We often think of branding as a one-time thing. Set up your visual aspects, refine your messaging, portray the brand, and engage customers and watch it catch on.
But branding is an ongoing initiative, and one aspect of it that really ties in the idea of “personal branding” is to make it uber-personal. And you can do that by telling your story.
Telling your brand story involves innovation, authenticity, credibility, vision, and servant leadership along with a valuable narrative. That can come in the form of content, but it’s also about the brand’s collective actions that help your brand resonate with others. If you are your own brand, you’re the storyteller.
So what kind of story will you tell and how will you say it? Will it be through an ongoing content push? What other ways can you tell the story? Can you do it visually?
Suzanne Tulien, who wrote a brilliant piece on this, says the brand story encompasses:
- Who you are from the inside out, including your core values and style.
- The uniqueness/details about how you made the product or deliver the service.
- The effect of your brand on the environment.
- What your brand promises, and why the story is important to your brand.
- How you outreach to others to improve the world.
When you develop and convey this story, it will better engage others with your brand. Let your authenticity shine through.
Now, look at the blank page and start penning your best tale yet.
Author:
Kristen is a copywriter and author who enjoys what she does for a living. Kristen is also a Certified Professional Resume Writer. Kristen writes regularly for MediaBistro, SheKnows and FreelanceSwitch. She is a panelist on the biweekly, award-winning podcast FreelanceRadio. Kristen is the author of Ramen Noodles, Rent and Resumes: An After-College Guide to Life and her new book, It Takes More than Talent: Business Basics for the Creatively Inclined is due out in January 2013. She has been featured on NPR, CNN, MSNBC, and CareerBuilder; and also in the Boston Herald, the New Jersey Star-Ledger and in the Asbury Park Press.
