Who Do You Think You Are? (Downloadable Flip-book or PDF)

Who Do You Think You Are?

Did you know everyone is a Personal Brand?

How does your Brand represent you?

About the Author and his Brand …

I am a recovering Entrepreneurial Junkie and Solopreneur Cheerleader! I believe the micro-businesses comprised of family-owned establishments are still an American Dream and the backbone of the community they serve.

I started working at the age of 12, delivering newspapers. My paper route started with 18 subscribers, and in two years, I had over 100 subscribers on that same route.

At the age of 14, I started working in a restaurant washing pots and pans. When I turned 18, I entered the United States Army and was a Food Service Specialist. Upon completing my Tour of Duty, I worked and owned restaurants for 50 years, learning from some of the best and worst in the industry.

I also ventured into other businesses during that period while operating restaurants.

My resume includes owning a Yarn Shop, a Print Shop, a Publishing Company with our monthly newspaper and magazine, a Social Media and Public Relations Company, and a Mobile Retail Shop.

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I believe a business needs to be involved in the community it serves. Giving to the community shows gratitude for their acceptance and support.

My experiences run deep through many industries, and I've learned to surround myself with good people and understand people are your greatest asset in any business.

Your Personal Brand is your greatest asset personally, professionally and everywhere in between!

I hope that sharing some of my experience, learnings, and insights will benefit you.

Best of luck, and thank you for reading my book!

"People like to do business and associate with people they know, like, and trust.” ~ Cliff Moore v2.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this book may be modified or altered in any form whatsoever, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system without express written, dated, and signed permission from the author.

Copyright © Cli Moore v2.0, 2021

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I had the opportunity to volunteer for several Community Organizations and Non-Profit Boards. As a result, I became the President of our Regional Chamber, President of a Business Improvement District, and the recipient of several proclamations and awards. Being part of the community by volunteering, donating , and participating in forums and events is a core attribute I’m proud of. I am still active on the Bayshore Senior Center and the Twin Lights Lighthouse.

I'm sure you know what the definition of a brand is.

McDonald's, Apple, Lexus, Mercedes, and Rolex are examples. But, do you know what a personal brand is? And, even more importantly, do you know how to build one? If you answered "No," to either of those questions, then this book is for you.

Everybody has a personal brand, including you. It’s what people think when they hear your name, what pops up on Google when someone searches for you, and your presence across social media. If you own a business, it gets even more complicated and diluted. Now, more than ever, your need for a personal brand is critical.

By properly developing your brand can take your personal life, career, or business to places you never thought possible. Of course, it takes some work, but the lasting impact on your life is immeasurable.

Unfortunately, most people don't know how to build a personal brand. They lack the knowledge on exactly what steps to take and what's involved in creating a brand around themselves. Celebrities hire professionals to create their brands.

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PREFACE:

What you think you think about yourself and what others think about you are rarely are the same!

Your life story has created a brand that exists to others.

I’m going to give you tips and pointers on the di erent key elements that define and project your Personal Brand.

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What is my personal brand?

Why should I care about my personal brand?

Why I need a personal brand?

How do I impact my personal brand?

How is Social Media is impacting my brand even if I’m are not on it.

Is my brand clear and concise?

Am I memorable?

Is it too late to create my identity?

“I am not who you think I am; I am not who I think I am; I am who I think you think I am.” ~ Thomas Coole

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IDENTIFYING YOUR PERSONAL BRAND

Everyone has one whether, you like it or not!

Chapter 1: What Is a Personal Brand?

Your personal brand refers to how others perceive you. It is the expertise, experience, reputation, and personality that others define you as. It can be a combination of how the media depicts you, the idea people get from the information they find about you in-person, online, who you have associated yourself in real life.

It is the image you put forth. It's what you stand for and your values. It's your combined persona of your personal and professional DNA. The core of who you are as a person. Your brand is your secret sauce – the thing that sets you apart from everyone else. It's what makes you unique.

You can ignore your personal brand and let it develop organically, possibly chaotically, beyond your control, or

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you can help massage your brand to depict you as the person you want to be.

Your personal brand can be vital to you professionally. It is how you present yourself to current and potential clients. It allows you to ensure that people see you in the way you want them too, instead of in some arbitrary, possibly detrimental, way.

