There are many methods for marketing your brand.
Historically, most businesses have relied upon paid marketing tactics and product or services branding. These tactics focus on customer behaviors and connecting people to the products or services they need. Personal branding, a much different and more engaging form of marketing, is trending heavily in the modern digital marketplace.
In exploring this trend, we reached out to our community of B2B service providers and professionals to gain more insight into how they are leveraging personal branding to boost brand visibility and loyalty.
What is personal branding?
Personal branding is a marketing tactic that intentionally focuses on presenting a business owner or company representative in an authentic and personal way, so as to strengthen the personal relationship between consumer and the brand.
Personal branding examples
Personal branding is about your employees and leadership helping to set your brand apart from the competition through storytelling. It often leverages a unique story about an employee’s professional journey and what they bring to the table to help make a brand unique. That story should:
- Highlight the individual’s values to give readers an idea of what to expect from the customer experience with your brand.
- Enumerate the subject’s skills and background, aligned with the goals of the brand.
- Include cohesive design elements that help customers recognize the personal branding from others in the field.
- Leverage a strong personal brand statement, which is a well-crafted and intention-focused statement that identifies what the individual does and how that provides value to the target audience.
Perhaps one of the most charismatic and engaging business personalities, Gary Vaynerchuk is a perfect example of the power of personal branding. On paper, he’s a successful entrepreneur and co-founder of several very successful businesses, but he has done an amazing job leveraging personal branding to add value and credibility to those brands.
In building out his personal brand, Vaynerchuk has become more well-known for his writing and motivational speaking work, where he has leaned into authenticity and providing his valuable business insights freely as a way to connect with and provide value to the community he’s built.
Other well-known personalities who have created strong personal brands include television personality Oprah Winfrey, athlete LeBron James, actor Leonardo DiCaprio, and marketing guru Neil Patel. All of these individuals have a strong presence online, and use their notoriety and branding to draw consumers to specific businesses or organizations.
How does personal branding fit into a small business marketing strategy?
Large enterprises are often seen by consumers as impersonal service providers; even if there is a “face of the business,” customers are often hard-pressed to make a personal connection with larger brands. This is an advantage that entrepreneurs and small business owners have, as they are often seen as synonymous with their brand and thus able to build stronger customer relationships.
Over the last decade, consumers have been seeking an increasingly personalized digital experience with the companies they choose to engage with for both personal and professional commerce purposes. Naturally, consumers seek out those connections where they are already networking and connecting on a personal basis. Thus, Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social media have become increasingly central to many marketing strategies, and personal branding tactics are the perfect way to gain visibility in those channels.
Should small businesses use personal branding as part of their overall marketing strategy?
The UpCity Marketplace community overall supported the usage of personal branding, but cautioned that there are conditions where personal branding should be used with caution. One of the concerns is whether the long-term vision for the business is to sell it, positioning personal branding as more of a liability.
“If the business’s long-term vision doesn’t include a buy-out, then small business owners should absolutely use personal branding. It’s oftentimes easier to remember a person or service provider than it is a small brand, especially if the business brand hasn’t been properly invested in. People are just more memorable. Business owners who are going to leave, sell the company, or who leverage personal branding of employees run the risk of losing their audience at that exit.” —Kaleb Dean, President and Chief Design Officer, Studio Ostendo, Co.
Another concern is how the small business wants to be viewed relative to owners and management. Is the goal for the brand to stand on its own reputation, or to build the brand off of the backs of the reputations of those who run the day-to-day operations?
“I believe this really depends on the overall brand strategy for the company. Sometimes a small company wants to expand beyond the personal brand of the owner or leadership team, they want the company to stand on its own. Other times the personal brand of the owner or leadership team is part of the company’s brand foundation and helps to strengthen the overall position.” —Duane Ciacco, Strategic and Creative Director, Atomic Idea
The prevailing consensus amongst respondents overall was that personal branding can help establish a stronger, more personal connection with consumers, but that as a strategy, personal branding should be leveraged with care and intent.
“Personal branding offers a human touch, allowing customers to connect with the people behind the business. This connection can foster trust and loyalty, differentiating the business in a crowded market. However, caution is necessary. If the personal brand becomes too entwined with an individual and misaligns with the business goals or the individual faces negative publicity, it could harm the business. It’s a strategy that can set a small business apart, but it requires careful planning and execution.” —Valerie Nova, Co-Founder and Art Director, Ubunzo
What benefits can small businesses gain from leveraging personal branding efforts of public-facing employees?
