When you think of branding, the first thing that comes to mind is probably familiar company slogans like Nike’s “Just Do It” or Dunkin’ Donuts’ “America Runs on Dunkin.” Companies build and cultivate their brands to let consumers know what they stand for and what they offer.
A personal brand isn’t that different from a corporate brand. Your personal brand clearly describes who you are, what values you hold dear and how you express the things you stand for and believe in. Your personal brand is your unique identity and lets people and companies know why they should work with you. In short, your personal brand is your story.
But how do you build and develop your personal brand?
Determine who you are and what you can offer
To build an accurate and authentic personal brand, you need to figure out exactly who you are and what you can offer others. Take time to sit down and write a list of your strengths, your motivations and the projects or work you’ve done in the past that you absolutely loved. You can even enlist the help of friends and family by asking how they would describe you.
One of the challenges of developing a personal brand is choosing what specific niche (or niches) you want to focus on. While it can be tempting to want to offer as much as possible, keep in mind that the more specific you can be, the better. Your personal brand will likely evolve over time as you find more things you can offer.
Think about where you want to be
As you begin to build your personal brand, give some thought to where you want to end up in the future. Personal branding is about more than where you are now—it’s about where you want to go and what you would like to be known for. Consider how your strengths can translate into additional niches and offerings.
By thinking about where you want to go in the years to come, you can see how your current skills can help you and what skills you need to work to improve. When you know where you want to end up, you can better plan for how you’re going to get there.
Identify your ideal audience
Your personal brand isn’t just about you—it’s also about the people you want to reach. Think about the kinds of people you want to work with: Are they business owners? Creatives? Industry leaders? The better you understand who your audience is, the more easily you can create content and develop your personal brand to reach those people.
Remember that personal branding is about storytelling, and the way you tell your story will depend on the people you most want to reach. You will also need to take into consideration where your audience spends their time, such as what social media platforms they frequent, to make sure that you are in the right place to join the conversation.
Be prepared to network
When building your personal brand, it’s essential to make connections and to meet other people who can help you reach your goals. The more you grow your professional circle, the more opportunities you will have to promote and expand your personal brand.
Plus, many people get more job opportunities through other professionals that they know and interact with, meaning that you will not just be able to build your brand but expand your career options and opportunities as well.