Your personal brand builds your business but focuses on you as an individual. According to a Nielson Consumer Survey, only 33 percent of buyers trust messages from a brand, while 90 percent trust messages from an individual they know. That means you, as a business owner, need to be the face of your message. This helps potential clients connect with your business and trust what you’re providing.

How to Start Defining Your Personal Brand

The name Jenna Kutcher may bring to mind some specific imagery in your mind and may make you feel a certain emotion. Jenna has mastered the art of creating a personal brand and connecting it to her business, mission, and passion. Most of us don’t need to ‘create’ a personal brand because we already have one.

Personal Branding is not about selling

Your personal brand isn’t about what you’re selling. It’s about connecting with your audience and building a genuine relationship with them. This is best done through social media.

Pop Quiz: Go to your Instagram account, click to view your profile, how many posts do we have to scroll through until we see a photo of you, what you represent, or a personal story?

There needs to be a balance between business-related and personal posts on social media. Consumers like to know who they’re investing in and the ‘why’ behind your business. In 2017, I attended a conference where Christy Wright was speaking and she said something that still lingers in my mind regularly, “People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.”

A personal brand is an extension of yourself

I said earlier that most of us don’t need to ‘create’ a personal brand because we already have one, that’s because a personal brand is an extension of ourselves. Your personal brand should reflect the person you are.

Back to the Jenna Kutcher example, not only is Jenna known for being a wedding photographer and marketing guru, but she also regularly posts about mac ‘n cheese, dogs, and yoga pants. Those pieces of her personal brand make her relatable and connect her with her ideal client. If your an avid follower of Jenna, then it’s hard not to think of her whenever you’re cruising the aisles of the grocery store and you see mac ‘n cheese boxes. She has successfully built a personal brand that helps build her business.

Pop Quiz: Think of 3 things, you regularly use, see, or do and start implementing them into your personal brand.

Stay consistent with your personal brand

Defining your personal brand doesn’t happen overnight. It will take a while for your audience to take notice and start recognizing your brand. In order for personal branding to be successful in your business, you have to stay consistent. You have to be consistent in the message you’re putting out there as well as how often you’re delivering that brand to your audience.

If you focus on defining your personal brand than your audience will start to know, like, and trust you. It’ll be easier for them to connect with you and will help you win them over as a paying client.