7 Deadly Sins of Personal Branding

What is a 'personal brand'? Just like company or product branding, it's built around imaging and messaging that is designed to create a feeling.

And in the case of personal branding, it influences how you want others to feel about you. From your photos to other brand images, elements and even content, there is a lot that goes into creating your unique brand. Displayed correctly and consistently (across all marketing platforms), a well-defined brand can elevate agent recognition and help to establish credibility and authority. However, when executed incorrectly, the effects are lackluster at best, and harmful at worst. To help you avoid the pitfalls of personal branding, we've compiled a list of what we feel are the 7 deadliest sins.

NO DIFFERENTIATION

Branding is not about being known for your profession. It's about being known for being different in your profession. If all agents were the same, how would your customers know who to choose? Lack of differentiation is by far the #1 personal branding sin. We love to tell the story of a real estate agent who expressed to us that she was already well-branded in her area.

She stated, "When I walk into a restaurant in my community, people already know I'm a real estate agent." And while that is a great start, it's nowhere close to successful branding. Let's assume I walked into that restaurant and noticed her. But I also noticed two other agents in the same restaurant. Now, who do I choose? Which 'brand' stands out to me? What lets me know that one of them is uniquely positioned to serve my needs?

NO FOCUS