Traditionally personal branding was more of selling yourself to your target audience. Today, the meaning stays the same, but you can tap more platforms to get yourself out there effectively. We now have websites, social media accounts like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and the likes. Which requires consistency across all platforms. Consistency which means they say the same thing or they are coming from one place or one person; one professional brand.
Lately, video is becoming the most valuable tool for building a brand. It’s simply because video allows you to deliver a complete communication that is visual, relatable and visually stimulating emotional connections with your target audience. They are the people who will be making decisions to work with you.
So how do we go about this? Let’s start with your email.
EMAIL. It may sound odd but your email can lead you to success. Having a professional email address can boost your credibility and influence. Having a funny email address may be good for teenagers or so, but if you are trying to build a business and market yourself for a service you offer, it’s pretty difficult to trust someone with an “iampretty@mymail.com” than someone with a “zahrina@zahrina.com” right? Your email is a form of marketing. It is the first impression encountered, most especially when you meet people in person and hand over your business cards with hopefully your photo featured on it. If you are selling yourself your email should sound and look professional. Learn from the big brands – be consistent and professional.
Next is, your profile pictures. When you’re advertising a product this is a close shot of the product itself. People buy more on products shot perfectly good. But if you are selling yourself and your services, this means it’s a great branding photo of you.
Your profile image is your front liner. And by just looking at your profile image people decide whether to get your service or not within 2 seconds now. Facing perceptions is one of the skills that all of us humans have. We have that skill to see people and judge people according to trustworthiness, enthusiasm, and competence. So show your clarity, conviction and confidence.
A set of stunning branding photos that really achieve a “WOW” factor will attract attention online immediately. And that’s what Louise Taylor had experienced.
Next is create a video bio to convey your brand powerfully. A video bio projects your personal brand in a way that will show people who you are and what value you deliver. A video bio is a perfect tool for introducing yourself to people you can’t meet in person, with a message that’s more clear and compelling than the written word. Because video combines words with a tone of voice, body language, and intonation, it allows you to more fully engage those whom you seek to influence.
Click here to view this video bio for example.
Did it keep you glued to your screen? Were you interested in her business? She’s absolutely not selling but she’s just telling you a story of what she do and how she can be of help. That’s our aim to tell your story.
Next is your social media behaviour. Social media give us the freedom to express and basically do everything we want. And it is because of that many failed in building their personal brand influence. Why? Because they post basically anything they want, which includes rants and complaints that not only questions their credibility but also their trustworthiness and competence. For someone who’s trying to sell, we should think before we click. Share only relevant information, keep it on the positive side. Use social media to your advantage. Make every word you say and every post you post worthy of viewing and sharing. Your target audience will love you and they’ll make sure that other people will know about you. They’ll share your content even without you telling them.
Selling yourself can be tricky, without having to sound salesy at all. It takes skill and experience to help bring out your truth from within you. Work with an experienced video and photography strategist to brand you to success. Build your personal brand influence by keeping your content professional and engaging, your profile picture trustworthy competent and enthusiastic, your video bio engaging and your social media behavior positive.
Let’s capture your brand truth in photography and video. Book in your Complimentary Brand Consultation. You will be thankful you’ve spent 15 minutes to work on BRAND You.
Written by Zahrina Robertson
Creating the Magnetic Brands of Tomorrow
Leading International Personal Brand Photographer +Videographer, Author, Speaker
http://www.ZahrinaPhotography.com