Further in your reading, you will get some tips and advice on how to influence your reputation online.

Your personal brand includes attributes like: Values Unique skills Experiences Stories Personality Image Reputation Connections Associations

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Do you know what Google is saying about you? Google your name with the towns you’ve lived and worked to see what others see.

“Personal branding is about managing your name in a world of misinformation, disinformation, and semi-permanent Google records. Going on a date?

Chances are that your “blind” date has Googled your name. Going to a job interview? Ditto." ~ Tim Ferriss.

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Your brand centers around you. It's about what you bring to the table, the value that you o er. It involves the specific ways that you interact with people, diversity, and opportunities.

You may think that only big companies are brands, but that's not true. Thanks to the internet and the power of social media, every person is their brand.

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It would be best if you constantly put yourself out in front of your audience. Physically, virtually, and electronically.

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You must add value to your audience with your experience, expertise, and knowledge around your product or service.

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Your communication must be loud and clear. The message has to be consistent in-person, print, and electronically.

There are many tools available to assist you in building powerful personal brands.

Every person is a brand. The question is whether you are actively taking control of your brand. Many people work for large companies for decades and found themselves furloughed or unemployed due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Unfortunately, they strengthened the brand they worked for and have very little personal brand recognition finding themselves in a job market that is now very selective and scarce for their experience. They should have been marketing and branding themselves rather than the company they were loyal to and worked so hard for.

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The process of personal branding involves finding your uniqueness, building a reputation on the things you want to be known for, and then allowing yourself to be known for them.

Personal branding has gained significance due to the use of the Internet, as social media and online identities a ect the physical world. Employers are increasingly using social media tools to vet applicants before o ering them interviews .

Branding may afford potential employers the opportunity to more accurately judge a candidate's abilities and cultural suitability, since blogs, pro les, websites, etc., are pieces of work that can be evaluated The question is whether you want your brand to evolve on its own, with no conscious input from you, or if you wish to be actively in control of the process and outcome.

Your branding o ers promises of increased success in the business world. Thousands of self-help books, programs, personal coaches, and articles exist to help individuals learn to self-brand. These strategies emphasize authenticity and are o en framed as becoming 'more of who you are' as well as who 'you were meant to be.

It's always better when you're in control of the result. Thus, you are creating The Brand of You!

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Everyone has a personal brand, whether they want to or not.

Everything you say, share on social media, every email you send to your audience, every blog post you write, every live event you host - they all contribute to your brand.

Chapter 2: Why You Need to Build a Personal Brand?

At this point, you might be thinking, Why do I need to build a personal brand? I'm not a big company. I'm not a Hollywood celebrity. So why do I need a brand?

By building a personal brand it can show the skills and qualities that someone has, defining what makes them important or di erent.

The rise of branding on a personal level has been more recent. For a long time, personal branding was better le to athletes, models, and Hollywood celebrities. Today, personal branding is a key to succeeding in many di erent parts of life.

It is all about building your reputation, creating an image of yourself for the outside world, and marketing yourself as an individual. Essentially, your brand is the story that's told about you when you're not in the room.

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Owning a business makes it more complicated to separate your personal from your business brand. They each overlap each other and the - It doesn't matter if you're not a big name or a Fortune 500 company. Solopreneur’s need to work the hardest in creating a brand.

If you are trying to build a business of any sort, creating your brand is essential. You don't need to be a large company or a Hollywood celebrity to benefit from building a brand.

Your personal brand is how you promote yourself. It is the unique combination of skills, experience, and personality that you want the world to see you. It is the telling of your story, and how it reflects your conduct, behavior, spoken and unspoken words, and attitudes.

You use your personal branding to di erentiate yourself from other people. Done well, you can tie your personal branding in with your business in ways no corporate branding can possibly succeed Your personal brand can be vital to you professionally. It is how you present yourself to current and potential clients. It gives you the opportunity to ensure that people see you in the way you want them too, instead of in some arbitrary, possibly detrimental, way.

It gives you the opportunity to highlight your strengths and your passions. It helps people believe they know you better, and people have much higher trust in those they feel they know; even pubic people they have never met personally.

