July 14th, 2017

You know the names behind some of the biggest businesses. We often associate them with one-another. Steve Jobs of Apple. Elon Musk of Tesla and SpaceX. Amazon's Jeff Bezos famously said that your brand is “What people say about you when you’re not in the room.” For all the work that goes into building your businesses brand, what is truly influential is what people think about you. 

While business cards, a nice email signature, and logos are all important, how you present yourself and run your business can help you and your business generate new leads and close sales. 

Whether you like it or not, your personal brand already exists. You likely have some iteration of it on your LinkedIn profile. Your personal brand is, in essence, who you are, what you say, and what actions you take. Taking your personality and allowing it to shine through is all part of building your personal brand. 

If, for example, you volunteer your time for a good cause, why not share it on social media and your blog? You could even take it a step further and solicit local press coverage. Simply taking some photos and drafting a press release outlining your efforts can get you written up in your local paper and online entities. 

It's not just the good that you do, but, of course, branding yourself as a consummate professional. Prospects will research your business before deciding whether or not they want to work with you. They'll want to know that the people behind the business know their industry. The more related groups your a member of, events you attend, talks you give, and endorsements you receive, the more you'll build up your professional brand. 

Building up your personal brand capital will not only be beneficial to your business in the short term, but it can, of course, be taken with you as you take on new projects. Whether you're adding new products or solutions to your existing business, or venturing into a different endeavor altogether, your personal brand can help you to achieve your goals.