You can’t stop checking their Instagram, you read every email sent, you login for webinars, or hoard their products. Friend, you are addicted.
Stephanie Burns Contributor / ForbesWomen I cover female entrepreneurship and personal branding.
Creating a brand is no small feat, but creating an addictive brand is harder. Even harder than that? Creating an addictive personal brand. Personal branding is very hot right now and not a lot of people are getting it right. A few that I am obsessed with: Rachel Hollis, James Altucher, and Brian Harris. I eat up all of their content, save their emails and take action on what they say. Rachel Hollis is like that super fun sorority sister you love, James Altucher stretches your brain because he thinks differently about absolutely everything, and Brian Harris has a clever solution for every growth challenge you could possibly encounter.
Hi, I’m Stephanie, and I’m addicted.
When you stop for a minute to really assess which brands you have totally fallen head over heels with – you’ll notice they are all completely different, however they are more similar than you think. I reached out to Bushra Azhar, founder of The Persuasion Revolution, to get her take on how to create an addictive personal brand. Bushra is quite possibly one of the funniest people on the internet and that shows up in her personal branding – making me totally addicted to everything she writes. I’m not the only one, Bushra has a legion of addicted followers hanging on her every hilarious word.
Bushra tells me that there are three things every brand must have in order to be addictive – the “tale of intrigue” is what she calls it. “Your tale of intrigue is all about what you stand for, what you believe in and what you fight for – not just in business, but in life,” she says.
So what makes up this “tale of intrigue?”
- Perception
“This is what people think of (and feel about) you based on what you share publicly. A compelling moral code, an enchanting story and a collection of captivating anecdotes are what makes for the right perception,” says Azhar.
Getting a peek inside the life of someone is what sparks that first attraction and gets you noticed. You don’t have to go all in and show every nook and cranny of your life, but creating a personal brand is about showing your person. It’s the reason why we have good friends, we show them who we are – your personal brand needs to have the same thing.
- Positioning
“If perception is how people think of you as a person, positioning is more so how people think of you as an expert. You need one to get noticed (perception) and the other to get taken seriously (positioning). Never worry about convincing prospects to choose you. Instead, YOU are the Chosen One — if you position yourself well.”
Letting people into your world do they start to get to know you is the first step. Then it’s time to impart your knowledge, provide value and set the stage for learning. If people like you and they can learn from you, you are well on your way to having an addictive personal brand.
- Promise
“Your people have the right perception of you as a caring & decent human. They recognize your positioning as both relatable and credible,” says Azhar. “Now you have to offer them a promise. This is the final piece of your tale of intrigue. As a master persuader, it is your job to present a superpower promise to your market. A transformation. A better after. A brighter future.”
Get your promise as crystal clear as can be, so that your audience knows exactly what to expect. They’ll know why they engage with your brand and what takeaways they get when then spend their precious time with you. Not only that – it’s easier for them to relay why they are so addicted to your brand to their peers. And as we all know, word of mouth is pure gold.
Perception, positioning, promise: get these right and your brand will be an addiction too.