"Your personal brand is a promise to your clients… a promise of quality, consistency, competency, and reliability." ~ Jason Hartma

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Personal Branding Allows You to Stand Out from the Competition First and foremost, building a personal brand enables you to stand out from the competition uniquely.

Your competitors can't bring what you bring to the table.

Your brand, values, expertise, and story all set you apart from your competitors. Sell yourself and the product or service will sell itself.

Building your brand allows you to highlight your uniqueness.

You have unique: Experiences • Strengths • Beliefs • Perspectives • Skills • Insights • Social Skills • Connections •

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That set you apart from everyone else. But, again, these are incredibly valuable and distinguish you from your competitors.

It allows you to capitalize on your strengths. It will enable you to highlight the best parts of yourself.

And as you work to highlight your strengths, it distinguishes you from all your competitors. As a result, it gives you a distinct competitive advantage.

By working relentlessly to build their brand, Rolex has distinguished itself from every other watch company.

The more you work to build your brand, the more significant edge you'll have over your competition. As a result, you'll stand out amidst the crowd.

Succeeding in today's economy requires precise positioning in your area of specialization. Especially today, when the market is flooded with qualified and highly skilled job seekers, it is essential to stand out from the competition as an expert in your role or industry. Personal branding helps you set yourself apart from those with similar job titles and roles.

Your personal brand can help a hiring manager have a complete understanding of how you can add value to their company or organization in a way that others cannot.

“What makes you unique, makes you successful.”

– William Arrud

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Personal Branding Allows You to Receive a Premium Price or Pay For example, think about Rolex and how they've set themselves apart from the competition. Because they've focused on being exclusively a luxury watch brand, they have set themselves apart from other watch companies, like Timex.

Rolex is the brand for those who want a luxury watch, while Timex is the brand for those who want a sturdy, relatively inexpensive watch. Both Brands have a unique value to their loyal customers.

As noted, personal branding highlights just how unique you are and the incredible value that you offer.

Because you bring unique value to the table - value that no one else o ers - you can charge a premium price for your services. You can earn more money as an employee.

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A er all, you're o ering something that is not available anywhere else. You only provide your services.

When you cra a solid personal brand, you can charge a higher price for your products and services because they're exclusive to you. They are not available at another store or from another person.

The stronger your brand, the more people want your services. The more people like your services, the higher the price you can charge or earn.

That's the reason Nike can charge so much for their shoes.

They've spent years building their brand into a powerhouse.

As a result, Nike shoes have become a status symbol, and wearing Nikes says something about who you are.

Nike charges exorbitant amounts of money for their shoes because the Nike brand automatically equals higher prices for shoes.

A strong brand positions you as an expert in your field, which gives the impression that you are on top of your game and increases your perceived value. Thus, it boosts your demand and allows you to earn and charge premium prices for your products or services.

Personal branding is an exciting opportunity to put your name out there, gain exposure, and potentially earn money.

Every person is unique, and if you know what your uniqueness is, you know how to show your brand to the world.

“Don't price to please, price to match your performance, experience and worth.” ~ Ned Bryan Abaka

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Personal Branding Highlights Your Expertis Remember, your personal brand is how you present yourself to the world.

A significant amount of personal branding involves the content that you share with the world.

The more valuable the content you share, the more you demonstrate that you're an expert who can be trusted.

When you demonstrate your expertise, the more your audience will trust you and come to you to solve their problems.

The more value you share, the more it shows people that you know exactly what you’re talking about and should be looked at as an expert.

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With every piece of content that you share ...

Social media posts Blog posts Emails Videos Inspirational graphics Meditations A irmations Audiobooks Podcasts Venue Check-In’s Shared pictures and videos

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... you establish yourself as an expert in your field. You become recognized as a thought leader in your arena and someone to be trusted.

You are demonstrating your knowledge and insight into the watching world. You're proving just how much value you o er and that you're the go-to person in your industry.

The more you demonstrate your expertise, the more your audience will trust you and come to you to solve their problems.

You can take a page from Nike's book. By working hard to build your brand and showing how much value you bring to the table, you too can charge a premium price.

“Even individuals need to develop a brand for themselves …. Whatever your area of expertise, you can take steps to make people think of YOU when they think of your eld.” ~ Accelepoint Webzin

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Personal Branding Attracts Your Ideal Customers and Following Being known as an expert in your field brings unique benefits with it.

