The Marketer’s Checklist for Establishing a Personal Brand

Author: Neil Patel / Source: Quick Sprout

I remember when having a personal brand was reserved solely for big-name celebrities.

Back in the 90s, you had to be an Oprah-level figure to have your own discernible brand.

But the Internet has changed that.

It’s made personal branding viable for pretty much everyone, provided you put in the time and energy.

That’s why you see people go from relative obscurity to borderline celebrities quite frequently.

A good example of that is Pat Flynn of Smart Passive Income.

Now, he’s crushing it.

He’s writing books, giving lectures, running a podcast and has a massive following.

Of course, he creates great content, but I’d say his success is largely due to his rock-solid personal branding.

And when you get right down to it, the Internet is your vessel for establishing a personal brand.

You just need to know how to properly utilize it.

In this post, I provide you with an essential checklist for establishing your personal brand.

I’m going to point out specific platforms you can leverage to build your presence and get noticed.

I’m also going to outline the correct sequence you should follow to build your brand step by step.

Let’s get to it.

Establish a brand identity

Before you can do anything else, you need to know what you’re trying to achieve.

How do you want people to perceive you?

What do you want people to associate your personal brand with?

You’ll want to give plenty of consideration to this because it will shape your entire approach.

My entire brand identity is based around online marketing.

My personal brand revolves around helping other businesses grow.

Choose your niche

Seldom do you see individuals with huge personal brands having their hands in everything.

If I’ve learned anything over the years, it’s that spreading yourself too thin is often a recipe for disaster.

Instead, you’re better off focusing on a specific niche.

“Niching down” enables you to develop a close association between your name and a certain topic.

Take Marie Kondo for instance.

She’s written books about these topics, created an app and is a consultant.

I recommend taking the same approach.

If you want to branch out later on, that’s fine.

But initially, you want to zero in on a specific niche.

And ideally, it will be something you’re passionate about because this will help sustain you in the long run.

Find your unique voice

Let me preface this by saying it takes time to establish your voice.

I find it’s an organic process that unfolds over time.

But you’ll want to have a basic idea of what you’re going for right out of the gate.

Do you want to sound kind, compassionate and enlightened?

That’s pretty much the voice of Leo Babauta of Zen Habits:

Or are you naturally a little snarky and cynical and prefer to keep things a bit edgy?

That’s how I would define Ashley Ambirge of The Middle Finger Project:

I find you’re usually better off sticking with your true personality and letting that define your voice.

This makes it much easier to be authentic, which is one of the top things people look for in a brand.

It doesn’t really matter what type of voice you go for, just stick with it, cultivating it over time.

Design a logo

Let’s get down to the nitty-gritty.

Your logo is huge and one of the most vital branding elements.

I prefer to keep mine simple, like this:

Click here to read more