5 Low-Key Benefits of Building a Brand (That's Not You)
What’s your take?
Where are you at in your branding journey? Do we even like the phrase personal branding? I’m not sure I do, tbh… Let’s chat about this and more on Threads.
Ten+ years ago I decided to create a stand alone brand that would hold alllll of my freelance-style work. (Protecting my privacy, my mental health, and my bandwidth for doing alllll the things was a big driver here.)
But what was the trade-off? If I wasn’t showing up online as me, would I miss out on real relationship-nurture potential? How would I be vulnerable enough on my social feeds to connect?
It would be different if I wasn’t the chief cook and bottle washer over here. But as the founder of Modern Publicist, I accept I am - for now - my brand.
The caveat is, that my brand is not me. My brand does not have full access to me.
I'm proud of the work I’ve done for my clients and their respective brands. But when it came to Modern Publicist in the years since, let’s be honest. My heart wasn’t always in it. I kept my brand somewhat active through sporadic Instagram posts. I shared on LinkedIn every few years.
Was that effective? Meh. Am I glad I went the brand route? Absolutely.
When I sat down to write this morning, I didn’t intend to make the case for establishing a brand identity that’s not you. I mean… everywhere we turn, the advice is to do the opposite. Show your face. Change your handle to your name. Be authentic. Be you.
But alas. Here we are.
A CALL TO BRANDING
5 Low-Key Benefits of Building a Brand
Focus and clarity. This was paramount for me. Modern Publicist, the brand, defined much of my career identity early on. It created space for a clear decision process. It also made room for home and work to co-exist well. Both were intense; I needed that space.
Brand equity. Creating an asset with brand equity can open you to more expansion. It can attract investment, partnerships, and other opportunities. I set the stage early to build brand equity.
Professionalism. There’s a legitimacy that comes with a well-thought-out brand experience. So maybe I am typing this at my kitchen table. But coming from a brand translates more as an established entity versus a personal endeavor (ahem, @ gmail… really?).
Scalability. It becomes easier to delegate tasks and responsibilities as a brand. I’ve kept a unified client experience as a brand. This was while needing to outsource and involve outside vendors. I wouldn’t have been able to do that as a freelancer and a gmail.
Mitigating Risk. I feel like I am stating the obvious here. A brand protects your personal life and privacy. If something goes horribly wrong, it protects your reputation. This aligns with my first point about focus and clarity. But, there are added legal and financial aspects. You might want to explore them by forming an LLC or S-Corp.
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