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'How others see you VS How you see yourself’

Tami Lancut Leibovitz

Personal branding is a term we often hear about in the business world, but not sure how to relate it to our life and our business. The core of personal branding is creating a perception we wish others would have of us as a business and transferring the message of our values, goals and spirit of our services or products to our consumers.

As an individual, you have just as much branding power as a large company,especially nowadays when the internet controls a vast part of the business world. With the development of the digital era, we have more channels and outlets of communication but we also have much more competition. Through digital platforms and social media platforms we can show a side of ourselves and our business that will establish who we are as a business and as a service provider. Personal branding is not limited to the web, it appears in the way we dress, talk or even present our business card, but now more than ever, the digital world has a large significance to the way consumers perceive us as a business.

What kind of mechanism is operated in relation to personal Branding?

It generates an emotional reaction and an opinion the consumers hold toward a company or product. To help establish those ideas and notions, companies create "brand values" that assists in building a proper marketing strategy.

For example: If a brand value is to be hip and fresh, one must endure all of the newest trends and platforms and create an Avant-garde marketing message, which pushes the traditional boundaries.  Some brand values are relevant to all different businesses such as honesty and superb costumer service. The key is to find the values that will attract the right crowd for your goals and will match the product or service you offer.

Creating a personal branding strategy and marketing plan is one of my passions, which I discuss more about in my book, “The IBL CODE - The International Business Language”. Based on my book, let me me share with you four key components of the exciting world of personal branding:

Be yourself!

Personal branding is all about who you are as a business and a business person and your chance to highlight yourself and that extra specialty that makes you who you are. Find your niche, your strength, “That thing” you feel you have above the rest and focus your branding on that subject. It will also help you identify the strengths you have as a business person and implement it to your work. If interpersonal connections is your strength, use it in a written and verbal way and express yourself. If multiple languages is your advantage in business, form an international message and strategy that your skills allows you to create. Find the key to your success within your talents, experience and skills.

Craft a marketing strategy that works for you!

Before you can establish your personal branding, you must ask yourself a few questions: Who are your clients? What is your goals? What will creating a brand do for you? When you analyze and answer those questions, the answers will provide an immediate insights into your marketing strategy. You can’t create a marketing strategy without knowing who you are aiming at, and where you want to reach! For example, when you identify your client, you will know what content to write and what platform to choose. If your target crowd are teens and youth, choosing Instagram as your favorite social platform is a great choice and creating strong, original visual content can be your key to their hearts. As focused as you can make your information and data, the better – your chances to attract the relevant consumer’s attention increases.

Keep it linear – be consistent!

When you establish your strategy and you identify your crowd, you have to keep a linear line of events, posts, campaigns and other tools that will help you present consistency. Being consistent with who you are as a brand will help consumers relate to you and trust you. They will be able to see you have a clear vision that continues to grow and evolve, and understand who you are as a brand. Being scattered and often changing strategy makes your brand seems weak and non-serious. Consistency is also important in terms of visual interpretation, creating a logo that will keep appearing, brand colors and other grids that will help you establish an ongoing brand tools that proves its brand values time and time again.

Reach out and interact with your clients!

Being an individual with a business allows you to create a personal connection and reach clients that some larger companies can’t reach easily. If you treat your clients as individuals and not “broadcast” messages to a “virtual audience”, you will have a better chance to earn engagements and achieve conversions that ultimately lead to sales and leads. The personal touch is often lost on the web and as a sole business owner you have plenty of opportunities to approach consumers in a personable way, an advantage that many larger business do not have. Use the advantage to create longer lasting results and better quality relationships.

For more about the fascinating world of personal branding, you are welcome to explore my book, “The IBL Code”: The IBL Code: International Business Language. ,

Or visit my site for personal branding, business and etiquette related articles: http://bit.ly/TAMITLL

Also, please feel free to ask any personal branding, etiquette and business-related questions on the Q&A section on my site at http://bit.ly/AskTami,