When it comes to marketing your technology or FinTech brand, building your personal brand online can help!
Did you know that 82% of people are more likely to trust a company when its senior executives are active on social media, and 77% are more likely to buy from such a company?
That’s why personal branding is vital to any B2B content marketing strategy. It isn’t just about winning popularity scores on social media. It’s about lead generation and company growth.
When personal branding and company branding work harmoniously, your credibility and sales will increase. People buy from people, even in the B2B world.
So, when your audience engages with your personal content, they will also engage with your brand’s content and think of your business when they’re ready to buy.
On this month’s TechTalks, Kathryn Strachan, Managing Director of CopyHouse, is joined by:
They discussed the importance of building your personal brand and boosting brand equity with B2B content. They also dived into the best ways to get your brand out there.
You can check out the TechTalks episode on-demand here or read our highlights below!
It’s quite typical to see social media influencers promoting products in the B2C world, and it makes a lot of sense why they do it. However, building your online personal brand if you're a B2B business is just as important.
“Regardless of what sector you're in, people do business with people. So, naturally, we’re used to following people’s stories online.
Creating connections whilst building your personal brand is great for the B2B sector because it can accelerate that trust-building process. People already know who you are or have an understanding of what you believe in, your values, your strengths and what you bring to the table.”
- Ryan O’Keeffe, Founder and Business Leader of Jago.
Building your personal brand empowers you to start conversations with other people. So, when you’re face to face with them or on a phone call to them, it feels less like cold calling and more natural, as there’s already an established relationship of trust supporting the discussion.
Ryan gives the example of Elon Musk and his company Tesla. Despite the negative reviews stemming from Tesla’s ‘poor’ customer service, Tesla still experiences incredible growth due to Elon Musk’s well-established personal brand.
Not only does building a personal brand create more meaningful and trusting relationships, but it has also helped brands to understand their audience and lead with empathy.
“The B2B world is becoming more emotional, and empathy has started to play a bigger role. Traditionally speaking, copywriting and B2B communications were really dry and jargon-heavy. That’s because they lacked emotion.
Businesses were trying to speak to businesses rather than people. Failing to connect with their audience and failing to lead with empathy is costly for sales.
After the pandemic, more brands have started to form connections with people through creating personal content and focusing on personal branding.
So, having this method has allowed B2B brands to understand what their audience needs and how to cater for them.”
- Kathryn Strachan, Managing Director of CopyHouse.
According to the Content Marketing Institute, LinkedIn is the most used B2B
social media platform for organic and paid content distribution. This is followed by Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and then Instagram.
This is no surprise to our expert panellists, as they have also built their brand using platforms like LinkedIn.
“LinkedIn is a great starting point for creating a personal brand.
When I started Great Influence, I found it difficult to reach people using the Great Influence LinkedIn page. However, because I had built my personal brand prior, networking with people was so much easier.
I found that when a business is starting up, it's crucial to focus on personal branding and to use storytelling as a competitive advantage.”
- Ash Jones, Founder of Great Influence.
Using storytelling as a competitive advantage has pushed Ash’s personal brand and businesses further.
In the TechTalks episode, Ash explains that during his early days of building his brand, he went with the narrative of “university dropouts who are running the internet”.
This line sparked intrigue and mystery. People were asking themselves, how are these university dropouts making so much money? The curiosity led to people interacting with Ash and then his brands.
The same can apply to other B2B brands. Before exploring the business brand, people will first interact with personal brands, as they’re more authentic.
There’s a heavy misconception that personal branding is only suitable for extroverts and those who are constantly online. However, that’s far from the truth.
Everyone starts their personal branding journey somewhere, and some do it without even noticing.
If you’re struggling to start yours, take small steps like commenting on others’ posts and sharing information. Then, gradually build up to planning and writing your own content.
It doesn’t have to be anything extravagant or a deep dark secret. It can be as simple as telling people you dyed your hair or you went on holiday to the Maldives.
If you are still struggling, there are several ways to tackle writer’s block:
Depending on how often you want to post on social media, plan what you’re going to publish by reflecting on your day and your business. You can also do some research into what’s happening in the world and comment on that.
Whether they’re good or bad, jot down any ideas you may have during your day. The last thing you want is for a shower thought to be lost in the shower.
LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook are booming with conversations waiting to be had. If you can’t start a conversation, join one. Interacting with others can help you build your online presence, and it can get you noticed.
“I found that if you have a passion for something, then there’s always something to talk about. In fact, sometimes, there’s too much to talk about, and you need to make sure you're not jumbling up your content and boring your audience. Once you get started, you’ll be surprised with how many ideas flow through.”
- Gavin Neate, Founder and CEO of Neatebox Ltd.
“At first, I struggled writing about myself because I thought I was not a conventional business owner. I didn’t have a typical job and run a typical agency. We’ve never done things by the book, and so I didn’t really know what to write.
I then embraced the fact that CopyHouse and myself are different. My team inspired me as I realised they have a passion for working at CopyHouse because they’re also out of the box.
I then started writing whatever I wanted to. It’s far from the cliché business owner posts, but it’s authentic, it starts conversations, and it’s me.”
- Kathryn Strachan, Managing Director of CopyHouse.
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