When you’re known as the expert in your industry: It attracts your ideal audience - the people who need your help the most.

You get more referrals from others in your industry and related industries.

You can charge a premium price - the kind of price that only an expert can charge.

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Tony Robbins is a prime example of this. For years, he has been sharing the same message of self-empowerment.

Everything he says, every video he puts out, every book he writes has the same brand message: you can develop into a powerful individual, and I can help you do that.

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Over time, he has established himself as one of the go-to people in the self-development arena.

The results?

He attracts enormous audiences of people who want to fulfill their potential.

Millions of people read his books and follow him on social media.

There is a premium price for his services.

As a Self-Help Guru he has made millions of dollars with his personal brand.

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By consistently building his personal brand over many years, Tony Robbins now has people flocking to him for advice. Do you want to experience the Tony Robbins e ect?

Building a personal brand takes time and e ort. It needs consistency. While building a personal brand, you need to keep a close eye on the interactions you make with your audience.

Personal branding builds a relationship with your customers by interacting with them closely. It allows you to create authority and identity while maintaining a close relationship.

Every interaction you make will a ect your brand.

If you want to be known as the go-to person in your industry, you must begin building your brand as soon as possible.

If you want to be known as the go-to person in your industry, you must begin building your brand as soon as possible.

“The most important thing to remember is you must know your audience.” – Lewis Howe

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Your Branding Will Put You in Charge of the Narrative As we noted earlier, your personal brand will evolve, whether you want it to or not. If you …

Use social media Have an email list Have a blog Speak to groups Record and share videos

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... then, you're already building your brand. Everything you put out into the world is part of your brand.

If you want to be known as the go-to person in your industry, you must begin building your brand as soon as possible.

The question is whether you're intentionally shaping the narrative of your brand?

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Are you thoughtfully curating your brand, or are you letting your brand "evolve" on its own? Are you the one cra ing people's opinions about you, or are you just letting things happen?

The beauty of personal branding is that it ensures that you're actively shaping your narrative.

You're determining what others think about you rather than simply letting them form their own opinions.

If you want to be known as the go-to person in your industry, you must begin building your brand as soon as possible.

In personal branding, you start with your essence. That means starting with your purpose, your vision, mission, core values, and so on. The next one is story-building. The next step of that process is communication which is comprised of your message and the media. That means you need first to identify your message and select the kind of platforms you want to use to broadcast that message.

With every social media post you share, every blog post you put up, every email you send, you're shaping the narrative of who you are. You're in control of the story.

“Focus on identifying your target audience, communicating an authentic message that they want and need and project yourself as an “expert” within your niche.” ~ Kim Gars

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In other words, are you carefully determining precisely what your brand is all about, or are you letting it happen in an adhoc manner?

Branding Will Increase Your Visibility The more you build your personal brand, the more visible you’ll become. ● ● ● ●

You’ll attract more fans on social media.

Those fans will share your content with their tribes.

The more your content gets shared, the more fans you’ll attract.

And repeat - It’s a powerful cycle.

As your fan base grows, you can expect to be featured in the media.

Media outlets are always looking for experts to comment on particular subjects, and when you become known as the expert in your field, you’ll start generating media requests.

The more you’re featured in media outlets, the more opportunities you’ll have to speak in front of crowds.

Conference organizers are always looking for well-known media personalities to speak.

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It's no good having a good Personal Brand if nobody knows who you are, what you do, and what you're great at. So to maximize your success today and get to where you want to be in your career, you need to pay attention to your exposure and visibility.

The truth is, building your brand and building your platform go hand-in-hand. Visibility is a key component to your success. You could have the solution to cure cancer, but it's useless if no one knows about it.

As your visibility grows, your brand grows more robust; your platform will get bigger, making your brand stronger. It is a virtuous cycle that brings more incredible and more significant results the more you do it. It's like a snowball rolling down a hill. As it keeps rolling down the slope, the faster it grows and the greater the visibility.

Brand Visibility is the frequency at which people see your brand in search results, social media, email marketing, and other online marketing channels. Brand visibility is about engaging in action in person or online marketing to help draw your customers' attention to your brand.

