3 Steps to Get Clear on your Personal Brand and Reach your Goals

???? Over the last several months me and the StandOut Authority team have been building our Standout Authority Experience… a brand new program to help business owners and professionals attract, engage and convert their audience WITHOUT selling. It’s the path to becoming a stand out authority and showcasing your most important asset, YOU???? . Right now, we have our LIVE cohort going through the experience and I absolutely love supporting them and hearing about their pain points and goals. .  

And not surprisingly, we hear the same pain????points and goals from this crew as we do with our clients and our famiLEE. 

Common pain points from business owners and professionals:

1. Incredibly established professional with years of experience but have zero brand awareness and online visibility
2. Confused with their brand message and don’t know how to tell their story authentically and clearly both online and offline
3. Referrals are drying up and need new prospects but can’t find them or convert them into opportunities

Primary goals they come to us with are:

1. Get clarity on their brand value proposition and offer so people understand what they do and they feel confident putting themselves out there

2. Build an online presence and grow their visibility so people seek them out

3. Generate new opportunities for their business whether it’s booking calls, generating emails, selling books, or getting speaking engagements

Here’s the thing, to solve these pain points and reach these goals we have to start with the brand. This is your DNA and where the business’ success and marketing strategy stems from. This is where we come in. We solve your pain points and reach your goals by providing a roadmap to a strong, impactful personal brand that attracts, engages and converts.

So, let’s dive into the 3 steps for creating a personal brand that reaches your goals and solves your pain points:

Step 1: Define Your Personal Brand Value Proposition

This is where it all begins – you need to be crystal clear about what you do and what value you bring to the table. Take the time to define your brand value proposition and your offer – this will provide the foundation for your entire brand.

But how Rachel? How do I do this? Become a sandwich artist. ????

Defining your brand value proposition is like building a sandwich. You need to start with a solid foundation and the main part of a great sandwich – the bread.  I like a nice French ???? bread personally because it’s solid. The bread is your value proposition statement that clearly articulates WHO your audience is, WHAT you do and HOW you do it. This is the 30 second pitch, the LinkedIn headline that’s 220 characters, you catch what I’m saying. This should be uncomplicated, so we clearly understand what you do and how you can help me. I would say at least 50% of entrepreneurs out there are NOT clear on their offer and how to communicate it. 

Then you have your meat or if you’re a vegetarian, some mushrooms ????. Nobody wants a sandwich without some meat, otherwise we’d just be eating some bread, right? The meat is your ideal audience, your expertise and differentiation. This is where you’re speaking directly to ME about your offer and why I should choose you. This is the visual identity, the content strategy and brand consistency that attracts your ideal audience and repels the people that aren’t for you.  

Finally, you want to make sure your sandwich stands out from the rest, with condiments, toppings and sauces that set you apart. This part is your brand voice and your personality that sets you a part from the many others doing something similar to what you do. There’s lot of turkey sandwiches out there, but how many have strawberry jam and arugula? Know what I’m saying? This is the part that NO AI can replicate because it’s not your brain, living your life and walking in your shoes.  

Step 2: Create a Cohesive Online Presence and Generate Compelling Content  

Once you’re clear on your brand value proposition and offer, it’s time to make sure you’re showing up online in a consistent, cohesive way. This means being intentional about your website, social media profiles, and any other platforms where you’re active online. 

One thing you can do now is start creating consistent visuals. Use a consistent look and feel across all your online platforms which includes using the same fonts, colors, and imagery as well as the same profile picture across most of your profiles…and make this clear! I want to see your beautiful face.  

Coca-Cola has its iconic red color. Amazon has its iconic orange. IKEA has its iconic yellow. For personal branding, having a consistent theme is crucial for immediate recognition.  

I use purple and orange, Joshua B. Lee uses blue and orange. We have consistency across all our social media channels and our website, and that makes our brand trustworthy and memorable.  

“Consistent brand presentation across all platforms increases revenue by up to 23 percent.” -Forbes-  

Be consistent with your tone of voice, make sure that your messaging delivers the same value proposition regardless of which online platform it’s being presented on, and ensure your content speaks to your audience needs and uses the language that they resonate with. 

Picture Elon Musk tweeting heart-warming wisdom and empathy and leaving his followers bewildered. It’s like a clash of personal brand superstardom and sentimental intelligence. Whether you like what he has to say or not, he’s consistent with his online presence, that’s for sure.  

You want to choose 3 content themes aligned with your brand value proposition and consistently talk about these themes, remaining relevant by integrating what’s trending around what you do. Quality content is the name of the game and must be CONSISTENT! You simply can’t solve anybody’s pain points and reach your goals without creating content consistently in 2023.  

Step 3: Build relationships every single day and Communicate Your Brand with Confidence 

All the work you’ve done up until this point means nothing if you can’t communicate your brand with confidence. You need to be able to introduce yourself in a way that makes it clear what you do and what value you provide and never stop being HUMAN! 

Practice makes perfect – so keep refining your messaging until it feels natural. If you need some help crafting your message, check out my past newsletter ‘How to Craft the Perfect Elevator Pitch for Yourself’. 

Finally, I want to stress the importance of building relationships. We don’t do leads – we create relationships. While lead generation is important, we believe that building relationships is the key to long-term success. Consumers are almost 3x more likely to consider a brand that shows personal value more than business value.   

Building relationships is like the Spice Girls. Just like how they didn’t just create catchy songs, but also built a strong fan base with their message of friendship and girl power, businesses should focus on creating authentic connections with their customers.  

We don’t just want to be a one-hit wonder with lead generation, but rather strive to become a beloved and trusted brand through cultivating genuine relationships with our audience.