10 Tips to take your personal brand to the next level (2-part series) – Part 1 – Planning
What Is Personal Branding Photography?
In a nutshell, it is how you show the person behind the brand. It’s more than a headshot that lacks personality. Absolutely, you want to look professional, but who is the person that makes things happen on the “business” side??
When you take ownership of how you present yourself and what makes you unique, you resonate more with your target market. Having an active presence online through photos can help others “see” what your brand is made of and in return, they will want to buy!
You probably already know why it is important or you wouldn’t be here. But just in case, personal branding gives you more credibility and will help you get noticed. With so much noise in the world today, you have to stand out (even if you think it might be hard).
This two-part series will walk you through a plan to get started and then 10 tips to building a better brand of yourself and how to make it “not hard”.
Planning Phase:
1. Create a Personal Branding Statement.
What are you trying to accomplish? Define your audience and do an analysis of a competitor that may exist. What would you do similar? What would you do differently to accomplish your goals?
2. Build a Personal Branding Strategy.
Plan out how to engage with your target audience and define what success will look like for you in 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year.
3. Monitor Your Personal Engagement.
It is all about the positivity. You want to encourage receiving positive feedback and give others the same. Be ready with a plan of action for any negative remarks that may come your way.
4. Develop Your Personal Brand.
This is where I come in. I help you plan your whole session from start to finish. I listen to what you have accomplished and defined in the previous 3 steps. We will discuss props, outfits, poses, ideas, and strategies to take your brand to the next level. You will want to share your brand’s personality through social media, networking, outreach, and speaking opportunities. Consider a blog (like this one), vlogging, podcasts, or other ways that you could promote your personal brand in a way that will resonate with your ideal customer.
5. Have a Communication Plan.
Controlling your online presence can be time-consuming, so having a plan will help negate any overwhelm you might feel. You will want to be able to easily provide information to potential partners that will want to work with you down the line.
6. Measure Your Success.
Set measurements for your personal brand success so you know where you are headed in your goals. Did a blog post convert to a sale? Were you asked to speak on a podcast or event/write for a partner’s blog? Has someone referred you to a potential client? Is anyone “@ing” you?
Stay tuned for tips to help you in implementing this plan coming at you next week!