It is the impression that any client or customer feels when they see your brand. At that moment, individuals decide if this brand is trustworthy and how good it compares to others.

“Think about what people are doing on Facebook today. They’re keeping up with their friends and family, but they’re also building an image and identity for themselves, which in a sense is their brand”. ~ Mark Zuckerber

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ONLINE REVIEWS ARE CRITICAL TO YOUR BRAND

Branding Is The Result of All Content Shared Sharing content is how your product and service get noticed and not just seen. It enables your brand to be recognizable, memorable, and unique. Content is key and should be shared o en to increase the chances of being seen in a very crowded digital space.

A brand's identity will create intense experiences related to your brand, leading to client attraction and retention.

Simply put, you should only share content that aligns with and promotes the values of your brand.

Your personal reputation is also a ected by the posts and comments you and others share on social media. People are talking about you on Social Media, and you might not even know it. This is especially true if you are not on Social Media Platforms or not very active on them.

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A meme might be funny, but you shouldn't share it if it doesn't add to your personal brand. People remember the last impression they have of you.

Your brand is the reputation based on information that was shared or received either personally or through others. What makes up your brand is everything down to your core; what you do, how you feel, what you believe, the style you present, your behaviors, passions, integrity, authenticity, consistency, and how you set yourself apart.

Social media is a massive part of today’s world. Your brand includes everything you and others share, say, write, pin, post, photograph, like, tweet, and do! All of it makes up your digital footprint which can drastically impact your brand.

What have you shared lately? Look at the last ten emails you sent: • • •

How do you want to be perceived by the outside world?

What do you last three Social Media posts represent about you?

Do your last ten emails signify what you want your brand to be?

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Now ask yourself these simple questions: 1.

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How do your contacts form their perception of you?

Are you living your brand values internally as well as externally?

How much influence do you have?

Do you see yourself as the world around you sees you?

“If you’re not branding yourself, you can be sure others are doing it for you.” ~ Unknow

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The simple truth is, people connect better with people than they do with companies. It's why Elon Musk and Richard Branson have more individual Twitter followers than the companies they founded.

The more you work to build your brand, the more individuals will want to connect with you, both in-person and online. You will attract to the values, personality, convictions, and insights you have to o er.

The more connected you are, the more business and employment opportunities will present themselves to you.

More speaking requests. More media opportunities. The opportunity to partner with other like-minded people.

Building your brand connects you personally with potential customers and clients, which then helps grow your opportunities.

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Personal Branding Connects You More with Individuals

There is a di erence between the act of connecting and the art of connecting. On the one hand, the act of connecting is merely relating at a fundamental, casual, or surface level.

Social media and technology have made this skill relatively easy. On the other hand, the art of connecting is taking the relationship to deeper layers in ways that are valuable and e ective for positive influence.

The act of connection requires listening and good verbal skills. Still, the art of connection also requires respect, sharing similar interests, experiences, and values, having a sincere interest in helping people grow and succeed, the ability to empathize. In other words, positive, healthy, and influential connections are other-focused that are not only for your interest but also in your best interest. The art of interpersonal connection creates a relationship.

Connecting with people who are similar to us is relatively easy. When we have common interests and personalities, we "get" each other. Making connections with people who are very di erent from us, however, is sometimes quite challenging. Yet, it's essential to connect with people who have di erent strengths than we do.

Life is about connections above and beyond your career or business opportunities. You never know what role someone may play, how you may be able to make a profound di erence for them, or how they may be able to help you.

When we approach new connections with no agenda other than learning about the person, they become a vital contact.

Your contacts, in turn, also help define and grow your brand.

“Networking is not about just connecting people. It’s about connecting people with people, people with ideas, and people with opportunities. ~ Michele Jenna

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Personal Branding Allows You to Become an Influencer The more you develop your personal brand, the more you become known as an "influencer." Being an influencer is all about giving without asking for anything in return.

The ultimate goal for any successful person is to become an influencer in their respective field. Influencers are individuals with followings and a voice in their industry — they lead and set the direction for others. Establishing yourself as an influencer does miracles for your reputation and credibility, directly translating to personal, professional, and business opportunities.

