Have you ever thought that You Are a Brand!!!
Well, you must be feeling that Brands are only Companies. Let me help you understand this Important Marketing Jargon that– “Everybody and Everything around You has a Brand”.
We live in a world of Brands. Most, if not all, companies pay attention to how they appear in public and work on building their Unique Public Identity, competing to get more eyeballs and more revenue from the market. So why can’t we do the same?
You already have a Brand. What do people think when they hear your name?
Now, what important is as you already have a brand, you need to take more control over it. So that it leverages to your benefit in Personal and Professional Life- Called Personal Branding.
Let’s see how we define Personal Branding-
Personal branding is a process of carefully crafting your Public Persona to portray the image you want people to see and believe about you. It is a unique combination of your skills, experiences, interests, personality, values and beliefs – together this is your personal brand.
Why Personal Branding is Important?
Having carefully crafted Personal Brand helps you stand out in the market and has a lot other benefits which we will discuss here further. In Contrast, if you don’t actively build your personal brand and don’t have any control over it, other people will form their own beliefs about what you are and what you stand for.
Benefits of Building Your Personal Brand-
Building your Personal Brand carefully will carry you towards success in Personal and Professional Life. Let’s see how-
- You are More Visible
Personal branding helps you stand out in the crowd. Having your active visibility on online and offline platforms turns you to greater opportunities to grow.
- Leverage Your Network
When you have a strong Personal Brand, people believe in your values and skills and things you stand for and therefore, they buy more from you, take you more seriously for your opinions and consider you more authentic in the specific field.
- You Become More Identifiable Person
Personal Brand helps you get noticed more and you become more identifiable to your network which otherwise would not happen. It gives you opportunities to grow more and network more.
- More Job/Business opportunities
There are Recruiters’ survey reports showing, people with Strong Personal Brand are hired much faster, get more opportunities in career, get more salary hikes and are promoted faster. So why to leave that to chance. Take benefit of having strong Personal Brand.
- Your Credibility Grows
When you are more visible in your network with a strong personal brand, your credibility grows for the values you serve to your community. That is where you are considered Thought Leader in your network and the community you serve.
- Strong Networking
If you have strong personal brand, you get more networking opportunities, people would be more interested to connect with you, to refer you and to buy from you.
Now let’s discuss some important tips to Building a Strong Personal Brand for Yourself-
- Build your website or blog online
This is a great way to start building your presence online. Build your website (with your own name preferably) to highlight your skills, experiences, achievements and interest areas. Write blogs on your interest areas and start sharing it on multiple social media platforms. This a great platform to highlight your strengths.
- Network Building
You can attend events, meetups and gatherings of your interests to build strong networking and building contacts with industry leaders. It will help you grow in many ways in your professional life.
- Work on your Social media presence
Be careful about what you post on your social media accounts. Avoid posting stuff which can negatively impact your online presence. Recruiters and Hiring Managers often check your online presence like Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. during hiring processes. You don’t want to lose a great career opportunity just because you didn’t notice your social media presence.
- Update Your LinkedIn
This is your professional profile and a great platform to showcase your skills, experiences, achievements and network building. Join groups and conversations, share content and interact with more people to establish your presence on the platform. LinkedIn can work as a great tool to land you awesome opportunities, jobs and building professional network.
- Intern or Volunteer Your Work
Volunteering your skills can help you build strong professional network and gives you a chance to establish yourself as a Leader. You can also Intern with leading companies to learn and deliver their projects.
- Professional Headshot
Having a professional headshot across platforms online put you in a more professional light which increases your credibility as a professional and a strong point to build your irresistible Personal Brand.
You should know that Personal Branding is a Personal Process and isn’t something that happens overnight, it takes time but you can’t leave that to chance. You need to take control over your personal narrative and make sure that you know exactly what you want to share with the world.
Plus, as your personal brand flourishes, you never know what types of opportunities might present themselves once you become well- known.
Article Author- Ms. Shikha Sharma
(Internationally Certified Career Coach and Soft Skill Trainer)
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About Shikha Sharma-
Shikha Sharma is a Leading Educator, an Internationally Certified Career Coach and Soft Skill Trainer. She is also an Experienced Human Resource Professional and a listed Coach in India and Canada.
She works with Students, Professionals and with Businesses in the areas of Career Coaching, Career Development and Soft Skill Training.
You can Reach her for your career queries at M: 9315520496 (Call/ Whatsapp)
Email: coachshikha1115@gmail.com
