Personal Branding 101: Understanding the Basics

Distinguish between the perception of you (personal brand) and the actions you take to shape that perception (personal branding).

“A personal brand is the widely held perception of an individual.”

Grasp the concept of being recognized, remembered, and revered in relation to your personal brand.

“Building the three R's: being recognized, remembered, and revered.”

Determine your areas of authority and expertise, focusing on your towering and secondary skill sets.

“Start with what you know. What is your level of authority in something?”

Define your target audience by considering their age, life stage, career stage, and needs.

“Decide on who it is that you're going to serve. Who is your customer Avatar?”

Determine what you want to achieve by building a personal brand, such as building a community or expanding your network.

“Think about your goals. What is it that you are trying to achieve out of building a personal brand?”

Consider your logo, color palette, fonts, and overall visual style.

“Give a little bit of thought about your visual identity.”

Establish your website (owned real estate) and utilize social media platforms (other people's real estate).

“Build your digital presence. Think about this in terms of real estate.”

Define your point of view, tone, and what you stand for.

“Think about what it is that you stand for. What's your point of view?”

Decide where and how you'll show up (audio, video, graphics, written content).

“Think about how and where your voice is going to be heard.”

Plan when and how often you'll show up with your content.

“Create a calendar of where, when, and how often you're going to start showing up.”

Overcome the fear and hit that publish button!

“Start getting your message out there... hitting that publish button.”

Determine how you'll measure success (subscribers, followers, clients).

“Give a little bit of thought about how you're going to measure your success.”

Identify what makes you uniquely attractive to your audience.

“Think about what is your unique attraction. Why should people follow you rather than someone else?”

Focus on capturing the attention of your audience and building a following

“Capture the attention of your audience, build a following.”

Actively engage with your audience and adjust your content based on their needs.

“Engage your audience authentically and consistently.”

Gradually expand your digital ecosystem and presence.

“Expand your footprint, show up in more places and offer more things.”

Identify potential streams of income from your personal brand (paid communities, sponsorships, speaking).

“Create multiple streams of income with the power of your personal brand.”