Part of learning how to become an influencer is mastering the art of branding. Influencers are people with extensive name recognition within their specific niche because people listen to what they are saying and pass on their insights.

However, you can only build your following so far without interacting with other people in your industry.

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One of the biggest mistakes that influencers make when growing their business is that they think that sales will come their way if they post a personal picture with a sales pitch caption. But that's not how it works..

People trust influencers over brands because they trust the person. That's why big brands use spokespersons. They use the halo e ect of the person to represent their product or service.

Di erentiating yourself from your peers or competitors can be di icult. There are so many di erent business consultants, personal trainers, and other experts; big brands hire; how is the average person supposed to know the best option? By positioning yourself as an influencer in your niche, you are putting yourself front and center for everyone to recognize.

There are some significant benefits to being an influencer: • • •

Big brands want to work with influencers with a large audience, resulting in more revenue for you.

You o en receive free things from companies that are interested in partnering with you.

You receive media requests to speak at or even attend events.

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If you want to get in on these perks or get opportunities only o ered to the well established, start working to develop your brand, network, and selling yourself.

“Successful people nurture a network of contacts.

You’ll nd the more people you know, the more opportunities will come your way. Career success is about accessibility and networking gives you accessibility” ~ Katherine Kaputa

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The Power of Your Personal Brand Are you starting to see the power of your brand? Your personal brand is what enables you to distinguish yourself from the competition. In addition, it allows you to charge a premium price for your services.

Your personal brand is one of the most valuable assets you can control. Your brand helps you build a career, sell better, start a business or even start a movement. No matter what you're trying to achieve in life, your brand can help you achieve it.

The more you focus on your brand, the more visible you become, and the more you become known as the expert in your field. The more you're known as an expert; the more opportunities come your way.

And the more you build your personal brand, the more you connect with others, which assists in building your business and career opportunities even more.

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It's safe to say that there are few things more powerful than your personal brand. The more you focus on building it, the greater the results you'll see.

While most of the previous chapters focused on you (the PERSONAL brand), you can also benefit your employer.

Whether that is intentional or not.

Furthermore, the more people are aware of your brand, your job, or your business, the more visible you'll become in terms of your potential audience. People in your network will share your content with their audiences, which means you will reach people you couldn't have targeted otherwise.

As you grow your brand, you'll develop an ever-growing network of people who can assist you in looking for or creating opportunities.

When you get more comfortable with personal branding, you will find that your confidence rises, and you become more involved in your community, growing your network even more and making your brand stronger.

Building a personal brand indeed takes a lot of work.

However, the fruits of your labor can far outweigh the amount of time and energy you've expended on your brand.

When people know who you are and trust you, your goals become far more achievable. You become a mentor and role model.

“If you are given a chance to be a role model, I think you should always take it because you can in uence a person's life in a positive light, and that's what I want to do. That's what it's all about.” ~ Tiger Wood

Now, are you ready to start building The Brand of You?

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Chapter 3: How to Build Your Personal Brand Now that you know why you should build a personal brand, let's talk about how to do it. Let's break down the individual strategies you can use to grow your own compelling brand.

Step #1: Determine Who You Really Are The first step in creating a powerful personal brand is to determine who you are. Remember, building your brand is about sharing your authentic self with the world.

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Think broadly about your personality and how it a ects the experience someone will have with you. Are you insanely organized? Do people love working with you for your killer sense of humor?

It would be best if you projected the right "you" by delivering on what you want to be known for through your actions. Your skills, passions, values, and beliefs make up the core of your brand.

Ask yourself: What unique skills do I have?

What are my greatest strengths?

What are my core values?

What I get most passionate about?

What unique experiences have shaped who I am?

How can I most e ectively serve my core audience?

What do I have to o er that no one else does?

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The answers to these questions should shape your brand.

They should help you get to the core of what matters most to you and how you can add value to your audience.

“Your Personal Brand should not be an inauthentic persona. Branding is not about positioning yourself as something that you are not. It is about purposefully and strategically showcasing your authentic self to your audience and your customers.

Your personal brand should be a true re ection of your skills, passions, values and beliefs.” ~ Tyler Bas

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You must know yourself if you want to build a solid brand.

The brand mimics you, your actions, and your development.

Make sure every impression counts!

