Branding yourself will result in targeted, quality leads coming in to your business.
First, let’s clarify what “branding yourself” means.
To begin with, you are a unique individual with talents, gifts, abilities, experiences and a story that no one else has to offer. No matter what you’ve been doing, there are people out there who have been where you were, and they can relate to your story.
Your story and all that it entails makes you uniquely YOU.
So let’s talk about “branding”…
When I say these brands, what do you think of?
Heinz 57
Jell-O
Tropicana
Oreo
No matter who you are, you are thinking:
ketchup
gelatin
orange juice
(black and white) cookies
The top list are the brands… the second list is what the brand provides. You see the logo, the brand name, the product everywhere. When someone hands you a bowl of gelatin, you thank them for the Jell-O, even if it is store brand gelatin.
Why?
Because the product and the brand are synonymous…there is almost no distinction between them.
What does Jell-O have to do with YOU?
People know you for something. You have certain characteristics that draw friends to you, that compel people to trust you, like you and have a relationship with you. Your name becomes synonymous with those things that they adore about you (or in some bad cases, what they deplore about you).
When someone says “Mary Smith” the people that love Mary automatically feel that love, and it makes them smile. Of course, on the flip side is “Pete Scam” which bring up the emotions of anger and resentment.
Your brand is who you ARE. You are unique based on the life you experience and the things you share.
So, your brand is YOU. Your name and your experience, as well as what emotions you invoke in others by their personal interaction with you. What are you currently invoking in others right now?
Let’s bring this around to business…your business.
Let’s just work with your name. For this example, let’s say you are Mary Smith. Of course, it is a very common name, and if that bothers you, you may feel more confident with a nickname. I would recommend not stressing over this too much. You can be “Mary Smith from California.” You are still Mary.
Steer away from giving yourself a title that says you are an expert in something you are not, ex: “Mary Smith, Facebook Expert” may get a lot of attention, but at the same time, if you don’t have the experience, results, social proof to back it up, it can turn against you and soon, you may be known as “Mary Smith, Facebook Scam Artist.”
Here’s a real life example of how you don’t have to have some “fancy brand”. There is one gentleman who is a rocking gentleman in the online industry. He is a top earner in his primary company, does training for his team and other companies and is highly respected. His brand has become… “Ed from Ohio”. People only know him that way… and they seek him out to work with, based on that brand he’s created. His last name is a bit tricky to say and to spell. But, if you googled “Ed from Ohio” right now…yep, you’d find him on page 1 of Google! And, if you asked people about him, they would have great things to say about him, probably smiling and sharing their gratitude. That is branding.
As you gain credibility and respect from the people around you, as Ed from Ohio did, people that you have already provided value to will want to partner with you in business. And, people who “stumble” across you or hear your name from others, will do the same. You will attract people in to your business quite easily at that point.
Your Brand is What/How You Serve Others
So, Mary Smith from Cali… you’ve already got your name…that part is easy. The next part is to get others to know your name; to speak of you fondly and recommend you to others. If you have tried this before and it didn’t go the way you planned, no worries… you can start from here.
Let’s begin with a list. You need to take inventory of all of the talents, gifts, abilities you naturally possess. Include all of your real world experiences as well as things that others have told you that you were really good at doing. This is just for brainstorming, so don’t worry over the logistics right now. Write down hobbies that you enjoy, interests you have a great deal of knowledge about and so on.
Where most online business owners miss the mark is they “brand” themselves as a representative of XYZ company. You want to be Mary Smith…the lady who gives tons of value…
…oh and happens to partner with XYZ company.
It’s an afterthought.
It’s what you only share when people say, “Hey, you’ve taught me so much. I want to partner with you…what company are you with?”
You should go out there and start sharing some of what you know. Not everything, or you’ll end up broke. But, instead of trying to push XYZ company, how about look at the people around you and see where they struggle. Then, look at your inventory (brain storming list) and see what YOU can offer to them for free or very inexpensively, that will help them where they struggle.
Position yourself as an expert.
Create a stir around who YOU ARE.
Here’s another real world example:
I know a lady named Sandi. She was known for calling thousands of leads and never getting a sale. Once she plugged in to some training and invested in herself, her business started to grow. From there, she went in deep to learn copywriting. She now owns runs an International company with thousands of people on her list (leads), not to mention making a 6-figure income and helping others do the same. She is now highly respected and sought after as a copywriting genius and a creator of 6-figure income earners. Her name and the expertise she provides is synonymous.
Where to go from here?
I know this is long, so I will wrap it up here with some bullet points:
Stop branding yourself as (just another) XYZ company representative
Figure out in what way you can position yourself as an expert.
Provide value to your existing circle of influence and/or contacts, team members, business partners
Create momentum from a free or low-cost service or product you can give value with (of your own, ideally)
Ask for testimonials from those who you have shared your service/product with
I believe in YOU,
Joy Marino
PS: If you are in need of coaching to get this process stream-lined, just click on the Contact Us tab or the Coaching tab at the top of the page, so we can connect and work through the process together.
