Why Your Personal Brand Is Your Best Business Strategy
Have you ever felt stuck trying to pick the perfect name for your blog or online business? Maybe you’re passionate about several different topics and can’t decide which one to focus on?
Well, check this out! Let me tell you about a strategy that’s working really well for me and many other successful bloggers and online entrepreneurs.
It’s called “The Brand of You.” You’re probably thinking…what the what?
Your blog is powerful tool for establishing yourself as an authority in your niche. It is also a part of a larger puzzle—your personal brand. Let me explain what I mean by this “Brand of You” idea in a way that’s easy to understand.
Think about this for a moment – you’re not just a one dimensional person, right? You’re a complex, interesting person (at least I am…and good looking I might add) ? with lots of different interests and skills. So why should your online presence be limited to just one topic? Makes sense?
What Exactly Is “The Brand of You” Strategy?
This strategy is soooo cool! ? Check this out….
Instead of creating a website with a name like “BestKitchenRecipes.com” or “FrugalMomTips.com,” this strategy encourages you to use your own name as your brand. It’s pretty simple, but the impact can be huge!
Frankly speaking…I use this strategy, and it’s the bomb! My website is CarolynABest.com (my name) and I also used my name as my logo (no copywrite infringement there)!
Let’s say, for example, you want to start a blog about healthy cooking. Six months later, you discover a passion for sustainable living. With a website called HealthyRecipesOnly.com, adding content about reducing plastic waste might feel kinda weird to your readers.
But if you’re blogging under the name “JaneSmith.com,” your audience is following YOU, not just your recipes. They’re more likely to be interested in YOUR journey and YOUR various interests because they’re connected to YOU as a person…makes sense?
Why It Works
Here’s the really cool part – when you brand yourself instead of a specific topic, you’re giving yourself permission to grow and change as your business grows…this concept is called “pivoting.”
It’s kinda like having a conversation with a bunch of your friends. Your friends don’t expect you to only talk about cooking or gardening all the time, right? They want to hear about all the different things you’re passionate about. When you brand yourself using your name, your audience gets to know the real YOU – someone who loves cooking AND gardening AND traveling.
You will have created the ability to “pivot” to any topic of your choice. When you implement this strategy, your readers get to know the real you with all your different interests and experiences. Cool…right?
This strategy gives you the freedom to “pivot” (that’s just a fancy way of saying “change direction”) whenever you want. Maybe today you’re super into baking cakes, but next year you might discover a passion for photography.
You wouldn’t expect your best friend to only talk about one subject forever, well it’s the same with your audience. With the “Brand of You” strategy, you can share all these interests without starting from scratch each time. See what I mean?
Think of successful people like Martha Stewart – she started with cooking, but now she talks about everything from gardening to home decoration to crafts. People follow her because they trust her brand…the “MarthaStewart.com” brand and style, not because she stuck to just one topic.
Think about Tony Robbins…he started out as a Life Coach…just like me! ? However, over time he’s also built a business empire that includes various companies in industries ranging from hospitality to nutraceuticals.
More recently, he’s focused on financial education and wealth management strategies, partnering with various investment firms and writing books about financial freedom. His audience follows him…not just one specific topic.
The Hidden Benefits
Let’s talk about all the amazing doors that can open when you build your personal brand cuz it’s pretty exciting stuff! First off, as people get to know, like and trust you, (which is really important that you establish that relationship), you might find yourself getting invited to speak at events. I know, overcoming public speaking is easier than you imageine. It might sound scary in the beginning but imagine sharing your knowledge with a room full of people who are genuinely interested in what you have to say! And speaking of sharing knowledge, you could also find yourself being asked to team up with other content creators, business owners and organizations.
Here are some often-overlooked benefits of pivoting in blogging that many content creators don’t initially consider:
Strategic Audience Discovery
When you pivot your blog content, you often gain the ability to tap into unexpected new segments of your audience that are more engaged and valuable than your initial target audience.
