How to Build a Personal Brand

It used to be the case that only large-scale businesses, like Pepsi and Apple, created personal brands to establish themselves in their respective industries. But now, we live in a digital world where social media reigns supreme.

That means these days, businesses aren’t the only ones creating personal brands—individuals all around the globe are following suit, and if you want to stand out among the 50 million people who consider themselves influencers or content creators,¹ you have to understand how to build a strong personal brand.

Whether you’re building your personal branding from scratch or tinkering with the mechanics of the one you’ve already created, check out everything you need to know about how to build a personal brand to push your career into high gear.

#1 Discover Your Purpose (and Your Niche)

One of the first personal branding tips you’ll mostly hear is to discover your purpose. Your brand is what people think of when they hear or see your name. They may associate you with a word, a value, or even a special skill. Your personal branding also helps distinguish you from your competitors, so it’s important to choose one that’s in your wheelhouse, then find a distinct angle.

For example, let’s say you’re a personal trainer—but so are thousands of other entrepreneurs vying for the attention of budding fitness enthusiasts. To set yourself apart in the competitive creator economy, you must determine what makes you unique. Maybe you’ve trained collegiate athletes or worked with postpartum moms looking to get back in shape.

Once you’ve found your niche, you can tailor your brand to that specific target audience and establish thought leadership in your industry with your specific messaging.

From there, you can build a following of people who value your unique skill set and message. You may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but you can be the best damn cup of Earl Gray that your target audience has ever had the pleasure of sipping.

#2 Create Relevant Content

Once you’ve found your niche, it’s time to focus on how to create a personal brand with actionable means. One way to do this is by curating content that’s relevant to your viewers.

Here are a few strategies to ensure you’re creating content that resonates:

• Know your audience – Who is watching your content and what do they want to see? If you’re the best athletic sports trainer in the biz, you probably won’t be sharing videos of low-impact training sessions with clients who are 55 and older. Instead, when creating your content marketing strategy, think about the type of content that your audience can actually gain something from, like videos of client transformations or tips on how to improve posture when performing deadlifts.

• Check out what competitor brands are posting – Gauge which topics are resonating with your competitors’ audiences to better understand how you can share similar topics with your own unique spin. Also, take note of which social media platform/s where there’s high engagement.

• Always be authentic – Viewers see hundreds of advertisements on TV or when scrolling through social media every day. The best way to cut through the noise, increase your online presence and social media engagement, and most importantly make an impact on them is by providing genuine content that offers some sort of value, whether it’s an actionable step or a can-do attitude to push them through the day.

#3 Post Consistently on Social Media

If you want to stay relevant and continue growing your brand, consistency is key. Fortunately, there are multiple ways to be consistent with your self-branding, including:

• Posting daily or weekly on social media – In the world of content creation, it’s important to show up for your audience (even when you’re feeling uninspired) with consistent brand messaging and content. Doing this can help increase brand awareness as well as grow your following because your audience will learn that they can count on you to hit them with helpful content regularly.

• Using a catchphrase – Consider incorporating a memorable video send-off at the end of each video you post. Your audience will soon associate that catchphrase with you (and your brand).

• Investing in time-saving tools – Filming, social media video editing, and posting content to multiple social media platforms can be incredibly time-consuming—but with the right tools, you can make the entire process faster, more efficient, and easier than ever.

#4 Network, Network, and Network Some More

Networking is a fundamental skill that can pay off in pretty much any industry. And, because approximately 60% of the world uses social media,² virtual networking can significantly help you grow your career (and amass a sizable audience in the process).

Virtual networking can also offer you some of these other brand-building benefits:

• Access to new clients
• Insights into industry-related trends
• Credibility within your niche
• Increased job opportunities
• Solutions to challenges you may come across while establishing your brand

Build Your Personal Brand with Curastory

Rome wasn’t built in a day, and your self branding won’t be either. But with the right tools in your brand-building toolkit, you’ll be off to a solid start.

At Curastory, we believe in working smarter, not harder to create personal brands that resonate. That’s why we offer a unique, all-in-one solution for all your personal branding strategy content-creator needs.

With a fully-stocked suite of tools for top-quality video creation and a program that makes it easy to manage your advertisements from one convenient location, we can help you build and manage a successful personal brand that stands out—and takes your career to the next level.

Sources:

1. Forbes. The Rise Of The Influencer: Predictions For Ways They’ll Change The World. https://www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2022/07/08/the-rise-of-the-influencer-predictions-for-ways-theyll-change-the-world/?sh=13eabd8643a7
2. Novo Resume. 25+ Surprising Networking Statistics [Relevant in 2023]. https://novoresume.com/career-blog/networking-statistics