Why does your story as a business owner matter?
Today, thousands of businesses, organizations, networks, and communities are created each day. Your story is not another asset—it’s your backbone.
Personal branding is not just another trend to hop on. You must know how to build and create a narrative around your work, vision, life purpose, and community to establish and maintain an online presence,
This is the era of storytelling. With the rise of AI tools and easy access to global information, anyone can write and create any piece of online content.
But your story is unique. And your story is yours. No one can tell your story the way you can.
But Nicole, I’ve been told that personal stories are best kept out of professional and business content.
The Power of Relatable Brand Stories
Humans connect with emotion and relatability. Once you understand this, you’ll know which stories to share to draw your audience closer to you and build your online community.
You don’t need to present this perfect idealistic version of yourself, your product, your services, your organization, or your company to succeed in building your personal brand.
Think Steve Jobs and how the marketing and creative team behind the Think Different campaign started a movement. Their marketing didn’t say, “Our products are the best.” It said, “Our products are for the powerful imagination in everyone, especially for those who dare to think differently.”
Apple solidified its place in the hearts of innovators and dreamers. The campaign, which was as much about technology as it was about the human spirit, drew in consumers who saw their own reflections in Apple’s narratives — “the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in square holes…the ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules…”
What about Taylor Swift? How did the teenage girl from West Reading, Pennsylvania, become a household name? It’s not just her catchy tunes and songwriting. It’s her story of evolution and resilience, as we all know from her different eras. She didn’t just switch genres; she shared her journey, her growth, her rejections, and her motivations with the world.
And let’s not forget big companies like Dove with their Real Beauty campaign. It shattered the illusion of the ‘perfect body’ and encouraged women to embrace their natural, unfiltered selves
Plain facts and figures may inform, but they rarely inspire action or retention.
Storytelling will help you connect with your audience on an emotional level beyond facts and data. Imperfections, flaws, and challenges are usually the most relatable parts of one’s brand story.
How to Weave Authenticity and Personal Branding
Personal branding is more than clever content strategies or Instagram-ready captions. Again, it’s about leveraging your unique perspective and life experiences.
1. Define Your Personal Brand
Begin by identifying what makes you, you. What are your best qualities, your areas of expertise, and your passions?
The secret here is that it’s not about being the best — oftentimes, it’s the “different” that’s most valuable. Maybe you have a unique life experience that shapes your approach to business or a hobby that adds depth to your professional persona.
2. Identify Your Target Audience
Your personal brand is not just about you. It’s equally about the audience you aim to serve.
You must have the ability to step into their shoes and relate your story to solving their problems.
Develop thorough personas that represent your ideal clients or followers. Understand their struggles, their language, and where they congregate.
Your story is a mirror. When they look into it, they should see not only you but also the reflection of their aspirations and needs.
3. Write Your Story
Reflect on your personal experiences and values. Remember that the most compelling stories come from personal experiences.
By using introspection, recall the pivotal moments in your life that shaped your values and professional or career journey. Was it a mentor’s advice, a book, a movie, a challenge overcome, or maybe even a deeply ingrained family tradition?
Our values thread our story together and give it purpose. They’re the compass guiding your audience through a narrative that’s both uniquely yours and profoundly universal.
After reflecting on your values, what core messages do you want to share with your audience? Is it resilience, innovation, or passion for helping others? Whatever it is, it should be present in all aspects of your personal brand.
For every piece of content you create, ask yourself how it aligns with this narrative.
4. Choose the Right Platforms
Choose platforms that resonate with your brand’s persona – those where you feel comfortable and your audience actively engages.
Diversify, but do so thoughtfully. Each platform you’re on should complement your overall social media presence.
You don’t have to be on all social media platforms. Choose the right platforms that align with your brand, target audience, and content strategy to maximize your impact and engagement.
Focusing on a few platforms allows for more targeted and impactful content creation, as opposed to spreading resources thinly across multiple platforms.
Here are a quick breakdown of which social media platform to choose when building your personal brand online:
Instagram: Ideal for showcasing creativity, visual content, video marketing samples, and storytelling.
LinkedIn: Useful for shaping your professional personal brand. It’s suitable for sharing basic information, experience, and industry-related content to build a strong professional network.
Facebook: Beneficial if you aim to have a large following as an entrepreneur. It provides opportunities for engagement, content sharing, and building a community around your brand.
Twitter: Helpful for sharing quick updates, industry insights, and engaging in real-time conversations. It can be valuable for thought leadership and establishing a unique voice within your industry.
Pinterest: A great choice for influencers and product creators due to its visual nature. It’s effective for driving traffic and showcasing products or services in a visually appealing manner.
Depending on the industry, visual content-heavy platforms like Instagram and Pinterest are suitable for industries such as food, art, and design, while LinkedIn is more focused on professional networking and career-related content.
Don’t be afraid to explore long-form content such as blogs, podcasts, or videos for storytelling. While social media grabs attention, long-form content creation is what truly solidifies your story.
Use blogs, podcasts, or videos for more space to elaborate, educate, and connect with your audience.
How Do You Make Your Story Memorable
These are a few examples of successful personal branding archetypes:
1. The Underdog
- A thriving entrepreneur who started with nothing but a dream
- A brand that soared against market expectations
2. The Hero
- A social entrepreneur whose initiatives have transformed communities
- A tech innovator who created life-changing solutions to global problems
3. Myth of Innovation
- A researcher whose groundbreaking discovery altered the course of the medical field
- An app developer who disrupted the industry with a simple yet revolutionary idea
4. The Visionary
- A futurist who accurately predicts tech trends and shapes their brand around preparing for these changes
- An entrepreneur who envisions a sustainable future and builds a brand promoting green technology and practices
5. The Artist
- A digital artist whose unique style becomes synonymous with a new art movement
- A fashion designer who blends cultural influences to create a distinctive brand identity
6. The Educator
- An online educator whose courses and content democratize learning in a niche field
- A thought leader who writes best-selling books that become essential reading in their industry
7. The Connector
- A professional networker whose brand is built on curating powerful connections
- An influencer who creates a platform that brings together like-minded individuals and fosters community growth
So there you have it. I hope you find these helpful. And if you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me through Instagram.
Once you have figured it out, you can weave it into a cohesive and authentic brand narrative. It’s how you’re perceived, how you connect, and ultimately, how you can grow.
