7 Benefits of Having a Personal Brand

Establishing a personal brand may seem like something you don’t think could serve you in your line of work, I didn’t. Maybe you’re in corporate America and just trying to climb the ladder and personal branding seems like it has no place in your world. Or you’re a stay at home mom who just started creating and sharing sourdough recipes and tips and you think branding is only for those with a large online community. Maybe you’re somewhere in between and you have a small business or YouTube channel, you don’t take it too seriously, but in an ideal world it would generate some income to help cover a few household bills. Well guess what my friend, personal branding would benefit all the individuals in those examples and more than likely benefit you as well!

Personal branding is a way for you to elevate yourself, communicate attributes about yourself without even saying a word and establish yourself as the expert or professional in whatever field you are in. It is your way to highlight your best and brightest parts and set yourself above the current standard. (You can go back to one of my previous blog posts and get a good basic knowledge of personal branding by clicking here!) Still not convinced it could serve you? Below you will find 7 benefits to having a personal brand, read those, think about them for a bit and they might give you a better idea if branding is something you should further investigate for yourself!

Most people don’t create a personal brand for themselves, or invest in the creation of one, as they feel it’s extra work and we all know time is money. But in the long run, this is what makes your first impression a memorable one, it's a way to tell your story.  Your brand showcases your uniqueness, your values, experiences, skills, all your desirable qualities that you want to make known all within a professional capacity. Dare say this could even give you more of a competitive edge over others in your field due to clear communication, through your brand, of what you stand for and can achieve.  

It’s a way to posture yourself, show a level of confidence that others may not display and without you verbally saying anything you are communicating everything your potential employer, client, peer needs to know about you.

We all know about that inner voice that tries to stop us in our tracks. Deep down you know you are qualified to do something or be somewhere but there’s that small seed of doubt that grows telling you you shouldn’t be in a certain room, you don’t deserve to be at this event, etc. By developing a brand, you have taken time to acknowledge all your accomplishments and your qualities, you have dissected your values, skillset, you know your worth and because you have developed this personal brand as your most authentic self, you now can sit in satisfaction knowing your real self is on display, no faking required. And because you are walking in your truth daily and this brand is an extension of you, I think you'll see your confidence will be lifted after walking through the process, gaining clarity and establishing a brand that highlights everything that makes you...you!

When someone mentions a name, business or product that you aren’t familiar with, what do you do? Most of us turn to Google because Google knows everything. So if someone refers you, your business or services to a potential employer or client, having a strong, well-established brand is going to be the first thing this individual sees when he or she starts researching you. A strong first impression is a lasting one so taking the time to establish a brand and by being intentional with what you put out into the world is going to speak volumes about you, your work ethic, your character and your level of expertise before that potential employer or client ever has the first interaction with you.

When you utilize your brand, whether in the professional world or through your online presence, you start to develop recognition within your field or following and brand recognition leads to building trust, client loyalty and in turn will increase visibility and your network. Employers, clients and peers refer brands they have a rapport with, brands they trust and if you have clearly defined your attributes and values within that brand and you remain authentic to those then you will be able to cast a wider net and expand your reach just through your development of a personal brand. This could lead to opportunities you never considered.

By establishing a brand, you are now working in alignment with your most authentic self. It’s exhausting to play a role or a part and when work feels like work you lose creativity, the fun is sucked from it and your passions no longer are your passions. But when you are being your most authentic self, living in that alignment, your work and passions are connected thus giving your purpose, focus and joy in what you are doing.

Think about some popular, well-established brands that you support. Maybe you're an Apple fanatic, you frequent Starbucks or you're a regular at Chick-fil-a. These are all well-established brands that surely have local competition that offer similar services or goods for potentially a fraction of the price, but their doors are always revolving with business. Why? Because they have created a strong, credible, recognizable brand that has gone above and beyond the standard. Those brands have created something special, something memorable, even an experience for each customer that keeps them coming back. Brand loyalty is the way to build a business and it is because of the loyalty they have established with their audience they can charge prices above what the competition offers. These brands have built trust with their customers, created an emotional or significant experience that their customers don't even consider the competition, and your brand could do that too.

There’s something aspirational about when you have belief in yourself, you take yourself seriously and you put that persona forward. When you take the steps to discover your personal brand, you gain clarity and self awareness and moving forward your brand and your actions will be guided by goals set for yourself. There is a bigger picture just waiting out there for you to seek and by taking a look at yourself, stepping into your most authentic persona and letting your inner light shine bright, that is where true advancement will happen.

So you can see, developing a brand has some long lasting benefits you may never have considered until now. This field has become my passion because I truly saw the shift in my business, my online presence and my community when I decided to that the time to discover my own personal brand and now I want to share that with you. My goal in this is to help my audience elevate themselves without extending and if sharing the knowledge I have learned over the last 6.5 years can add a fraction of value then my mission is complete! If you want more information on the topic of branding, I hosted two free workshops that I would love to email to you. You can get those here and keep moving forward in your branding journey!