BRAND YOUR…SELF
If you could describe what you do to someone in 10 words or less, what would you say? Really think about this, because you have 10 words and about 8 seconds to make an impression that wants them to ask more.
For the sake of example, let’s look at a real estate agent. I know so many people that CRUSH IT in this profession and who wouldn’t love the flexibility and freedom that comes along with it?! The issue is that when someone needs that service, they don’t have to go far to find it. This also holds true for many other self-employed or self-scheduled industry sectors. So how do you stand out?
Maybe your profession came with a built-in catalog of contacts that are seeking your service, and if that is true for you, congratulations, you hit the jackpot. For most, you will have to market yourself, network, plant seeds, water the seeds, and wait to reap the rewards. The problem that I see often in these self-driven sectors is that professionals get lost in the sea of other professionals trying to do the same thing. The reason is simple: you haven’t clearly defined your audience and lack focus on strategic branding (spoiler alert: The brand is YOU). Short-term marketing initiatives may work in isolated cases and for short periods, but lack longevity and consistency.
YOUR TARGET MARKET CANNOT BE “EVERYONE” and YOU ARE THE BRAND. If you don’t have a clearly defined niche of people that you are targeting, how would you ever be able to provide consistent messaging in your marketing and appeal to the person who is looking for you? Your marketing and message certainly wouldn’t be the same for thirty-something-year-old Mary who has 4 children and loves old rustic antiques, that it would be for seventy-something Alice who flies on her private jet to her third highrise vacation home downtown and loves mocha lattes and everything modern, RIGHT? What about first home-seeker Mike & Nancy, who have no idea what the heck the word appraisal even means yet, let alone the first steps to take in the process? A clearly defined target market is important if you want direct and concise branding. YOU are the brand.
So maybe you have clearly defined your target market, but is your messaging aligned with that market? This trickles all the way down to lifestyle and social media. If your target market is retired females with luxury style with income in the top 20% of your zipcode but you are posting regular instagram stories crushing natty lights in your ripped jeans on the back porch with your boys… you might be missing the mark on appealing yourself to that clientele (side note: this isn’t judgement on your lifestyle, but it’s a truth bomb that appeal is earned through aligned perception).
NOW, let’s refer to my first question as I give you an example:
Mary is a new real-estate agent just, and gets approached by someone at a networking event sparking an introduction followed by the inevitable question, “What do you do, Mary?”. Mary could respond with, “I am a real-estate agent”, OR Mary could say, “I take the stress out of finding people’s dream home”. I don’t know about you, but I’m about to ask Mary HOW?!
AMBER MCHOSE- Owner of Wildfire Creative, Consultant, and Experiential Mastermind
A once self-acclaimed “badass”, who has since learned that living outside of your ego is way more “badass” than acting tougher than your truth and stands firm in the belief that ego is one of the largest creativity killers in both individuals and business.
A uniquely creative problem solver, out-of-the-box idealist, and innovative thinker, she jumps out of bed in the morning to analyze trends and solutions in what maximizes the emotional connection between humans and experiences.
