15 Sep 8 Keys to Personal Branding
As small business owners we must do everything we can to build our profiles in our community; one of the easiest ways we can do this is to be instantly recognisable through our brand. Here’s 8 great tips to help you build your personal brand and build your business!
See the end of this post for a ‘Personal Branding Checklist’ free download.
Transcript
Good morning. Good afternoon. Maybe I should even say, good evening. Whatever time it is, wherever you are in the world right now, hello and welcome. Thank you so much for taking the time to come and join me. My name is Paul Barrs for paulbarrs.com.
Now today we’re talking personal branding. Some quick tips that you can use to help you stand out from the crowd, to be in front of your customer when they think of what it is that you do. Sound like a good idea? Well, I’ve got about a dozen notes here and I’d like you to jot these down as we go and then at the end come up with a short list, a checklist, maybe half a dozen of things that you can actually put into action, things that you can do to make a difference. You’re ready? Let’s get started.
Number one on the list, get yourself, if you don’t have it already, a professional headshot. Now, this is important. I mean, hey, I’ve had these done. I don’t always look this good on camera. Okay, maybe not, but I got myself a professional. Because yeah, mom and dad can do a good job and friends who’ve got great cameras but they don’t have the eye. The eye of what’s needed to make you stand out, to get that right shot, to get the cropping, to get the lighting, to get everything done. Something that you can use on your business stationary, something that you can use in your social media profiles. Something that you can use to make yourself stand out. If you don’t have this already, this is an easy one. You pick up the phone, you make a call. You jump online, you get some referrals and you get some professional headshots to use in your online media.
Number two, this is a follow-on I guess. You need to be able to be found online. I thought about that, you know, when we take on a new client for SEO, the very first thing we do is have a look. Can they be found under their company name? Number two, can they be found under the business owner’s name because this is important. If you cannot be found for at least who you are, you’ll never, chances are never, going to be found for what you do. Being discoverable means not just in SEO though, it’s also in social. It’s also in the directories. If you’re one of those businesses where there are lists of businesses competing in that directory, you need to be found and you need to make a note to go and check, have a look and fix it up if it’s not working. This is incredibly important.
Number three, that you have for yourself a professional purpose. And what that means to me is when I get out of bed, I’ve got a drive, I’ve got a reason, I’ve got a want. I want to do a better job for my customers. I’m not just getting up because you know, oh, it’s Monday, got to go to work. No. I’m getting up because it’s Monday and I’ve got some great things to want to do. I’m excited about what I do. What about you? Now, if you are not, I’m going to suggest that it might be you’re doing the wrong thing. Maybe it’s time to mix it up. Maybe it’s time to get someone in there to get you some help so that when you wake up in the morning, you’re motivated. Not to say you’ll never be tired, won’t need a coffee, but you get the point. It’s incredibly important.
Number four really comes down to those beautiful times when you’re networking or with a client, and that is you need to be able to learn how to listen. You need to be able to listen and understand and have empathy for your customer’s needs. It’s not just about being able to sell. It’s not just about you going, “Hey, thank you.” Done. Next, move on to the next one. You need to be out of solve problems and the best way to do this and to build your brand is not just sell a product, it’s solve the problem with a product or a service, whatever the case may be. Listen with the intent to understand, not just reply. I’m sure you’ve heard that before.
Number five, practice. Practice writing, practice speaking, practice communicating. Now look, I’m lucky. In my case, I am now 50 something. Oh boy. Never thought I’d be saying that a few years ago. I guess it’s a good thing that I am, but now 50 something and I’ve had over 30 years of public speaking experience. I’ve been on stage all around the world and had good fortune with what I’ve done through two different careers, but in doing that, it’s easy for me. What about you? How easy is it for you? Can you speak on camera? Can you maybe speak into a microphone? Can you perhaps write? Whatever it is you need to find a way that you can communicate a personal message. A personal message about your position with your product or with your service. About how you solve the problems. Not just the sale of the product itself. We’re talking about personal branding, not just sales or products. Two different things. Get this one right, oh boy, everything flows smoothly from there.
Number six, the next is to reengineer, to fine tune your digital presence. So I want you to stop. I want you to think just for a few moments and go, “Where are all the different places that might people might find me, might connect with me, might look for me online?” and this is important. Go in and look at your social media and pimp that profile. Make it as good as it can be, make it better than your competition. Don’t be afraid. Go and have a look, check them out. Look at your website, look at that information above the fold. Right there it says on mine, is your website outdated? That’s the target market. People who haven’t updated their websites for a long time, that’s what we do. We fix them and we bring them up in their profile online. You need to do the same for yourself. This is important not just for the business but also for your personal profile as well.
Which leads me on to number seven, analyze your competition. Take time, have a look, get to understand what it is they are doing. Now, recently I repackaged. As we came to the end of the financial season, I repackaged our digital marketing packages. I guess that’s the best way to say it. Before I did it though, I ran the numbers and I said, yes, this is now going to be profitable. Let me check out what the competition is doing just out of curiosity. Interesting. Not doing what we’re doing, we are bounds ahead already, which is a great thing, but I wouldn’t have known that because if I’m talking to someone and they’re talking to one of my competition, I need to understand that as well. I need to be able to analyze the competition. I need to be able to look at my nation and go, yes, this is where I fit into to the market. Why? Because when I’m looking to solve problems, I need to do it with obviously my products. This is key. This is the basics. But in doing so, I need to be able to ask the right questions that my customer will answer and basically say, yes, this is what I need and that’s what I can offer. That’s why it’s good to understand what other competitors are offering as well.
And then the last thing is number eight, I want you to embrace. I want you to expand your personal experience in the business sector. So that means getting out, getting involved. It means reading books. It means going to seminars. It means expanding your knowledge. Not just networking while you’re there, expanding your knowledge so you can speak with authority because that’s the key. No one loves a stupid leader, but we love people who can go, “Yes, I understand.” That’s the empathy side of things. We love people who can go, “Yes, I can fix that for you. Yes, no problem at all.” Now you cannot say that unless you have the knowledge and the resources then to fulfill. And if you show them your really great photo, you’re going to look great at the same time as well.
So there’s eight quick tips that you can use to build your personal brand. I want you to take a note of those. Jot down at least half a dozen and go, “I’m going to fix these. In the next three months, I am going to fix these and I’m going to do these,” and I promise you, you will see the difference.
Thank you very much. My name is Paul Barrs from paulbarrs.com. Now if you’re in southeast Queensland, I’d love to hear from you. How’s your website doing? Can I help? Good chance that I can. Having some problems with your current sort of web design people? Give me a call, get in touch, look me up. Easy to find. Thank you. I’ll talk soon. Bye-bye.
Click here for your Personal Branding Checklist free download.
