I recently had an opportunity to interview Asia’s No.1 personal branding and brand engagement consultant Gaurav Gulati. He is also active as a strategist, offering his expertise to famous people throughout the world, including many artists, models, executives, professionals, CEOs, politicians and celebrities, etc.
This is an important topic that most people, unfortunately, overlook — the fact that you have a brand, whether you like it or not. So, I asked Gulati these essential questions about the topic of personal branding which goes deeper into the issue.
What exactly is a personal brand and personal branding?
Your personal brand is a combination of qualities – your personality, credibility, reputation, values, personal style and presence.
Whether you realize it or not but everyone has a personal brand. Personal branding, therefore, is the process of identifying that brand, positioning it correctly and manage it effectively to get results.
What are the benefits of personal branding?
Personal brand makes you an opportunity magnet. That’s because personal branding position you as an expert of your industry. Every time your target audience search for a solution – they find you, they understand you can help, they can trust you because your personal brand makes this happens for you.
What would you tell people to focus on as a starting point?
I get that question a lot, and it isn’t very easy to answer as every client profile is different, and everyone positioning has to take place differently – after all personal branding is all about uniqueness and authenticity. But below are essential tips almost every individual can follow:
- Develop a unique selling proposition, keywords, tagline, elevator speech, etc. People should understand your value quickly.
- It will help if you have a blog or any other platform where you can express your ideas and showcase your expertise.
- Start using social media, and though I don’t know which platform will serve your interests specifically but LinkedIn is a must.
- You need to network. Befriend and collaborate with influencers. You can’t build a personal brand without the right networking.
What are your 5 top tips?
My top five tips are:
- Differentiate yourself – Identify something that differentiates you from others.
- Tap into your passion and purpose – Understand what makes you feel most passionate and have a purpose.
- Establish a presence – For your personal brand to make an impact, it needs to get noticed by others.
- Make a personal impact – To have a strong personal brand, you should be able to make a positive impact on others, communicate effectively and be memorable.
- Develop your personal style – Everything communicates your brand identity to others, including appearance.
Thanks for your insights, Gaurav! If you’d like to know more about Gaurav Gulati or want to find out what he can do for you and your personal brand, visit www.gauravgulati.com.