Not Your Grandmas Personal Brand
If no other time in history has ever taught us anything, 2020/2021 is the official beat and
teach year. It mastered the art of slippers flinging, shirt draping, spoon smacking, and the infamous and ever-effective side-eye steer. No one was left unscathed, but those among us who possessed the foresight to pull up their socks and invest in their personal brand came out the most victorious.
In 2020, the ever so familiar “Hi Guys, guess what? I’m on youtube” plagued our social media feeds, dare I say, almost as quickly as the pandemic. Even if you had not created a youtube channel, the idea sure did cross your mind (Talk Truth?).
Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Tik Tok also witnessed massive growth spurts during the 2020/2021 period. I am guessing it is fair to say then that the true victors of the pandemic were personal brands and by extension social media platforms.
A personal brand is curating someone else's opinions of who you are by sharing your knowledge, expertise, likes, dislikes, aspects of your personality, or that single identifying feature that makes you stand out among others. Most people have a personal brand, but the personal brand referred to here is one that through self-marketing, content creation, and strategic action can monetize their activities. If an audience sees enough value in what a personal brand is offering, It would be worth the buy.
Persons who were able to design such a personal brand either during or before the pandemic were able to build audiences within the thousands in a little under a year, but it becomes a whole new ballgame when you find out that with most online platforms, you can earn the bag.
Noticing the value of human interaction, personal recommendations from real people, and having a community of loyal followers; online platforms have thought of ways to align their content creation strategy with that of personal brands and have it double as a marketing funnel. Simply put; pay personal brands for their content, viewers will come; viewers come, advertisers will come; Advertisers come, good return on investment.
Before the internet of things, the term personal brand was only reserved for movie stars, musicians, politicians, and CEOs aka celebrities. Now, anyone with a well-defined strategy and the ability to post consistent, engaging content can be among the most recognized faces across the world.
A prime example of one of the most thought-through strategized personal brands of the era Kim Kardashian, who through the hard work and dedication of her mother Kris Jenner had developed a personal brand from literally thin air. Many might have their theories of how she came to fame however, her brand value has only gone up due to the following factors:
Developing a brand platform- Kris, AKA the OG of brand strategists, was able to flip and sell the value of an unfortunate event to any woman into a reality Tv show watched by millions.
Collaborations- Kim, by dating and marrying some of the most sought after bachelors had tapped into their audiences while building her own tribe
Content creation and consistency- Kris continued to create the illusion of value by booking photoshoots, video shoots, etc. to build Kimberly’s portfolio, increase visibility in other areas, and added content for the show.
Remaining relevant and fresh- Kris and Kim started new ventures and aligned with larger brands to diversify Kim’s portfolio which offered the audience something new to watch and made her appear more relevant.
Moving with the trend- The Kardashians decided to end the reality show to focus more energy on other areas and focus more on growth in the digital space.
And Kris, the real OG of Brand strategists, has not only done it once but 6 times (Including herself).
RIP to all those brands who said the infamous lines “Hi Guys, guess what? I’m on youtube” but are yet to either put out a video or have only posted two videos since. Personal Brands are not just made. It takes grit, strategy, the ability to generate relevance and do things most won't do. Remember, this is Not Your Grandma’s Personal Brand, the competition has gotten thicker and only the best among us will survive.
Comments