Joy Marino loves to write about subjects that she personally has struggled with, and overcame, in the hopes to help others do the same.
emperra
prubsn
uni-yaz
convergentcare
jse
hoteliinfo
iab
svp-zuerich
temperatur
pixservice
rostender
infolapak303
silverspringnet
nasdaqdubai
offspring
amazinggrass
psidirectory
brh
host2wow
ycway
weatherfordtx
pfefferwerk
worldorder
nolawebteam
tuunix
sencrop
huashi6
writersdigestshop
chmod-calculator
programme-cee-actee
haobo999
wa-suta
redcake
digitalcitizenship
weilf
albertametis
miss604
diveintoaccessibility
shovv
smartstrony
develer
rewindo
mediacafeonline
decortips
888
tnjustice
smart-ex
feldenkrais
xiligroup
observatoriodelainfancia
ghanaiantimes
nissan
fuseo
unadmexico
unit
advanza
schalk-and-friends
barcelonabusturistic
029928
wellsphere
johnsonhealthtech
chenshana
grabaweb
originalindian
labelspectacle
n-i
igaccessories
btc
hubitat
tesla338slots
prasinotameio
loliware
legatumori
asis
nexor
jidounten-lab
commonspace
fecca
outwrite
theater-kr-mg
vidyasagar
queenscourier
bestcoastpairings
taraki
paxxo
hdos
dlynthebrand
jmolecularsignaling
tela
wixmeup
nytimesineducation
cmantika
seenagency
khoacuavantaydessmann
climateleadershipconference
d3bql97l1ytoxn
werklig
lapofluxuryspa
051jk
tryggabarnen
malera-gifu
illustrain
wp-a2z
airlinesoffice
islandora
bos101
oggiscienza
learnbook
jyfund
pdflayer
abawellness
businesskino
novisurvey
askaribank
azdema
smart
dridainfotech
stereo
rfc
surveytime
nordic-holidays
cj2q
legrog
chinadevelopmentbrief
hnjtzy
pecoo
typogui
arpnetworks
opzeggen
downtown
metycea
silannet
lochbronner
timeuse
jeffguestwebdesign
q-seo
geon
boomf
destination70
weareaqua
wbfin
icepay
infocube
anzmh
degustabox
circuitstoday
theliteraryreview
nepalstock
toso-kumazawa
housingtoday
nothing
moltiplika
napp
fuine
zkdgk
lufax
broadleafbooks
loireforez
aqabatech
id1
reifenpresse
coastlinecreative
holden
n-d-f
leowgweb
picksworth
222
kuxiaow
prestigeanimalhospital
heyuan
installsure
asport
find-sec-bugs
welfordmedia
grohe
crimestoppers
la2050
sportsrd
wellsfargoclearingservicesllc
jtracker
jtc
howtologintech
nowsms
canadianreviewer
davidmccandless
vgoroden
wildevuur
multimiceshop
rekonise
nctconline
thegenie
sgn19
incidentreport
lifestyleholidaysvc
e-landbus
certitrek
schoener-wohnen-farbe
ls-tc
afterpay
websemantics
sequent
tournamentusasoftball
5strands
editandoideas
nocat
risun-tec
jacksflightclub
break-charity
webexpo
leadfleet
roandcostudio
jinsoon
2tickets
intimspb
365yz26
pendidikan
munal
leafguard
herzkinder
montessoriservices
wfw
sdeibar
meteox
findlr
forex-binary-options
philosophie
ffsonline
over-blog
nameorg
securetrading
d-kanazawaya
aate
ocimf
usbets
flysepehran
cinetecamadrid
sureapp
mariners
jsifurniture
jf23
find-billigste-akasse
opiniones
sbac
pixpress
dragonflymax
adinnet
leonspeakers
velasolaris
rustylake
r8qye
webpositer
od-cdn
ultatel
downlooad
wemanage
aperto
pro-jinzai
starmen
online-bet
csir
athletesforhope
zain
zg
future-werbung
vaststellingsovereenkomstjurist
4orthopaeden2chirurgen
reparcar
s0y6z
sallymann
signalsaz
nku
soom
evrenselbilisim
getlit
collateralmurder
independentsage
dongtam
bontempstix
droughtangels
numteaw
popularitbd
golfasian
ieltsbuddy
toptenseo
dataintelo
wooz-up
bounceapp
designmantras
myvize
bluray-disc
giftoflife
latsis-foundation
tuulivoimayhdistys
hsh568
realforce
brainproducts
sorteador
lexprofit
wittgas
graytvinc
pasman
tuv-nederland
gzxinnet
8adi
palinfo
a-counter
yelen
coffscoastadvocate
camer
vod78d
fulinai
y-backup
blankspaces
bookplace
polarisprogram
rvproductions
tophere
tsa-uk
massgolf
avfunclub
unverferth
reseau-environnement-sante
best-research
rathjens
eseb
iganinja
oshawachamber
promotional-store
recapture
eticket
agenciabh
email-format
sebastien-gabriel
nauka-polska
180
happybodyformula
pesticidy
playcleango
left
thekestrel
rhodiapads
iato
mirandafrye
chooseauto
jeep
asioi
tands
hbrbr
re-wall
warmteshop
istation
tripleseven
esf
cuggw
youthtruthsurvey
coin-birds
earth2tech
baochauelec
hankooktireusa
web4pymes
manifesto-21
nemzetimobilfizetes
completo
viajeros
billguard
7360
digitalradio
screenbeam
tahedl
dbader
sn-n-tax
classtream
scorpioinformatics
online-television
clarkmheu
178
reseau-stas
geriatricarea
chime-experiment
crmlobi
eviation
communikait
mstd
yixina
sealifeparkhawaii
thediydreamer
clubesites
emc-mec
serveripsirvermez
x6k
searchfreefonts
museum-peenemuende
gginnogroup
daniel-rehbein
cpagetti
472245
lutheranservices
emojigraph
ashfield
machouhou
anicura
tdragon
bertina
lihi
charlesmcota
evolutionpayroll
gchhotelgroup
watkinsbooks
torontodistresscentre
bellracing
kidsintheknow
onlinecitizenasia
signagelive
schuetzenportal