Step #2: Determine What You Want to Accomplish Once you’ve identified the core of who you are, it’s time to think about what you want to accomplish with your personal brand.

Answer these questions: What would I like to accomplish, both personally and professionally?

What do I want to be known for?

If I could be the world’s foremost expert on a topic, what would it be?

What key message do I want to communicate?

If I could only give one piece of advice, what would it be?

What problem do I solve?

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The answers to these questions should further solidify in your mind what your personal brand will look like. Once you determined that, be sure to share and promote yourself shamelessly.

Where would you like to be in six months? One year? Five years? Ten years? Defining your goals is necessary to cra ing a message that helps you reach them.

“High expectations are the key to everything. ~ Sam Walton

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The simple reality is that you can’t e ectively associate with everyone. Rather, there is a core demographic of people who will resonate deeply with you, your brand, and what you o er.

This core demographic is your target audience. It’s these people whom you will serve most e ectively and who will be your ideal associate, client, or ambassador.

To identify your core audience, ask yourself these questions: ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Who can I most e ectively help?

Who will add value to my network?

Who will be a good ambassador for me?

What would be the benefit of a connection?

Who will benefit most from my skill set and knowledge?

Who would be a good mentor for me?

Who am I most passionate about working with?

Who will resonate most with my brand and me?

It's about the quality of your connections vs. the number.

“Making a strong connection with people is never easy. It is even more dif cult to connect with people who are very different from you.” ~ Abhishek Ratn

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Step #3: Identify You Want to be Associated With

Step #4: Create Your Brand Statement and Tell Your Story What do you want to be known for? Having an answer to this question de nes what your target audience can expect from your leadership. Remember, this statement is NOT your title!

It is also not your mission or life purpose. Instead, it is a memorable 1-2 sentence statement that is solutions-oriented.

It is vital that you truly identify with your brand statement.

You need to live and breathe this every day so take the time to make sure it best represents who you are and what you can do.

You have a unique story to tell, and that story is what makes your brand authentic. Of course, others can relate to your account because it may be similar, but it is never the same.

Each story is unique.

Focus on those things that make you unique and capitalize on them. Perhaps your credentials and experience got you into your current role, but your character and story are what will compel people to follow you.

A compelling story almost always supports a solid personal brand. If you work in a range of disciplines, this is especially important, as having a common thread you can weave through will pull it all together.

Your brand statement and story should be interchangeable.

Visualize your brand statement and story as the wheels on a bicycle. Without wheels, you cannot move “Stories are memory aids, instruction manuals and moral compasses.” ~ Aleks Krotosk

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Step #5: Start Treating Yourself as a Brand Once you've identified the core of your brand, as well as your target audience, it's time to start treating yourself as a brand.

Whether a blog post, email, podcast, social media post, etc., you stay true to your brand message in every opportunity to communicate with your audience.

Just like Nike wouldn't suddenly start talking about camping, so you must not go o -brand with your communications.

Your goal is to portray yourself as a strong, compelling brand, not just an average person. So you have to treat yourself like you truly are: a powerful brand with a powerful message.

Strong personal brands do what they say and say what they do. They operate with integrity and are accountable. They are consistent. They're not concerned with maintaining some shallow image of themselves that has nothing to do with how they live. They act the same in private as they do in public.

Your brand is your name, basically. A lot of people don't know that they need to build their brand; your brand is what keeps you moving. ~ Meek

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Step #6: Optimize Your Website / Social Media Platforms Now it's time to get into the nitty-gritty of optimizing and updating your online presence so that it matches your brand. Personal websites and landing pages are now the norm for everyone. You’re going to start with your website or landing page since this functions as your "home base" of sorts. In other words, your website or landing page is one of the primary places people get to know who you are and what you do.

Optimizing your website is a must because it also functions as one of the primary ways you turn visitors into paying clients. There are plenty of tools available to assist you in the process.

First impressions are crucial when it comes to your website or landing page. Visitors should be able to determine how you can help solve their problems.

It is critical to show your credentials and demonstrate you have the knowledge, experience, and skills to meet their needs. There needs to be enough information to create a call-to action with you.

