Rebrand Yourself (9 Tips)
Every so often you might need to reinvent yourself and rebrand your personal brand a little more than usual with a version 2.0 You.
I used to be able to count the number of times I posted on my social media per year on one hand. Every so often a particularly exciting life event would coax me out of the woodwork. Until, I started working on my personal brand (and my limiting beliefs).
I now, by choice, share a weekly blog, YouTube video, Podcast on personal branding (and business, marketing and development) and an email. I post on my LinkedIn and Instagram several times a week.
I also once hated public speaking. When I got my first personal brand speaker engagements, I figured I’d only accept invitations as a personal brand speaker when asked. I now proactively promote myself as a personal brand speaker. In some ways, I’m a personal brand speaker on my YouTube Channel and Podcast every week by choice too. Every so often I don’t even recognise myself. And I’m glad.
I once read someone sharing a story about speaking with a mentor before a long trip away. And the advice their mentor gave them was that when they came back they didn’t want to be able to recognise them. The mentee was perplexed. But, the mentor explained they wanted the expedition to change them so much that they were unrecognisable from as their former selves to themselves and those they knew. They wanted the trip to inspire change.
In personal branding, so many worry about not feeling authentic when working on their personal brand. But, there’s not feeling authentic, and there’s not growing. Not levelling up. Not, as Warren Buffet might say, “building a moat” around your personal brand value.
Most marketers would agree, consistency is key. Some would even say it’s king. But, there’s one caveat. Eventually, most branding strategies need some form of rebranding. So maybe, it’s time to rebrand your personal brand?
In Dori Clarke’s Reinventing You, the personal branding expert proposes at some stage (or several) in your career, you’ll need to reinvent yourself.
Maybe you’re looking for a career change, Maybe you’re not seeing the results in the work you’re hoping for. Maybe you are, but you’ve become predictable. Being predictable has its benefits, like proving reliable. But, it also puts you at risk in the marketplace. This might be in the form of a new and exciting prospect stealing your audience’s attention. Whatever the context, it’s no different for your personal brand.
When it comes to personal brands, rebranding your personal brand tells a reinvention or transformation story. It signals to your people that you’re evolving and growing instead of staying stagnant. It’s the catalyst for renewed energy, new opportunities and new interest in your personal brand and pursuits.
So, here’s my top tips for your personal brand rebrand:
Tip #1: Time your personal brand rebrand
In Daniel Pink’s book, When, he describes how social scientists call the first day of the year a ‘temporal landmark’. Like humans who navigate landmarks through space, landmarks can also help navigate time. Prominent dates help you navigate your way.
A study of Google searches revealed the word “diet” always soared on 1 January. This was by approximately 80 percent more than other days. But, it didn’t stop there. Searches also spiked at the start of the month, the first day of the week and the day after national holidays.
Natural fresh starts can be found all year round:
First day of the month
Mondays
Start of a season
Your birthday
Your work anniversary
Your first day back after vacation
Or certain life events might become a catalyst:
Getting married
A breakup or divorce
Getting a new job
Losing your job
Moving to a new city or country
Moving back home
Moving house
Graduating
So, rebrand your personal brand around a natural fresh start.
Tip #2: You can take your old personal brand into your personal brand rebrand
Wherever your personal brand rebrand transition leads you, your reputation can follow you into new endeavours. Stanford professor, Jeffery Pfeffer, calls this the psychological phenomenon of the ‘halo effect’. Whereby if you’re talented in one domain, people will assume you have the ability to be good in another.
In a similar vein, Clark in Reinventing You also emphasises the importance of your past experience. Rather than discounting it altogether, connect your narrative. Tell your story in a way that helps your audience make sense of your transition. Help give yourself the credibility you have earned for your personal brand.
Tip #3: Establish clear goals for your personal brand rebrand
As Stephen Covey said in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People:
“Begin with the end in mind.”
How does your personal brand rebrand fit into your overall vision for your personal brand? How does rebranding your personal brand put you closer to your vision and the core values of your personal brand?
Tip #4: Research your personal brand rebrand
You are the Creative Director of your own personal brand. In any good business, every new project begins with an exploration or conceptual stage. Research doesn’t need to be boring.
Depending on your personal brand rebrand goals, there’s a whole world of creative resources available to you, like:
YouTube
Blogs
Podcasts
Pinterest
Instagram
In your spare time, start consuming content for fun that aligns with your personal brand rebrand goals.
Consider this a chance for guilt-free scrolling. Ask yourself what resonates with you, and why.
Tip #5: Rename yourself
Whether it’s legal or just on social media, could you benefit from a rename? Stay with me. Reviewing a brand name is usually a natural part of a business’ rebranding process. So, there’s nothing wrong with making it a part of yours. Sometimes names work well already, sometimes they don’t.
A rename for your personal brand can come in several forms. Maybe it’s a fully official legal name change. Maybe it’s just for your friends and family on social media.
This might naturally align with a marriage, divorce or other major life transition.
