Intentional Brand Building Course

Understand Caleb's definitions of 'branding' (intentional pairing of relevant things consistently) and 'brand' (audience's inherent associations).

“Branding is a pairing of things.”

Utilize the Brand Journey Framework (Desired Outcome, Known For, What to Do, What to Learn) to reverse engineer your brand strategy. Take advantage of the peer support group to share your framework and get feedback.

“What is our desired outcome?”

Define what you want your brand to be associated with and, more importantly, what you don't want it to be associated with to protect your brand's integrity. Consider the loss aversion effect: What associations would be most damaging to lose?

“What do I want to be associated with?”

Identify the gap in your industry and learn how to own it by bringing a fresh perspective and sharing your unique story. Frame your brand as the solution to a critical problem.

“What are they saying that I disagree with?”

Develop your brand story using the Catalyst, Core Truth, and Proof framework to build loyalty and connection with your audience. Share your story in the course forum for peer feedback.

“What do you see that others do not?”

Determine your primary content medium (written, video, audio, graphic) based on your strengths and long-term sustainability. Don't overthink it, just pick one

“What are you going to lean into the most?”

Select 2-3 platforms to prioritize based on your audience and what feels comfortable, and diversify to avoid single channel risk. Leverage social comparison to see what platforms peers are focusing on.

“Prioritize two to three platforms”

Determine your posting cadence based on your audience's preferences and the insights you gained, remembering quality over quantity (at least initially). Share your weekly commitment to build social proof.

“Quality does not have anything to do with the fancy that we're trying to do here.”

Scale up production volume, either through volume of posts, or effort per piece, and distribute by utilizing a content pillar approach.

“Increase the frequency in which you post.”

Implement strategies to make your content production sustainable through building a simple content machine that aligns with your energy rhythm. Set posting reminders.

“Perfect is the enemy of Posted.”

Identify the specific needs for which you are hiring. Build team based on goals, target audience, or skill gaps, not just perceived need.

“You don't hire just to fill roles. We hire to solve problems.”

Use a structured hiring funnel (screening calls, technical interviews, culture fits, final interviews) to ensure better quality hires. Share with team for feedback.

“What am I going to be able to show people with this?”

Prioritize cultural fit over technical skills to ensure long-term cohesion and positive team dynamics. Use culture interview techniques. Discuss within mastermind community for feedback.

“Hire for mindset and train for execution.”

Begin with essential roles, and only hire for new problems. Assess value of team with each addition. Implement a 30/60/90 day plan for success.

“Avoid overhiring too early.”

Create a team culture where leaders take action and set an example, where you focus on a maker time schedule and transparency through decisions.

“Lead by example.”

Emphasize building trust and value before focusing on monetization strategies. Document methods for review.

“Trust is the currency that precedes the transaction.”

Determine your optimal monetization model: Services, Products, Affiliates/Sponsorships, Community/Memberships, or Ads/Content.

“Your monetization strategy should line up with your strengths”

Freely share your knowledge and charge for expertise or execution. If the value is given upfront, the sales will flow.

“Share the knowledge, sell the execution.”

Start with a low-ticket offer and gradually build an offer stack that caters to different levels of commitment. Use short cuts.

Monetize without losing trust in this process. Focus on building relationships and long-term value. Set values with team to verify.

“What's a clear and simple process to build awareness and conversion?”