How to Build a (Profitable) Personal Brand

How to Build a (Profitable) Personal Brand

Starting a business from scratch is hard; there are many moving parts.

One thing that will almost guarantee success, though, is building a personal brand.

Building a personal brand will allow you to start almost any business you can dream of.

Think of Mr. Beast. He sells burgers, chocolate, and merchandise (t-shirts, hats, etc...). He also sells advertising on his YouTube videos and more.

He is NOT a cook, candy creator, fashion mogul, or ad agency—he is the brand. He built a huge following on YouTube, and because of that, he can sell anything he wants, and it will succeed.

But how do you go about building a personal brand? That's what you will discover in the rest of this newsletter.

Good news: you don't even need a fraction of Mr. Beast's following to build a profitable personal brand. There are thousands of people on the internet making six and seven figures with small personal brands.

First, I want to cover some myths about creating a personal brand as a business.

1. You need a large following first. Then, you can make money or start a real business. That's not true. I built a $20K+ per month online business from scratch in less than a year with only 2000 IG followers. We will go deeper into this soon.
2. You need lots of experience in a specific area. Only then can you begin talking about the subject. (Again, not true.) I'll show you how to begin right away without specific knowledge at the start.

Before we dive into the details, you must understand that this does not happen overnight. It takes consistent daily actions that will not seem to gain any traction at start. This is normal, be ready to work daily for 6 - 12 months before seeing results.

This is good news; most of your competition won't last that long.

So, what is a personal brand?

A personal brand is the mix of skills, experiences, and personality you show your audience.

Your audience is your social media followers (Instagram, YouTube, X) and newsletter subscribers. Also, it includes your current customers, if you have any, and your friends and family.

For this example, let's imagine that you're a personal trainer or want to become one. You want to build a following in the fitness industry and make money by creating digital programs that help people meet their fitness goals. Your specialty in fitness doesn't matter for now. It can be weight loss, bodybuilding, or general health.

Start by picking one platform to create content on (Instagram, YouTube, X, TikTok, etc...). For this example of a personal trainer, I suggest starting with Instagram.

Every day, you will do the following tasks.

• 3-5 DMs per day, provide value and build your network. You're not selling yet.
• 2-3 value posts a day. Study other creators who have built a personal brand that you're trying to emulate.
• 1-2 carousels per week. These should provide massive value and have a call to action at the end, asking readers to subscribe to your newsletter.
• 10-20 comments a day on accounts that have the audience you're trying to build. Don't be generic; provide value or personal experiences. (Other people will see your comments and visit your page.)
• 1 promotion a day. This doesn't have to be a sale; it can be promoting your newsletter or lead magnet.
• Send 1 good post a day to someone in your network. Provide value.

In the beginning all of your posts should be educational and provide actionable advice for your audience. You can expand your content as you grow. But, focus on useful, educational posts until you're making monthly revenue from your brand.

Next, start a weekly newsletter.

You can use tools like ConvertKit or BeeHive to publish your newsletter. This is where you will build authority with your audience and promote your paid services and products.

Stick to a regular posting schedule.

For example, I post my newsletter every Tuesday at 10 am EST. You can pre-schedule this using your newsletter software.

You'll want to post your newsletters on your website each week. Then, you can link back to them in future issues and in your social media posts. This will create a content flywheel to keep your audience engaged.

After you have your newsletter set up, create your first "lead magnet".

A lead magnet is something that you give away in exchange for a persons contact info (name, email, phone number, etc...)

Just because people are not paying for your lead magnet with actual money, doesn't mean that there isn't a cost. They are giving you there time, which is arguably the most valuable thing a person can give. Make sure that your lead magnet provides a lot of value, one way to go about this is by asking yourself "would I pay at least $100 for this?" If the answer is no, make it better.

Your lead magnet is often the first impression, showing what it's like to work with you or buy your products. Give so much value for free that your consumers think, "damn if this is free, I can't imagine what their paid products will be like."

The last step is launching your first paid product, service, or coaching program.

One of my favorite ways to monetize is through group coaching. In the beginning you launch a very small "pilot program". For example 5 - 10 people who sign up to your XYZ coaching program for $500.

If you can sell 10 people on your pilot program, that's a $5000 launch. This isn't a ton of money of course but it gives you traction, it shows you the possibility of what's to come as your audience grows.

So, where do you find the initial 10 people?

The first place is your newsletter and lead magnet subscribers. These people have already given you their contact info and have been indoctrinated in the value you provide. In other words, they trust you. Start teasing your pilot program a month before launching. Peak their interest, let them know what to expect, but don't oversell.

The next place is your social media followers. You don't want to oversell on social media, but you can talk about your product launch and guide them to a lead magnet or wait list for more information. Send a DM to anyone who engages on your post about the pilot program. To increase engagement, you can use a call to action such as "comment INFO," and I'll DM you more details.

In every product launch or coaching opportunity that you open up, make sure to use scarcity. Limit the available spots open or set up narrow window to enroll. Include bonuses for people who sign up before a certain date or for the first X amount of people to enroll or buy.

Use this process to continue improving and iterating on your content, courses, and coaching programs. Take feedback from your audience and students and continue to build, grow, and improve.

The most important thing to remember is that this all takes consistency. Fall in love with the journey, not the destination.