There’s a question that seems to stump a lot of small business owners, and today I wanted to weigh in on it in a larger forum. For business owners who feel like they are the face of their business, the question can be a tricky one: Should you develop your personal brand or your business brand?
It’s an interesting question, because the way you answer it now sets you on a trajectory. Establishing a personal brand or a business brand sets you on different paths for the future. And, to be honest, I don’t believe your decision has to be one or the other. However, there are some factors to consider as you make your choice of how to move forward.
Establishing a personal brand or a business brand sets you on different paths for the future. #brand #smallbiz #biztips #smb #smallbusiness #business Share on XHere are some of the questions to ask yourself when you are thinking about the advantages and disadvantages of building a personal brand vs. building a business brand:
Do you ever want to sell the business?
Let’s begin with the end in mind. Is there any chance you would want to sell this business down the road? If your personal brand defines the business, and you want to sell the business, how is someone else supposed to make something of it? It may be easier to convince an audience that a business is under new ownership if the original owner isn’t still front and center.
Do you ever want to stop being the face of it?
Maybe you don’t want to sell the business, but you do want to bring on project managers or in some way expand your team so that you are not interfacing with all the clients, at all levels of the business. If you have worked hard to promote your personal brand and position yourself as the face of your business, it may be more challenging down the road to convince your audience to trust your team members to deliver the same level of product or service that they were expecting from you. Even if they trust your team, if all they came to your business for was you, how do you help them pivot?
This is the type of question that employees secretly come to me about to complain and strategize, because all the clients that they are assigned are asking to do business with the figurehead.
Do you intend to remain central to interfacing with clients?
I’ll flip the previous questions around here. If you DO intend to stay in front of clients, you do intend to do a lot of marketing and networking on behalf of your business, and you do feel comfortable to be the face of the business, it could make sense for you to build your personal brand.
That’s not to say you have to make a choice of one or the other. You are you and your business is your business. Your team can still expand without sacrificing having you at the center.
You are you and your business is your business. #brand #biztips #smallbusiness #smallbiz #smb #business Share on XDo you feel comfortable to be in the limelight in this way?
Your business may be small at this moment, but let’s think about the future. The one where you have a massive, loyal customer list, an avid following, and there is enthusiasm and momentum around what you’ve built.
Some people I talk to know straight away that they aren’t comfortable to be the face of the business forever, especially as it grows. But the marketing still has to get done if you want sales. So, if you see a conflict for you in the future as your reach expands, you may want to establish a business brand that allows you to carry out the promotion you need to do without the feeling that you are in the forefront and tooting your own horn.
Let’s be clear, I think tooting your own horn is perfectly fine. To some degree, we have to do it. People have to believe that you are good at what you do to make the decision to buy something from you. There are many ways to get this across, and if your humble nature is getting in the way, please read this Marketing Tip of the Week here.
This is about knowing your limits as a human and setting yourself and your business up for success!
Do you plan to be proactive in networking?
Are you going to do a lot of networking for your business? In person? At events? On social media? Through referral building? Through cold inquiries or other proposals or lead generation tools?
Is someone else going to do this on behalf of your business?
There are so many networking forums and platforms where you automatically lead with your name. In some cases, people will see you in the room as you, and then they learn what business you represent. If your reputation precedes you, it may be the hook to get people to know your business. Think about where you will market and ask yourself what would be a simpler approach.
Do you want to build search terms into your name?
It’s easier to load a business brand with juicy keywords and searchable terms than it might be to load your name with those terms. Your name is your name, and at some point you run out of real estate to add more keywords phrases behind it!
Do you want trade name competition?
I’ll tell you what – no one else out there is going to be Melissa Forziat Events and Marketing. Can’t happen. I am unlikely to get into legal battles over the name of my business, and that was a bonus to me when I was thinking about establishing a brand.
If you are building a business brand around a business name that others could use, do diligent research up front. Make sure the name you want is available before you generate assets around it. I’ve seen it happen where businesses have to rebrand midstream because of action from another company in the marketplace. Do trade name searches, trademark searches, domain name searches. You’ll want to know you are in the clear.
At the end of the day, your business has to have some brand, so to me the question really is about how much effort you put into building the personal brand alongside it.
At the end of the day, your business has to have some brand. #brand #business #smallbusiness #smallbiz #smb #biztips Share on XIf you are wondering where I stand on this for my own business, my focus has been entirely on building the business brand, but understanding that I intend to always be at the center of my business offerings. I do have other people on my team, I have created a variety of offerings that involve different levels of access to me, and no matter what part of Melissa Forziat Events and Marketing you are experiencing or who you are talking to, my hope is that the brand of the business is consistent throughout.
So, what is the right solution for your business? Now is a good time to do some soul searching. When it comes to personal brand vs. business brand, begin with the end in mind and plan for the future you want when your company is HUGE!