Personalizing your branding and marketing requires your business to rely heavily on the psychological impact that social proof and brand reputation marketing tactics have on consumers. Brands that lean into creating personal connections with their audience have an advantage in the modern economic landscape, as consumers are actively seeking out that relationship with the brands they consume.
The power of personal branding as a marketing tool lies in how it can have an impact on your business at multiple levels.
“Encouraging personal branding among public-facing employees can benefit small businesses by building credibility, fostering stronger customer relationships, setting the business apart in the market, expanding reach, establishing thought leadership, aiding in recruitment, assisting in crisis management, offering flexibility, enhancing employee engagement, and cultivating a positive company culture.” —Dan Bragilevsky, Owner, BragDeal Inc.
In creating multiple audience bases through personal branding, you amplify your brand’s voice across digital channels. From that amplification, you can gain much-needed insight into your target audience’s expectations and needs.
“By encouraging employees to adopt a personal branding approach, your business stands to gain from unified voices about your brand. And through their voices, small businesses can gain trust, authority, engagement, and understanding of what the customers want. You can then tailor your product and services accordingly. This is a competitive edge that you can gain without much spending.” —Zaheer Dodhia, CEO and Founder, Logo Design
By formalizing your personal brand through traditional branding tactics, you’re providing consumers with tangible and memorable experiences that help them keep your brand top of mind relative to the competition.
“Branding is the impression that people take away from you on a business card or a flier. Branding is what sits on their desk that reminds them of your business and their experience. It is what makes them pick up the phone to call or shoot an email. To outperform and make a better impression than the pushy salesman from your competitor, business owners should be passionate about their business. On every invoice, every communication, every everything, you should be marketing yourself. If you can be on blogs or forums, attend city meetings, make your presence known publicly somewhere, then do so. Your business will be remembered while others will become a distant memory.” —Robert Williams, Owner, Williams Web Solutions
Pulse Recruitment’s marketing director, Tarlia Smedley, made several compelling arguments for why personal branding is such an important component in any modern marketing strategy. First, she highlights and expands upon how personal branding amplifies your voice across digital channels.
“Every employee with a robust personal brand effectively becomes an ambassador for the business. Their individual networks and engagements can cast a wider net, introducing the company to new audiences and potential customers. This not only expands the customer base but also paves the way for richer interactions and feedback.”
She then points out how personal branding has the added impact of boosting your reputation in the recruitment sphere. Personal branding helps to position your company as a sought-out employment opportunity for candidates who want to maintain their individuality online but also use their online presence to boost their employer.
“A culture that champions personal branding is also a magnet for talent. It signals that the company values individual growth and uniqueness. Such an environment can attract professionals eager for workplaces that nurture both personal and professional development. And when employees are in an environment where they feel recognized and valued, it often leads to increased loyalty and longer tenures.”
Her final argument for personal branding expands on how it not only amplifies your voice to new audiences, but actually helps to diversify your messaging and affordably create engagement with customers you might not otherwise have been able to reach.
“Another intriguing advantage is the diversification of marketing channels. Each employee’s personal brand might resonate with a unique audience segment, allowing the business to reach varied demographics without overextending its primary branding efforts. As these employees grow in their fields, they can also position themselves, and by extension the business, as thought leaders, enhancing overall credibility.” —Tarlia Smedley, Marketing Director, Pulse Recruitment
Are there any potential downsides to using personal branding in a small business marketing strategy?
While our respondents overall saw the benefits of leveraging personal branding, executing and managing personal branding as a strategy introduces a number of challenges. Owners and entrepreneurs should be mindful if they decide to implement strategies around the tactic, as certain missteps in personal branding could mean disaster for the parent brand if not properly managed.
For example, as with marketing tactics built around improving SEO or improving PPC performance, business owners should recognize that personal branding isn’t an instant fix to all of their marketing needs, and requires time and resources to see results.
