Your Personal Brand
Who are you? How does that relate to who you are as a service provider? The answer to those two questions is at the heart of your personal brand.
You may not relate to the term “personal brand.” But you probably have a sense of what it means. It has to do with –
- symbols,
- stories,
- experiences,
- phrases,
- and general “take-a-ways” that people have as a result of their contact with you.
Your Stories
Additionally, for our purposes it is what you intentionally, and in some cases unintentionally, create to represent you and your services. If you are providing direct services to counseling clients, it is not necessary, needed or essential for you to tell them “your” stories.
However, it is vital that they recognize that you are grounded in a purpose. Because even if the client does not know your story, they can feel your ambivalence, fear, uncertainty or lack of identity. What people want most is to know that you are solid. That they can lean on you and that you will not break.
Marketing
For many people, developing a personal brand for the purpose of marketing and practice or business development means that they have to confront what they don’t like about themselves.
- They have to decide what they want to share and what they would rather hide.
- They have to decide if the story they are selling – I mean telling – about themselves is true!
- They have to decide if they can risk rejection.
For many years, I mostly engaged the world and people as a very private person. This means when I wrote things publicly I didn’t share personal examples. I also did not engage in social media because I didn’t understand the “point” of sharing.
When the truth is this “privacy” was a nod to how shy I was as a child and the elements of that shy girl that still lives inside of me. Perhaps the privacy was a way of protecting or shielding myself from the potential judgement I imagined I might receive from others.
Marketing is challenging for shy or private people. We don’t like to be exposed. In some cases we don’t like attention. But we may also have a very private sense of the value we can offer others…if only they knew who we were.
A Couple of Masters of Personal Branding
However, I started to think about the people whose work I am drawn toward. It is not simply their work, it is their presence, their personality, and their sense of self that draws me in.
They are not projecting an illusion of perfection. They often speak about and share their broken places. However, they also know their strengths. They share their strengths in the act of providing their services. Let’s consider some famous examples like Ellen DeGeneres or Oprah Winfrey. I could literally have only typed their first names and you would have known who I was referencing. That is how powerful and effective they are in personal branding.
We all know their stories. We all have a sense of their personal brands.
Ellen is a comedian/actress who bravely came out as same sex oriented during a time when not many people did. Today she is known mostly for her lively talk show, her love of music, dancing and connecting with people on a heart level. Ellen champions everyday people on her show and helps to support the fulfillment of their life’s purpose. She has shepherded a friendly and accessible face into the mainstream for those who may not be comfortable with or do not personally identify with same sex oriented people…not by trying to make people more comfortable, but simply by being her very relate-able self.
Oprah of course is now a media mogul. She moved from talk show host to launching a TV network, radio network and magazine (to name a few). We know her history as a childhood sexual abuse survivor and we know that she wants people to “live their best life.“ Her interests include food/wine, spirituality, creature comforts, reading, education and the power of friendships. She clearly created the extended safe family she needed after a very tumultuous beginning in her family of origin.
Your Origin Story
If you are struggling with marketing, finding your niche, cultivating referral sources, leads, customers…whatever it is you that are trying to develop, it may be time to revisit your origin story –
- Your understanding of who you are.
- What led you to the work you are doing now.
- What you needed and received from your own personal development.
- What do you think is needed in the world or at least what is needed in your areas of interest?
- Next, it is vital to explore what you have to offer from a place of personal strengths and skill sets.
Your personal strengths and skill sets are not merely a question of what you are good at, but it is also a matter of what you enjoy doing. Because whatever the answer to that question is, you will be doing those things a lot as you develop your marketing strategies that are centered around your personal brand.
How People Will Know
Lastly, you need to consider how people will get to know you, the service you offer and how they can access your services. It seems obvious, but it is not unusual for people to overly focus on one of these areas and not the others.
For years I sent out an e-blast that merely told people about which workshops I was offering including when and the cost. I had some success from this but I believe that mostly word of mouth grew my workshop attendance.
When I started using my e-mail list to share information that could benefit my readers, it expanded a whole other level of relationship with my current or potential customers. Whether people ever buy a service from me or not, the blog has shared my personal brand and has allowed people to get to know me, gain value and share information with others. Just knowing that happens makes me even more dedicated to writing it each week.
I also provide consultation services. I generally only market it to people who are already my customers by attending workshops. I bring this up to say it is vital that the people you already know, whether they are family, friends, colleagues, former colleagues, classmates, former classmates etc… know what it is that you do. Not in a preachy way, but in a way that represents your passion for what you do.
The Power of Passion
If you don’t feel passionate, it is important to explore why. Because without personal passion you can become bored or complacent. I’ve never met anyone who was excited to work with someone who was bored or complacent.
How I demonstrate passion involves the use of my personal strengths to share or “translate” information for my peers via professional development workshops. My enthusiasm for learning and teaching as it relates to counseling ethics and supervision are the reasons why I present on those topics. I only present on topics that I like and enjoy. This makes it easier to prepare for workshops and all of the many steps that involve providing them (including marketing).
I only write about what inspires me personally and professionally. Most of these topics come from the inspiration I have from my peers, clients, supervisees, workshop attendees, consultees, coaching clients, friends etc… I try to only provide services that interest me, challenge me and help me to grow as an individual. Why? Because interest, dedication and passion are the keys to the longevity needed to develop mastery.
Be Inspirational
Depending upon where you work, you may perceive yourself as having limitations. Please know that “how” you are with people is not just limited to you at work. It is how you are wherever you go. Trust me, opportunities abound when you are inspired. It is like a light that captures people’s interest. From there you will not lack for work or experiences that align with who you are at your core, which is far broader than what you do.
If your mindset is closed, you are also closing yourself off from opportunities. So have an open mind, but be grounded in your identity. You don’t have to create something new or be something new. You only have to accept who you are and be bold enough to share that aspect of self in your messages (i.e. marketing). Many people will relate and your customers will find their way to you.
Copyright © 2016 Ruby Blow. All rights reserved.
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