The Simplest Way to Brand Yourself

I can say without hesitation, that over the past 3 years which I’ve been using social media, I have easily met several thousands of coaches. Some have really wowed me with their techniques, skills, and knowledge; others with their benefits of service, structure, process, and awareness, and others with their ability to generate, befriend and build lasting personal and business relationships. And yes, there have been some that didn’t impress me at all. Hence, there really isn’t any defining factor between having the ability to create a booming coaching practice and being a wonderful coach.

Branding and Image

Whether you are an entrepreneur, spokesperson, mouth piece of the company or the face behind the voice, each play a role and are focused on building the brand name of their companies. In today’s economy, consumers want to hear the story of the entrepreneur and connect with them directly. They want to know what the company is about. They desire to know when and why you started the company, your purpose and long term vision and goal. Coupled with the countless social media platforms like LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter and Facebook, this has enabled entrepreneurs to connect with, build relationships and generate lifetime loyal followers and clients on a global level in a matter of months. So as an entrepreneur, it is your goal to become the brand. It’s what you do, what you represent, and how you carry yourself.

Networking is paramount in generating brand awareness. Whether you are a model, a singer, a professional athlete, a teacher, or a coach, you are building relationships and need to know how to effectively communicate and get your point across. Branding, sales, and networking are a part of everything we do. If your intention is to build a business or personal relationship, you are selling to the other person why they should go out with you or do business with you.

You should be connecting with other entrepreneurs, professionals, and business owners in your industry using social networks. This builds credibility, trust and visibility. In the event your content is applicable and compelling, others will re-post your content, which increases the opportunity for it to go viral. Going viral is when some form of social media, a blog or video, gets shared by millions on the social media platforms.

It’s important to make part of your interaction with others consist of commenting on their blogs, liking their posts on Facebook, re-tweeting their posts on Twitter and most of all constantly giving value. Give applicable advice people can use to better their situation. If you see something on their profile, like a book, a movie, an author, a musician, that is of interest to you, let them know you like it. That’s how you build rapport. By forming relationships with people in your target audience you can grow your business and create life-long loyal followers.

Let’s take Jerry Sandusky for instance. He was once a well respected coach and defensive coordinator at Penn State. Due to the recent events concerning his lack of integrity and sexual allegations, he has branded himself as untrustworthy, a child molester, and unfit to be around children. Now, of course, you probably do not want to brand yourself in this way, but you get the point. Well, let’s examine someone else, Oprah Winfrey. She’s known as a talk show host, a humanitarian, she’s recognized all over the world, she’s a billionaire, she helps others get started in show business, she has her own network and magazine. When you hear the word Oprah, you think talk show host, kind, giving, loving, billionaire. Oprah has become what she promotes; she has become her own brand. So when people hear Oprah’s name they automatically think about something she represents.

Branding yourself isn’t entirely about who you are as an individual, but mostly about what kind of services, products, and goods you offer. By developing your own brand, you’ll have control over the initial impression others form about you. Branding yourself keeps you up to date on current events in your chosen field, opens doors, and creates a lasting perception on clients. If you don’t brand yourself, someone else will and they may not have your best interest at heart.