“One of the challenges of leaning into personal branding as a strategy is how much time it takes to build a personal brand. That time investment often takes a while to realize any real, direct impacts. Hence, many companies do not consider this a possible or easy-to-put-in-place marketing strategy.” —Ciaran Connolly, Founder, ProfileTree Web Design and Digital Marketing
If you’ve spent any amount of time on social media platforms, you understand how quickly public sentiment can turn on a content creator. It’s important that anyone creating a business-focused personal branding strategy understands the importance of remaining business-focused and professional at all times.
“One potential downside is that it’s easy to get branding wrong and turn people off your business by using personal branding. It’s a harsh truth of life that some people aren’t built for the limelight, and some communication styles are best kept in the back office.” —John Hargan, Founder and Director, Velocity
Along this same sentiment, not every business owner should be the face of their business. It’s critical for small business owners and entrepreneurs to recognize where the line is between their personal lives and their business lives.
It’s a tricky undertaking to be authentic and personable while still remaining business-focused and professional, and not everyone on your team will be able to maintain the separation. Identifying who on your team is a viable candidate for personal branding efforts is just as important as the subsequent customer engagements that will come from those efforts.
“Some business owners don’t want to be the face of their business. In that case, the downside would be trying to use personal branding when it’s not the right strategy for your business. It can create challenges if the owner has controversial political or religious beliefs. And while support can be hired, there is a level of time and commitment that’s needed for personal branding to be worthwhile.” —Jennifer Crego, CEO, Margott
As we discussed above, personal branding can expand the voice of your business into new digital marketing channels. However, it’s important to understand the dependency on that new channel personal branding creates, and it will be important to have multiple individuals embedded in overlapping marketing channels. This will insulate your business against any fallout that might accompany an employee with a strong personal brand leaving your organization.
“Personal branding enhances the reach of the business. Each employee becomes a brand advocate, extending the company’s message to their own networks. This amplifies the brand’s visibility and can lead to organic growth. However, personal branding can create dependency on individual employees. If a key employee with a strong personal brand leaves, the business might face challenges in maintaining the same level of credibility and connection with customers.” —Ben Precious, CEO, Pace Social Media
Tips for using personal branding as part of a small business marketing strategy
Navigating both the benefits and challenges associated with personal branding can be a daunting undertaking. UpCity’s community of professionals were also asked to weigh in on best practices for implementing and incorporating personal branding into a well-structured marketing strategy.
Personal branding, largely, is about engagement on a personal level with the target audience you’re already marketing to but might not be able to reach via traditional marketing methods. Therefore, having a thorough understanding of what that target audience needs and where their pain points are will help go a long way in crafting an effective personal brand, as you can use that to connect more authentically.
“Personally, I would say ‘learn about your niche.’ Understand your audience and tailor your content to their interests. But be yourself: People can spot falseness a mile away. Authenticity builds trust and connection.” —Gio Toninelo, Producer, Rocket House Pictures
Business owners and entrepreneurs have the advantage of carrying their personal branding beyond digital channels into the very local communities where they are trying to build their business. Hosting a booth, sponsoring events, and participating as a speaker are all ways to leverage your personal branding in ways that larger organizations might not be able to at the local level. That can be a powerful boon to visibility and engagement.
“Get involved in your community! Chambers of commerce, networking events, fundraising events, engaging videos across your social media platforms—don’t be afraid of the blooper reels! We have seen a dramatic increase in our name recognition and social media following within our county based solely on our increased community involvement over the past two years.” —Kirstyn Mixa Yancy, Local Business Advocate, TMS Digital
Properly leveraged, personal branding tactics can have a significant impact across a well-structured marketing strategy. If you’re planning to incorporate personal branding into your repertoire, it’s necessary to understand the impact such tactics can have on building brand visibility and customer loyalty.
“First, answer the questions, ‘Who are you, and what do you do?’ Second, build brand recognition through content marketing. At the third stage, personal branding can help customers recall your ad, your message, and possibly you as the business owner. Positive experiences will boost brand preference, which over time will transform into brand loyalty.” —Curtis DeCora, Business Strategist, Superior Marketing
Get personal in your branding and book more business
It takes time and effort to build up your personal brand and improve your brand identity. While our community of experts have provided insight and best practices throughout this article, you can also use the UpCity Marketplace to connect with a branding expert who can help your business determine the right tone and approach to personal branding that will help your business grow and thrive.