Let’s face it, being an entrepreneur isn’t easy. We start out thinking how amazing it’s going to be and what we will do. We have visions of our perfect lifestyle and that all too elusive work/life balance. Then we jump in and find out the water is much colder than we expected. We forgot how to swim and we start thrashing about trying to keep our heads above water. We take on wrong client after wrong client because “we need the money.” We are drained, we are tired, we need a vacation. Life is anything but glamorous.
It doesn’t have to be that way.
Building a brand that attracts the right clients and makes you feel fulfilled, excited, full of joy, is totally possible. Best of all, the key to having all of this is YOU! Stop looking everywhere else. The answer isn’t out there. So how do you find the answer inside you? Well, the first step is to become your brand. Get out there and be the face of your brand.
Get Visible
One of the greatest advantages that entrepreneurs have over big business is that our business are just us. People like to do business with people. So give your audience a person. Let them see you, hear you, connect with you! Get on camera and do a video. Try Facebook live or Periscope to include some engagement. Change your profile picture to you instead of your logo. It’s important to build the know-like-trust factor but you can’t do it, if you don’t get in front of your audience. Give them someone to know, someone to like and most of all someone to trust. Get out there & get visible.
Be Real, Be Vulnerable
Human nature (and society) makes us want to hide our imperfections. We wear baggy clothes to hide the extra weight we’ve gained. We dye our hair to hide the gray. We show only the happy highlight reel on social media. But the truth is, NO ONE IS PERFECT! (Yes, I just shouted that)
No one relates to the perfect person or the perfect lifestyle because no one is perfect. And if we can’t relate to it, we aren’t as likely to connect, engage and buy. So stop hiding your imperfections. Share your story. People want to know that you’ve made mistakes, that you’ve experienced similar hardships or hurdles. Let them know you “get them”.
Ok…but how much is too much? Well I like to use this little analogy to help explain how much detail to share. Imagine you are at a friends’ house & you’ve just finished dinner but the dinner isn’t agreeing with you. Someone leans over and says “Man, my stomach isn’t feeling so good.” and you respond “Yeah, mine too.” You’ve just found something that you have in common. It’s something to commiserate about. Now if that conversation were instead that person coming out of the bathroom and sharing the details of what happened in the bathroom, your response might be something more like “Woah, dude! I do not need to know!” Bottom line…spare the bathroom details.
The best way to look at sharing your mistakes or challenges is to first look at these three things.
What was the hurdle/mistake/challenge?
What did you do to overcome/fix it?
What was the lesson learned?
If you can take them on a journey from beginning to end, from challenge to triumph, then share it (just remember to spare the bathroom details). Share just enough so that they can relate and feel that you understand them and can help them. Show them that you’ve been in the trenches where they are, you’ve overcome and you can help them overcome too.
Above All, Be YOU!
The most important thing about being the face of your brand, is to always be yourself. It’s the only way to guarantee that you will attract the people you want to work with. The people that light you up, make you smile and leave you wishing every client were just like them. Don’t try to be a persona that you think will attract them, just be YOU!
So shake off those insecurities and fears. Get out there and show the world who you are. Be fierce, be bold, be brave, BE YOU! Be the face of your brand.
Samantha is a brand developer to the creative + confused. Through coaching, strategy & design she helps amazing lady bosses create stand out brands infused with their personality and style so they can attract their dream clients and fall in love with their business all over again. Her adoring fans and clients have called her “Tinkerbell with a whip. Great accountability sprinkled with pixie dust”, “[the] push outside my comfort zone” and “an incredible coach and friend.”
When she’s not working you can find her hanging out with her kids, 100 lb lap dog and husband (most likely on a soccer field or at the park).
Connect with Samantha at www.neapolitancreative.com and find out how you can build a brand that is fully YOU. If you’re looking for a DIY approach to crafting your authentic brand, check out her course at beyoutifullybranded.com where you’ll receive coaching, copywriting & design guidance that will help you build brand you love.
Contributors to jaclynmellone.com are members of the Chasing Dreams and Littles Incubator.
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