For example, a food blogger who pivots to focus on meal prep might discover a highly engaged audience of busy professionals willing to invest in premium content, rather than your casual recipe seeking audience.
For example, you can transform your content from recipe-focused to efficiency-driven solutions that resonate with executives who don’t have all that time to spend in the kitchen.
But…by pivot by positioning yourself as the nutrition systems expert. Rather than traditional recipes, create content around “smart meal systems,” kitchen automation, and high-ROI food solutions – think something like “The Executive’s Guide to Nutrition Automation” or “The CEO’s Kitchen Dashboard.”
Speak their language of business optimization and scalable systems, focusing on premium solutions like high-end meal delivery services, smart kitchen technology investments, and executive-level meal prep strategies.
Your busy professional audience isn’t looking to become home chefs – they want to optimize their nutrition with the same efficiency they bring to their business operations, making them ideal candidates for premium content and high-end solutions that maximize results while minimizing time investment.
You see where I’m going with this?
It’s amazing to me (and this is not even my niche) how clear the opportunity is here – there’s a wide-open space serving busy professionals who care more about saving time than perfecting their cooking skills. When you focus on premium solutions for time-pressed executives, you’re moving into a market that not many serve but has plenty of money to spend. What makes this even better is that it fits perfectly with how people want to live today – using technology and smart systems to make life easier. This opens up all kinds of partnership chances with fancy meal services, smart kitchen companies, and corporate wellness programs.
Content Asset Repurposing
Don’t freak out…Content Asset Repurposing simply means that each time you pivot you create opportunities to repurpose your existing content in new contexts. Your old content becomes a valuable foundation that can be reframed and updated to align with your new direction, rather than starting from scratch. For example, a travel blogger pivoting to focus on sustainable tourism can update their existing destination guides to highlight eco-friendly options.
Damn, I’m good… ? maybe I need to pivot to a food blog or an travel blog? Nah…just kidding!
But seriously…pivoting is easier than you think. You just need to get your creative juices flowing to create more opportunities to make more money! ?
Market Gap Identification
You should always be on the lookout for this angle when developing and expanding your blog. The process of pivoting often reveals underserved niches within your broader topic area. As you experiment with different angles, you might notice questions or problems that aren’t being adequately addressed by other content creators. For example, a fitness blogger might discover there’s limited content about exercise modifications for office workers who desperately want to work out but don’t have the time to go to the gym, thereby creating a unique opportunity for you to fill that void.
Accelerated Expertise Development
You’re probably thinking…what in the world is that?
Check this out. You start your blog talking about skateboarding. Then imagine you want to start to blog about skateboarding tricks. Then you want to pivot to writing about skateboard maintenance. To write good posts, you’d quickly need to learn about different types of wheels, how to fix boards, and what tools work best. Before you know it, you’ve become a master skateboarding guru. You have gained knowledgeable about both doing tricks AND fixing boards – you’ve built expertise in two other areas instead of just one!
Each pivot forces you to deeply research new aspects of your topic, rapidly building your expertise across multiple related areas. This broader knowledge base makes your content more nuanced and valuable.
A personal finance blogger who pivots to focus on different investment strategies develops a more comprehensive understanding of wealth building. Understand? This strategy can become so expansive that it can take you “to boldly go where no one has gone before!” (Yesss…I’m a Trekkie)! ? ?
Enhanced Monetization Flexibility
This just means that different blog niches have a variety of monetization potential…in other words…you can make money in different ways. By pivoting, you can discover more lucrative opportunities that weren’t apparent in your original direction. A productivity blogger might find that corporate consulting opportunities will start to emerge after pivoting to focus on team efficiency.
Network Expansion
Each pivot introduces you to new communities and potential collaborators, expanding your professional network in unexpected directions. A gardening blogger who pivots to urban farming might connect with local food sustainability organizations, opening up speaking and partnership opportunities.
Don’t limit your creativity and ability to expand your blog…if you have a fear of speaking in front of people, check out my blog post entitled “Getting Over Stage Fright: A Blogger’s Journey from Writing to Speaking.”
