The Brand Called You....




Regardless of age, regardless of position, regardless of the business we happen to be in, all of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc “Tom Peter

Personal branding is a goal driven online communication based on the appearance, choice of channels presence and actions which enable the target audience of the individual or brand to identify who the individual/ brand is, their interests and the work they perform (Vilander, 2017).


Entrepreneurs with astounding online presence

Chiara Ferragni

A blogger and an Instagramer. She started her blog The Blonde Salad in 2009 where she personally branded herself based on her interest towards fashion, travel and photography which was read by a vast number of people and led to her unbelievable success of being endorsed by many fashion brands and to owning her own shoe brand. (James, 2015)

Richard Branson

He used twitter as a platform to constantly exhibit his down to earth personality as an adventurous friendly person. Through his personal branding he was able to build trust among the customers and employees and also brought in great success to virgin group. (Johnson, 2017)

Online personal branding in corporate level


Even in the corporate level majority of people tend to trust messages that are given by someone they believe to know rather than basing their trust on a message that comes from a brand. Richard Branson’s online brand caused the Virgin group to extend across over 200 companies because people trusted the company to be customer centric and welcoming just like Branson’s personal brand. (Johnson, 2017)


Therefore since personal branding is very important in attaining our career goals, what can we do to enhance our online personal branding?

Know Your Audience

Don’t try to impress everyone, Identify your target niche audience and create content that would inspire, educate and entertain them.

Always give your audience content of what they want and not what you feel they want. For instance in the corporate level most of the organizations use LinkedIn and Facebook to hire employees therefore it is much better if you give the company what they want and refrain from giving out unsuitable and proactive photos and information that would risk your opportunity. (Johnson, 2015)

Know Yourself

Don’t try to fake it, because at a certain point it will cause an imbalance on you social media platforms and you day to day life which would destroy your career. 

Justine Beiber and Shawn Mendes are two well-known artists in this era that has reached fame through YouTube; these two Pop artists were identified for their own style of singing since they express them through their singing rather than imitating another celebrity’s style.

Therefore when giving out information always be true to yourself and avoid from deceiving your audience, because that would give you the advantage of building trust among your audience rather than being a laughing stock to them.


Be Steadfast

Sharing often is very important to have top of the mind awareness among your audience but be mindful not to overshare so much as that would cause annoyance among your audience. It is very much recommended for you to have your own content calendar determining what and when to post (Brian, 2018)

Also when it comes to reliability make sure you maintain a consistent voice, logo and a brand messaging across all social media channels to be recognized in the corporate level. Take a look at the two snapshots of the twitter and Facebook page of Otara Gunewardena who is a successful entrepreneur in Sri lanka




Build Your Network

Engage with other communities and groups as this would enable you to build authority around your personal brand.

All the social media platforms give everyone the opportunity to connect and communicate with groups and other communities to share their insights and expertise in the areas and industries they are interested in. These groups are very helpful to you since they give you the privilege of making new friends, gathering new idea, expanding your knowledge and skills and motivation to achieve your goals through which you will be able to surround yourself with other professional networks that would enhance your branding and attract the attention of the audience you are trying to appeal to.

 ("10 Steps to Building Your Personal Brand on Social Media", n.d.)


If I am to apply this in pursuing my career in the fashion industry firstly I must understand my own personal styling and promote it rather than imitating others. I should identify my niche audience and keep them updated about my skills and passion, form networks among people within this industry through which I can enhance my branding and achieve my goals. 



References

10 Steps to Building Your Personal Brand on Social Media. [Blog]. Retrieved from https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/2017-11-09-10-steps-to-building-your-personal-brand-on-social-media

Brian, M. (2018). A Guide to Building Your Personal Brand through Social Media [Blog]. Retrieved from http://www.citethisforme.com/cite/blog

James, C. (2015). 15 People Who Became Rich And Famous Thanks To Social Media [Blog]. Retrieved from https://www.thetalko.com/15-people-who-became-rich-and-famous-thanks-to-social-media

Johnson, C. (2017). Six Famous Entrepreneurs Who Show How Your Personal Brand Powers Deal Flow [Blog]. Retrieved from https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/298599

Johnson, K. (2015). PERSONAL BRANDING IN SOCIAL MEDIA. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281974827_Personal_branding_in_social_media_Marketing_Management_Association_Conference_Proceedings?enrichId=rgreq-b7747b3832f9f3547be755e8ebfdedbf-XXX&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzI4MTk3NDgyNztBUzoyNzY2Mjg1NDc2MjA4NjRAMTQ0Mjk2NDc5MzExOA%3D%3D&el=1_x_2&_esc=publicationCoverPdf

 Lorenz, M. (2016). 8 lessons from celebrities with great personal brands [Blog]. Retrieved from https://www.careerbuilder.com/advice/lessons-from-celebrities-with-great-personal-brands

 Petruca, I. PERSONAL BRANDING THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA. Retrieved from http://ijcr.eu/articole/345_10%20Irina%20PETRUCA.pdf

  Refusing to settle. (2017). How to Market Yourself on Social Media | 5 Awesome Personal Branding Tips [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5rnBgda5bo

Video Influencers. (2018). Advanced Personal Branding and Social Media Tips with Peter Voogd [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRvRJ5iZO08

 Vilander, J. (2017). Personal Branding on Social Media and Social Media Based Entrepreneurship. Lahti University Of Applied Sciences. Retrieved from https://www.theseus.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/138917/Vilander_Jenni.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y


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