Why Is Personal Branding Important?
Shanice: Social media is oversaturated and the only way to stand out is by building a strong personal brand that will attract YOUR people. You have to create awareness of what you do, what value you provide for others so people know what to run to you for. You can be the best chef in the world but if you don’t ever showcase it, how do you expect to ever land a gig to get paid to cook?
Who Needs Personal Branding?
Shanice: Absolutely everyone that wants to survive in today’s market! I can’t even think of a single career that won’t benefit from having a strong personal brand. Even a plumber can literally not only bring in more business but can even rank up to celebrity appointments only… the opportunities are endless!
Keep in mind that personal branding is the reason why other people that do exactly what you do can get paid 4, 5 or even 10 times more than you. They worked on their skills, documented their journey and spread awareness of their personal brand, because of this they can charge at a much higher rate.
How Do You Make A Perfect Personal Brand?
Shanice: I would say it’s three major aspects.
- Establishing a strong foundation that includes your brand’s beliefs and values so you know how and who you do business with. An aesthetically attractive and consistent profile is key as well.
- Authenticity! Be you and you will attract YOUR people. Don’t make up a character and have to act the rest of your life, sounds so draining anyways!
- STORYTELLING! Whether it’s as a whole brand story or just the story of what you did that day or week. People love stories, they love entertainment.
What Tips Can You Give Someone?
Shanice: Considering I speak to a lot of start-up entrepreneurs, my biggest tip is, don’t be held back, because you haven’t started and feel like you can’t catch up with the rest. That thought is what will never allow you to start. There is only one way to catch up and that is by starting! REBRANDING IS ABSOLUTELY NORMAL! As a matter of fact it’s apart of my personal brand story. Don’t let your past stop you, don’t let your fears of failure hold you back! Establish your brand story, beliefs and values along with the aesthetics and stick with it! Roll out an attractive social media page(s) and run with it. Yes I said attractive, because that is what people look for when possibly following a page, which your followers can convert into buyers as long as they know what you do, do you see how that works?
Your follower count does NOT matter. You showcasing what you do, being verbal about what you know, will attract the ones you want and need to get you farther.
If you really want to dominate say BYE BYE to your comfort zone! You have to become a self marketing machine. From in person events to sliding in the DMs.
What Services Do You Think A Person Just Starting Would Need?
Shanice: My online personal branding course, “Branding like a Boss,” breaks down absolutely everything someone needs to know to get an extremely huge boost on social media. I have an online course specifically on personal branding and optimizing your social media presence. Another service I provide is one on one coaching as well as taking on selected projects when it comes to lead generation through social media. My courses landing page does include testimonies of previous clients if you’d like to hear about my services from someone else’s point of view.
You can reach Shanice at [email protected] or on Instagram @shye.lee.