Do you want to build and manage your brand? But are you terrified of selling yourself? What if you just can’t connect? And, even worse, what if you have to change yourself to make an impact?

Actually, when you connect with yourself on a deeper level, you will become more valuable to your audience.

That’s what personal branding—and values branding—is all about.

I’m sure you’ve been infected with someone else’s passion before. 

I have a friend who’s completely committed to loving computer games. And even though I know nothing about computer games (and have never played a single one in my life), I really enjoy her passion. If she stopped talking about Final Fantasy, I’d feel like I lost a part of my friend.

Here, I hope to share with you a new brand strategy template for making connections that is authentic and essential to who you are. It’s branding from within, not salesy marketing.

 

Bring People Together

Everyone in the world yearns to connect with something bigger than themselves. It’s human nature to want to be in a group and be understood.

If you can dig deeply into the passion and universal values that brought you to where you are today (starting your own business), you’ll find that people gravitate towards you.

And, with all the social media and inbound marketing tools out there, it’s easy to share your excitement and find people who agree.

No matter what point you’re at with your business, you can bring people together by making the idea of your business universal. 

For example, the most successful retail stores in the world are known for their customer service and convenience: Nordstrom, Best Buy, Amazon. That’s because everyone shares the desire to find what they’re looking for and be treated well.  

So, if your business sells hand lotion, remember the way you feel when you put on hand lotion. What makes you passionate about it? What universal need does hand lotion serve? Well, to me, hand lotion makes my hands soft so that I can connect to people through touch—the softness of my hands matches the softness of my heart. 

So, take a few moments and ask yourself why you started your business. What beliefs and values are you promoting in your life?

Write down how you feel when you’re engaging in your passion. You can use those feeling to connect with your best, most inspiring self.

 

Never Lose Sight of Yourself

As you build your brand, your need a brand strategy template that will keep your values aligned with your business. Whenever you feel like you’re not connecting with people, take a few minutes to bring yourself back. 

To reconnect with your best self, remember:

what makes you unique

what values you hold

how you’ve lived your values and felt great in that past

what makes you happy 

how you can make other people happy with your knowledge

The words that describe your emotions are the words your audience can connect with too.

The actions you’ve been through when you were struggling and when you were happy are the actions you can share with your audience.

Now, whatever you’ve got to do for your business today, bring that list of feelings into it. Do what needs to be done with passion that’s irresistible. That’s brand building and management that your audience will appreciate and want to connect with.

 

What are you most passionate about in life? Leave a comment below.