So let me ask ya…
When you hear the word “brand,” what do you think of?
Maybe your mind goes to big brands like… Starbucks… Nike… Target.
Now, what if I were to tell you… that YOU can be a brand, too?
This can be a difficult thought to come around to.
It triggers A LOOOOOTTTTTT of imposter syndrome.
Thoughts like “Who am I to have a brand?"
But when you have your own biz… you actually DO become a brand.
The term for it is “personal brand”.
Basically any individual with name and brand recognition.
Authors are often personal brands.
Like Stephen King. Glennon Doyle. Deepak Chopra.
You know what you’re likely to get when you hear their name.
Personal brands live in all kinds of industries.
Fashion. Personal development. Entertainment. Medicine. Fitness.
I mean pretty much ANYTHING.
Like, here are some personal brands that immediately come to mind for me...
- Tony Robbins.
- Martha Stewart.
- Labron James.
- Amy Porterfield.
- Any Kardashian. LOL
And YOU.
Your name can be on a list of personal brands as well.
When you’re a small biz owner, it’s highly likely you’re at the center of your business, right?
Like, even when you don’t wanna be. LOL
It’s sooooo tempting to hide behind your product or service.
But unless you have ZERO competition out there… the thing that separates you from the crowd is… well, YOU.
It’s time to start thinking of yourself as a BRAND, my friends.
It doesn’t mean you have a huge ego to think that way.
It means you have a BUSINESS MINDSET.
Once you make this mental shift… you’ll notice what a difference it makes in everything.
Like, how you make decisions.
What content you create.
What offers you put out into the world.
Even who you associate with.
Today I have a special guest for ya.
I met him on Clubhouse and we then took our relationship IRL.
He’s been over to my home a few times. Hung with my hubby…
I don’t know if I should go into all the stories and laughs we’ve had together so far…
But he’s here on the show today because he’s a marketing and branding expert…
So we’re gonna talk about allllll creating a personal brand -- and how to put your brand online in a way that is authentic to you…
And actually get results.
Branden Lark is an entrepreneur with a company called Branding By Branden -- or B3.
He’s known for creative, innovative brand strategy and digital marketing experiences.
And he looooovvvvessssss working on personal brands.
So I really want you to hear what he has to say today.
He’s gonna help us work through some common mindset challenges small biz owners have about BEING and having a brand…
And offer you some quick marketing tips you can use right now to amplify your brand online.
I’m really excited about this chat…
So let’s get to it!
Welcome Branden…
Interview Questions:
- Branden, it’s so good to talk to you. My community is full of small biz owners… from all sorts of industries. Wellness, coaching, health, network marketing -- just to name a few. Can you share a bit about your business with us?
- One of the most common challenges I see with small biz owners is seeing themselves as a personal brand. They’d rather hide behind their product or service. What advice do you have about shifting your mindset in becoming a personalbrand?
- What would you say are the biggest mistakes biz owners make online?
- Lead generation is always a hot topic. Everyone always wants new, fresh, QUALIFIED prospective customers in their list… what are some marketing techniques that have worked well for you and your clients?
- What are some challenges you’ve experienced in your career as an entrepreneur? And how did you overcome them?
- If people want to learn more about what you do, what’s the best way for them to do that?
Hayley closing CTA:
How cool was that conversation, you guys?
Did it change your mind about seeing yourself as a personal brand?
For me, back when I started my biz, putting myself out there was daunting.
But what shifted for me was when my STORY started resonating with people.
Women would reach out to me saying they were inspired by my journey…
Following my passion for holistic wellness… and making a career out of it.
Being able to have work-life balance… create my own hours… spend more time with my daughter.
The turning point for me in owning my personal brand came when I created my first online mini course.
First of all, I literally had NO idea what I was doing. LOL
But I knew it was a way to answer all the questions I was getting asked 24/7.
Like how I ran my biz… how I approached health… how I earned money in the holistic wellness industry… and how they could do the same thing.
Creating an online mini course was a scalable way to help more people with less effort.
When I heard that last part… I was hooked.
So I enrolled in Amy Portfield’s online training… Digital Course Academy.
Which everyone calls DCA.
It was sooooo impactful for me.
I learned every single step I needed to do to create my first online mini-course.
Because honestly, I felt wayyyyy over my head.
But she helped break it down into manageable, SMART, and super doable steps.
Without needing to hire a full-on team or spend a bazillion dollars to do it.
Or give up my core biz.
And that mini-course opened up so many doors and additional revenue streams for me.
What’s funny is… I’ve actually had a lot of people ask me recently about two things.
- How to create an online mini course.
- And what steps to take to start their personal brand.
So the timing couldn’t be more perfect.
Because you can do BOTH of those things in ONE step.
Amy’s offering a free sneak peek into what happens inside DCA.
You can take a look at the first module inside the program.
Here’s what I’ll tell ya…
It literally doesn’t matter what kind of biz you have.
You have a brand and an online course inside of you.
And once you know the exact roadmap to follow… BOOM.
You’ve just added a new revenue stream.
AND a way to attract and retain more, qualified, fresh leads on the regular.
Because remember… it’s not enough to hide behind your product or service.
You can’t just kick back and rely on it to do all the work.
YOU are an important part of the equation.
Especially if you are a creative professional, in the wellness space, coaching arena, or personal development.
Anything involving humans really, LOL.
Although… Cesar Milan. Works with dogs. Still a personal brand. LOL
What I’m saying is,... it alllll boils down to you.
Which is why it’s time to start thinking about yourself as a personal brand…
AND find smart, scalable, effective ways to get yourself out there.
Link’s in the show notes for ya, ok?
I’m so happy you joined me today… and thank you again to Branden for sharing his wisdom with us…
I’ll see ya online.