Even names, which you likely have had little control over, can be ‘repackaged’. Generic names can be made unique. Like Catherine Kaputa shares in her book, You Are a Brand, here are just some ways to approach a name change, official or otherwise:
Use your middle name as your brand e.g. Angelina Jolie Voight became Angelina Jolie (meaning pretty in French).
Use a quirky nickname
Use your middle name e.g. Sarah Jessica Parker
Use a double-barrelled last name e.g. Catherine Zeta-Jones
Use initials e.g. J.K Rowling
Spell common names in an uncommon way
Hang your hat on one name e.g. Oprah
Modify to add flair or a foreign accent e.g. if it’s been lost along the way, embrace the proper pronunciation of your name
Simplify your name e.g. Jennifer Anistonopolous became Jennifer Aniston
Totally make it up if that’s your preference
Make a “bad name” work - embrace its quirky quality
You may not even want to share a name change at all, but simply embrace an alter ego. A name you give the more confident version of yourself. Think Beyonce and her ‘Sasha Fierce’ alter ego.
Tip #6: Rebrand your personal brand visual identity
Why visuals matter
In 2006, Princeton Psychologists, Janine Willis and Alexander Todorov, published some compelling conclusions about the speed of first impressions. They concluded they form in just a tenth of a second.
Your first impressions:
Sends an immediate cue that creates an instant impression of your brand.
Causes an assumption about what you represent.
Causes experiences with you to be filtered through that assumption.
Define your personal brand rebrand appearance
Thinking like a brand, establish a recognisable look and feel in the marketplace. One that communicates for you.
I’ve covered a lot of this relating to clothes in my previous blog, and YouTube episodes, so here I want to provide a more holistic picture of what your personal brand rebrand might consider visually:
Personal clothing style (including signature elements)
Hair
Makeup
Posture
Physical environment
Define your personal brand rebrand colour
Colours have meaning. They send cues. Colours are a key pillar of a brand’s visual identity. How are you embracing a colour-conscious mindset for your personal brand?
Consider:
Your signature colour (or perhaps a new hue of your existing defining colour)
Your colour palette
Your accent colour
Visit my previous blog for more on the meaning behind popular colours.
Define your personal brand rebrand imagery
Have you used the same photos (or profile photos) and imagery for years? Perhaps the same image style? Consider rebranding your imagery, image treatments or visual devices.
Tip #7: Refine your personal brand rebrand verbal identity
As I’ve shared in previous blogs, take time to define your tone of voice.
Even if it’s not your current voice, what do you most want to be remembered for? Define 4-5 key tone of voice traits.
Moving forward, what is on-brand and off-brand for your tone of voice? It could even be as simple as picking more eloquent words instead of swearing. Maybe it’s taking the time to listen, pause and process before speaking.
Once you’ve defined your tone of voice, update all the written and verbal elements of your personal brand touch points and start to practise your new verbal identity in everything going forward. My previous blogs cover lots more detail on storytelling for your personal brand.
How do you know if you’re on track? One of my favourite weekly emails comes from Grammarly. Even with the free version, it tracks the top characteristics of your tone of voice. You can use it to see if you’re aligned or similar to your aspirational tone of voice.
Tip #8: Be consistent, but not comfortable
Robert Kiyosaki in his book Rich Dad Poor Dad highlights that psychologists believe that the fear of public speaking is caused by the fear of ostracism. A fear of standing out, of criticism, of ridicule and of being an outcast. All things that historically in tribal times, would have put your life at risk. Which of course, a personal brand rebrand most likely will not.
Kiyosaki believes this fear is what prevents people from seeking new ways to solve their problems. We conform, not question and accept common opinions and trends. But, the easier path despite its short-term gain, can have more long-term pain. Taking the path less travelled takes bravery in the face of fear.
Fear keeps you in your comfort zone. It stands between you and your potential.
In Failing Forward, John C. Maxwell outlines ‘traps’ that make people back away from risk. A standout is the ‘Embarrassment Trap’. Deep down no one wants to look bad. To which Maxwell has some invaluable advice:
“Get over it.”
You have to get over yourself - because everyone else has. Psychologists’ ‘spotlight effect’ also reminds us that we overestimate the attention people pay to us. Remember, people aren’t thinking about you as much as you think.
Tip #9: Prime your audience for your personal brand rebrand
If you know you have a rebrand in the works, consider priming your audience. This might include:
Dropping hints
Experimenting
Sharing third-party content of something you’ll soon be aligned with yourself
Aligning with an initiative you want to eventually be more involved with or lead
Practising in public
Sharing an interest or passion project, before you try to profit from it
Sharing your learnings
Sharing a project in progress
Picture this. You’re an aspiring artist. Share more content around art and related fields. Share the art you’re making for fun before you try to make a living from it. Share a style that’s resonating with you, before you release your next inspired collection. Share more aesthetically inspired furniture, before you realise your own home furniture range.
So, ask yourself if it’s time for a personal brand rebrand. If it is, think like a business in executing it. Remember your roots, have clear goals, do your research, and revisit both your visual and verbal personal brand identity. Aim for consistency, not comfort and where possible, prime your audience. Rebrand yourself to put you closer to your personal brand vision.