Risk Mitigation
When you have the flexibility to experience with multiple blog niches it provides monetary stability. If you pivoted to one niche and you find that this area has becomes saturated or less profitable, you have the skills and content base to shift focus again. This adaptability is increasingly valuable in the fast-changing digital landscape.
Here’s something really cool – once people see you as an expert (which you totally are in your areas of passion), you might get opportunities to work as a consultant. Companies and individuals might want to hire you for your expertise, whether it’s about cooking, tech, parenting, or whatever else you love talking about.
Writing for other websites is another fantastic opportunity that often comes up. We call these “guest posts,” and they’re a great way to share your ideas with new audiences and this opportunity affords you with the ability to expand your audience base. The best part? Some of these websites will even let you include a link back to your own site, which helps more people find you. At this point you are rolling now…have you reached planet Pluto yet? Hahaha!!
And don’t even get me started on the potential for creating your own courses! Once you’ve built up a following, you might find that people are super interested in learning directly from you. You could create online courses or digital product about any of your areas of expertise – and because you’ve branded yourself instead of a specific topic, you’re not limited to just one subject.
Can you say…”Show Me The Money!!” ??
One of my favorite benefits is the possibility of landing sponsorship deals. When companies see that you’ve built a loyal following who know, like and trusts you, they might want to work with you to promote their products or services. The awesome thing about using your personal brand is that you can choose to work only with companies that match your values and interests.
Have I convinced you enough on the value of using this strategy? Good!
But for those who are not convinced…well…good for you too! Do your thing! I’m not mad at ya! It’s your business…handle your business as you see fit. The point here is just get started and DO something!
Personal Branding Journey
Now, let’s talk about how to get this personal branding journey started! The first thing you’ll want to do is grab your name as a website domain. Check out my blog post entitled, “Recommended Tools.”
Don’t worry if your exact name isn’t available – you can get creative! For example, if your name is Jane Smith and JaneSmith.com is taken, you could try JaneSmithOnline.com or JaneSmithCreative.com.
Next, you’ll want to create an “About Me” page that really lets your personality shine. This is where you get to tell your story and share what makes you…well, YOU! Talk about your interests, what drives you, and what your readers can expect from following along on your journey. Don’t worry about making it perfect – just be real and authentic.
When it comes to sharing content, start with what lights you up right now! Maybe you’re super passionate about healthy cooking at the moment – cool! Share those recipes and cooking tips. But remember, with this strategy, you’re not locking yourself into being “the cooking person” forever. As your interests grow and change, your content can too.
Let your personality shine through in your writing. Write like you’re chatting with a friend over coffee. Share your successes, but don’t be afraid to talk about your challenges too. People connect with real stories and experiences, not perfection.
The coolest part about starting your personal brand is that you can grow at your own pace. Some days you might feel super inspired and write three blog posts, other days you might just share a quick update about what you’re learning or working on. It’s all good!
The key is to stay consistent and keep showing up for your audience. Your audience can be a fickle bunch…if you are not consistent, they will eventually stop coming and go somewhere else.
Listen…everyone starts somewhere. Even the biggest names in blogging and online business started with zero followers and their first post. The important thing is to START and to be authentically you from day one.
Growing Your Brand
As your personal brand grows, you can use smart AI tools as your assistant to help you get the juices flowing and expand your reach. You can use these tools to help you craft blog content in the beginning to guest posting opportunities, or even create engaging presentations, and help you find speaking engagements. The key is to start building your foundation now so you’re ready when these opportunities present themselves….and they will…if you are consistent!
The Bottom Line
Remember, you’re not just a cooking blogger, a mom blogger, or a tech reviewer – you’re YOU! And that’s YOUR superpower! By building your brand around your name and personality, you’re giving yourself the freedom to evolve, pivot, and grow without losing the audience you’ve worked so hard to build.
NOW…ready to start building your personal brand? Awesome sauce!! ?
The best time to start is now! Begin with what you’re passionate about today, but keep in mind that you can…and will…always be expanding and evolving as you grow the Brand of You!!
