

Easy peasy; be you and be unique. Share your story in the most original way. Emphasize your vision and what you stand for. Your personal brand is and always will depend on your audience. Leave room for them to have a conversation with you. It not only gives them the chance to be a part of your journey, but their opinion and feedback are always valuable.

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Examples and their strategies

Like any other brand, your personal brand needs to have a strategy to embark upon. Use your social media platform to its full potential and take it head-on. Your strategy needs to be rock solid with a rational approach to follow. For a better understanding, below are some successful personal brands with their unique selling points that you can take inspiration from.

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Oprah Winfrey

‘Surround yourself with people who will lift you higher’, said the ever-famous and loved Oprah Winfrey. An actress, an entrepreneur, a visionary, and a host; she is an institution on her own. Though she herself does not agree with calling herself a ‘brand’, she has become one over the years.

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Her strategy revolves around ‘empathy’. Her body language and tone dole out empathy, touching hearts and lives across the globe. She chooses to not be labeled as a ‘brand’ for she fears she will lose her connection with her people, audience, that is.

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With the fame and respect she has earned over the years, Oprah Winfrey has used it to benefit a plethora of projects that help people and communities in ways. She used her platform as a voice for people suffering and struggling.

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Elon Musk

‘Failure is an option here. If you are not failing, you are not innovating enough’, says Elon Musk while speaking of success. Starting as a young entrepreneur at age 23, Elon created different platforms for people in rather varied areas.

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Elon thinks out of the box with some insane ideas and works towards bringing them to life. That is what his quality is. He has become an inspiration to many top guns in the world. He is successfully leading a group of executives with his transformational leadership skills.

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He is an authentic example of eliminating the thinking of ‘I can’t do this because it’s not my field.’ Elon has delved into online payments, solar energy, and electronic automobiles.

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Tony Robbins

‘The only limit to your impact is your imagination and commitment’, is the thought that Tony Robbins revolves around. He is a motivational speaker with many best-selling books to his name. He is a philanthropist, helping millions around the world.

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His vision is to help people, not only financially, but also through inspiration and motivation. His mission statement speaks volumes, ‘A life dedicated to helping individuals and businesses succeed.’

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Tony reaches out to people and touches their fears, only to shake them out of their system. He is true to what he does, putting an impressionable impact on people’s lives and accomplishments. Over the years, he has banked a spot in the ‘Top 50 Business Intellects in the world.’

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Gary Vaynerchuk

‘Skills are cheap. Passion is priceless.’ The legendary Gary Vaynerchuk spoke such profound words as he speaks of what drives him. Finding the people who will positively affect your life is what you need to invest in, not selling your product, is Gary’s business approach.

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He has built his empire around honesty and being true to himself and his customers. Being direct, in his own words, is what brings people to him. His pitch to customers is straightforward and simple. He emphasizes in making valuable and using the social media platforms to their best. One of his prime strategies is to focus on self rather than looking at others.

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Gary is a social media icon, an author, and a self-made millionaire however, he calls himself a ‘hustler’. He shares his thoughts and story of success on different platforms, hoping to inspire many struggling businesses.

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Inspirational Personal Brand Statements

You don’t particularly need to be a celebrity to build a personal brand because your brand will make you a celebrity, eventually. Your brand statement is the crux of your vision that helps you in reaching out to people.

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A brand statement should be short and concise, distinctively speaking of how you want people to think of you. This part of the article will show you examples of common people who have worked upon their personal brand with statements to call their own.

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‘I believe in you, now you must believe in yourself.’ - Dave Nelson

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A strong personal brand statement put out by a personal trainer, motivating its audience to believe by uplifting their self-esteem.

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‘The world needs that special gift that you only have.’ - Marie Forleo

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Bringing dreams to reality, Marie’s statement encourages people to not only follow their dreams but to make a difference with their efforts.

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‘Be a unicorn in the sea of donkeys.’ - Larry Kim

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Larry’s personal statement directs people to be different. He believes in breaking the norms and creating a world suitable for your market.

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‘Creating less content. (It’ll be fine, I promise)’ - Brittany Berger

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Ms. Berger here challenges the norm of sentences after sentences that people write in order to promote and upsell their products. She suggests using fewer words, but smartly.

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‘Do you want more traffic?’ - Neil Patel

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Yes, you’re right. Your statement doesn’t really have to be a ‘statement’ but can be in a form of a question. Remember, your brand statement has to be unique, therefore possibilities are endless. By asking a question, you can get your audience thinking.

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Conclusion

You now know that you are an owner of a brand. That brand is your LinkedIn profile, your Facebook page, or even or Twitter account. Any platform that gives you space to share freely and lets you have a voice for yourself and people around you is your personal brand.

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In this article, we have discussed the importance and benefits of building upon your personal brand. The first thing you need to be aware of is your USP- unique selling proposition. This makes you stand out from the crowd. Moving on, you need to have a specific audience to whom you reach out to because not having an audience means throwing your posts in the air.

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Once you have sorted this out, you put your personality in it. Start connecting with your audience, have interactive sessions, see what they have to say or suggest. Know that your focus should be on yourself and on how to improve and grow.

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Having great self-esteem can be a motivational drive. Be a visionary and put it in motion without getting scared.

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