Your personal brand is how you promote yourself. It is the telling of your story to potential clients, employers, and communities. But why do you need a personal brand? 

To start the economy changing. 
More and more want the flexibility of running their own business and not being tied to corporate rules. Marking and branding is all about being the first and catching the wave before it's gone. 

But if your niche wave is gone, you now more than ever need to stand out in the crowd. If your thing is met with where there are so many others doing the same thing, you are going to get lost...UNLESS people can identify with who you are and what you have to offer. 
personal branding photography
Secondly Personal branding is a way to separate you from the rest! 
It is not easy to engage anyone these days. Unless you have some kind of amazing story, or you have had such a story already....you are probably like the rest of us, waiting for your chance to shine. 

If you Google your competition, you most likely will find a lot of time same. Websites, lots of words that sound like that last one, generic designs. Then tap into social media, and if you get seen, what will they discover? Someone's dog had a day with a pillow or it snowed a ton today? 

Now think, how is a client suppose to find you in the world of dull? You know you have something awesome to offer , now to get noticed by a future client or employer! 

Building a personal brand should be a priority. And it isn't easy as it requires a mix of creativity and science. How will you stay out and stay ahead of the ever changing social media formulas? Start with showing how you are unique and how your personal brand will stand out in the crowd!

The third reason you need a personal brand is we live in an instant gratification society.
For those of us who remember the time before the internet, you most likely recall things like phones that were hooked to a wall, looking things up in an encyclopedia, and buying clothes from a department store and not at the same place you buy your groceries. The good old days of simpler times. Before looking up a recipe online but in a cook book or ordering anything from a kitchen table to dog food while sitting on your sofa. 

We must embrace technology. Your clients most likely will find you not by the yellow pages or a newspaper add but while surfing the world wide web while drinking their morning coffee. And when they find you, you want to make an impact that stands out among the rest.
DSC_4256
Another reason you need a personal brand is the marketing landscape has changed.
Millennials and the rest of us have begun to mistrust large companies and corporations. Take Toy's R Us for example. They have blamed the millennials for waiting to start a family but is it really they have fell behind in market trends? In general the public is fed up with greed. 

Many have blamed corporate America for downfall of the economy. People today want to spend their dollars wisely and want a business they can stand behind. That is where entrepreneurs and personal branding coming in. You build trust with your potential customers when they see a personal brand they can support.

And finally, the last reason you need a personal brand is visual content can be very powerful. 

If you are like me, you get to a point you get tired of being bombarded with advertisements. Every media you encounter, from TV, radio, and social media, you most likely will see or hear an advertisement. And eventually, you tune it all out.

So, if you want to still be able to reach consumers, why not engage them with a a photo or video of you. Let them get to know you. Ask for advise and ask questions. But even more so, make the visual content not a poorly lit amateur photo. This only shows you potential clients, you don't care about your online image.

If you wish to reach your audience, use professional photos that are relevant to your social media post and articles. Even blow their minds with a video that shows off your knowledge and skill. 

Personal branding photography is more than a head shot but is using a professional photographer to tell your story.