“A successful website does three things: It attracts the right kinds of visitors. Guides them to the main services or product you offer. Collects Contact details for future ongoing relation.” ~ Mohamed Saa

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Step #7: Develop Your Content Strategy The primary way to build your brand is by creating strategic content. By content, we mean blog posts, videos, social media posts, emails, a irmations, podcasts, and more.

Every piece of content you share with your audience should serve to build your brand. As we mentioned before, once you've determined your brand, it's essential to start treating yourself as a brand.

Developing a strategic content strategy is one of the most e ective ways to ensure that you're constantly staying on brand.

Your content must always be tied back to your brand, across all your channels, including Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, email, etc.

If the thought of posting to so many social media channels intimidates you, many free great tools allow you to share to all your social media at one time.

You just put the content in and select all the channels, dates, and times you want the content to post. It would be best to make sure the content is relative and not redundant.

The main point is that everything you send out should be brand-related. You want to reinforce your brand to your audience constantly.

“We all have a personal brand whether we think about it that way or not. So, let’s be intentional about it.” ~ Kathy Klotz-Guest

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When it comes to building your brand, you must constantly give value to your audience without asking for anything in return. Yes, there will be times when you invite people to buy from you or become a client, but you don't want that to be the central theme of your brand.

The main thing people should take away when interacting with your brand is how much value you provide.

The primary way you provide value is through your content strategy. It is why it's so critical to put out new content constantly. If you're not putting out new content, you're not giving away value.

Adding value builds trust with your customers. The more you help them through your knowledge, content, and resources, the more they trust you and the more brand equity you build.

Eventually, it warms them up to you, your brand, products, or services. Sales conversations become more friendly and productive because they already trust you to provide value however you can “A strong personal brand is one that has a high level of impact, which then leads to in uence amongst the people who follow you. The key is to leverage social media and other social platforms and environments to create relevant and meaningful dialogues between you and the people you want to impact.” - Mark Lack

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Step #8: Constantly Add Value to Your Audience

Step #9: Build a Community One of the best ways to build your brand is to create a community where you and the members can help each other. The value in building a community around your brand is that it gets others involved in helping to promote your brand.

You create a tribe of passionate people who care about the same things you do.

Some simple ways to build a community include: •

Start a private Facebook group. In this group, people can interact with each other, share ideas, interact with you, raise questions, etc.

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Host live events. Live events allow you to meet members of your tribe in person. Co ee meetups, retreats, workshops, masterminds, and private dinners are all great ways to deepen your relationships with them.

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Create a membership site. You can give people exclusive access to you and the content you provide for a small monthly fee. You can also give them access to group calls every month, ongoing webinars, and a forum where they can interact with you and other members.

Personal Branding is about building authority that gets people to pay attention to your message and want to share it and recommend it to others ~ Mark Traphagen

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The simple truth is, you are a personal brand, whether you want to or not. Every single thing you share with your audience either adds to or takes away from your brand. You absolutely must be intentional about building your brand.

People always remember their last interaction with you, in person or otherwise.

Thankfully, Personal Branding is not tricky.

By definition, Personal Branding is the practice of people marketing themselves, their careers, and their companies.

It is the ongoing process of establishing a well-defined image or impression in the mind of others about who you are.

Personal Branding Starts By Realizing You're A Business-of-One!

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Now Is the Time to Build Your Brand

Personal Branding is how you prove you're worthy of people's trust and partnership. Personal Branding isn't bragging. It's not narcissistic, either. It's your opportunity to share with others how you use your talents to serve them. In short, Personal Branding is a powerful way to create the career and life you want.

Your Brand is one of the most valuable assets you can control. It helps you build a career, sell better, start a business or even start a movement. No matter what you're trying to achieve in life, your Personal Brand can help you achieve it.

Here's a quick summary of what we covered: Identify what matters to you.

Define your core audience.

Determine your Unique Service Proposition.

Treat yourself like a brand.

Create your compelling online presence.

Create your content strategy.

Constantly bring your best self to your audience.

Build your community.

• • • • • • • •

The more you do those things, the more you'll build your brand, and the more you'll attract an audience of raving fans.

I hope you saw the value and enjoyed this book!

I'll leave you with one final thought and the premise behind "The Brand of Me”; “People like to do business with people they know, like, and trust!” ~ Cliff Moore v2.0, Author

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