Intern Post: Building your personal brand

It has been an enlightening two weeks at Alldens Lane. I am learning something new on the job each day and I do not take for granted the wealth of knowledge I am exposed to. This week I learned extensively about branding. Every task I worked on and event and client meeting I attended, seemed to revolve around personal branding. This week I will share with you some valuable insights I picked up on Personal and Business Branding.

WHY YOUR PERSONAL BRAND MATTERS

In the most general sense, your brand acts as your trademark. Your personal brand is an expression and reflection of who you are and what your values are. It is paramount that you discover who you are and what you stand for because your personal brand reflects in your business brand, especially if your business is your passion. So don’t ignore it. Potential clients may engage with your brand even before they encounter you or your product or service. This may be through advertisements, your personal style (especially important for people in the fashion industry), an interview, a presentation you give, your social media page, word-of-mouth from past clients and even a picture of you. It is important that we are in control of our personal brand because it communicates magnitudes.

Additionally, it is important to educate your staff on your company’s brand. They are ambassadors of your business and as such must also embody and accurately represent you and your company.

THINGS TO CONSIDER TO IMPROVE YOUR PERSONAL BRAND

The first thing to do is to spend time discovering who you are and what your core values are, although, these can be changed throughout the course of one’s life. This is a very crucial step in one’s life and not just in developing a personal brand. In doing this, it is great to think about your experiences, personality, passions, values and talents. This provides a foundation for all other things you commit yourself to in your life’s work.

Beyond looks, your business brand can be expressed through many channels like  packaging and the way customers are served. As a business owner ensure that you have covered all areas of your company to make sure it corresponds with your brand, especially the aspects of your business that interact with your clients. Consistency is key.

When building your personal brand, remember to check for things you could improve about yourself and business such as presentation skills, oratory skills,networking skills and customer service. When networking with potential clients, investors or other business owners, remember to be authentic. People want to know the real you. Choose a setting with networking protocols you are most comfortable with.

As a young creative and professional, I am still working on discovering and improving my personal brand and I hope this post will be a great launch pad for you and your journey to building a successful brand! See you next week!

by Dionne Wilson