#230: Developing Your Own Personality Brand — Why It Matters and How to Get Started

Welcome to the High Income Business Writing Podcast, helping you propel your writing business to a whole new level. And now, here's your host, Ed Gandia.

Hey there. Welcome to the High Income Business Writing Podcast. I am your host, Ed Gandia, and this is the podcast for business writers and copywriters who want to earn more and less time doing work they love for better clients. You can find detailed show notes for this episode@b2b launcher.com Episode those notes include a summary of our discussion as well as links to resources we mention during the show. We've all heard the expression, you are your biggest asset. So why do many of us feel reluctant to let our personality shine in business? Maybe it's because we don't know how to do that. Or worse, we fear that showing too much of ourselves will alienate potential clients. The surprising thing is that it's actually the opposite. Now more than ever before, people are hungry for personality. Having a distinct point of view and brand message could be the difference between your business barely surviving or thriving, especially right now in this environment. And that's what drives connections. And that's why freelancers and creative professionals, and frankly, organizations of all sizes need to develop their genuine personality brand to stand out in a sea of sameness and a world of duplicates. In today's episode, I'm joined by Danielle Hughes. Danielle helps individuals and organizations write and develop a genuine personality brand, creating content that sounds like you by giving you the space to truly be yourself. In your messaging and in this conversation, we talk about a number of things. We talk about the difference between personal and a personality brand. That's a very important distinction. We talk about what this means for freelance writers and copywriters, why authentic personality in your copy and content is more important than ever, common misconceptions about personality branding, how to get started on the path to creating and building a genuine personality brand, among other things. Now, one last thing. This is not about pretending to be someone else or about creating a brand that doesn't reflect who you are as a person, a business professional. This is about being more you, regardless of your individual personality temperament. Anyway, hope you enjoy this conversation with Danielle Hughes. Danielle, welcome to the show. Great to have you here.

Thank you for having me. I'm excited to be here.

Well, I'm excited to have you, too. This is a topic we haven't really covered in the past, and I'm excited to talk with you about this. But, you know, I always like to ask my guests to give us an introduction. I could introduce you, but I Want it to come from you. And especially because of the topic that we're going to be discussing. Tell us about yourself. Tell us about your business.

Sure. So my company is called More Than Words Marketing, and that is not a riff on the 1990s extreme song. Although I've had so many people send me emails about that.

That's right. Yeah.

Yeah. One client was like, please tell me that's not why you named your company that. And I was like, no. And he's like, oh, thank God, because I couldn't have hired you.

That song is going to be stuck in my head for the rest of the day.

Yes. I mean, I can't believe it already wasn't. And all the young listeners are like, what is she talking about? But anyway, I run a branding and copyrightingality brand, which is essentially creating content that sounds like you by giving you the space to be yourself in your messaging.

Gotcha. Okay. I like that. I know you talk a lot, obviously, about this, and I love the way you think about it. One of the things that I've heard you explain is that business owners, really all businesses should have their own genuine personality brand. So maybe we can start by digging a little bit into that, unpacking that. What do you mean by genuine personality brand? And how is that different from just simply being yourself in everything you do?

Well, so I don't know that it is that different, Ed. I think the struggle is that most people feel like they can't be themselves when they have a business. Right. That they feel like they have to put on one hat for the office Persona and one hat for the family and friend Persona. Yeah.

Why is that, do you think?

I mean, I don't know, but I think growing up, for me being I'm a Gen X, I think you're Gen X. Like, there was a very, very much ingrained that we should follow a certain prescription for your resume needed to look like this. These are the things you need to have on it. This is the way you need to behave. Right. It was a very structured model for anyone that worked in corporate America, which back then was everybody. And you couldn't be too much of yourself. That was not awarded, that was not rewarded. You had to kind of fall into the company line and toe the company line. And so I think from years of being ingrained that you had to kind of be a different person in the office in order to fit some mold. You know, we've created now this society where the younger generation is super used to being themselves because they've had this Digital presence forever. And so who they are digitally and who they are in the office, all of these things meld together. But I think for people that, you know, are a little bit older, it's a struggle to realize that there's a benefit in allowing yourself to be a little bit more you when you're in the office, so to speak, or when you're working on a client or you're working on a brand.

That makes sense. I feel the same way. I was raised a certain way to write. I like your mention of the resume. This is the image that I want to portray. I see a stark contrast between me and somebody in their 20s and the way they talk about themselves and their services. In fact, the contrast is so significant, sometimes I wonder what are they trying to do here. It doesn't quite jive with me.

Yeah. And I think, you know, sometimes it's enviable, right. That you're like, God, they're just so who they are. Like. I mean, I think a lot of people hate on millennials and they hate on the younger generation. And they're like, oh, they're just so this. And they're so, you know, bold. But they're just who they are. They've never been taught that that's something that they should suppress. And so what I'm trying to say is that that is valued now, that standing out and being an individual and being genuine is, is super, super valuable for a person and for an organization. And so how do you create that but still create it in a way where you're not giving away the whole farm? Right? So for me, when people talk about a personal brand, to me, something personal is private. Right. I'm not gonna share that with you. That's something I'm keeping to myself. But my personality, that's always on display, right? That's just who I bring to the world in everything that I do. So how do I bring a little bit of that into messaging so that it does create more of a genuine connection? And I don't sound like a robot and I don't sound like I'm towing the corporate line.

Got it. Now, personal brand. Tell me more about that. Because if it's private, how is that even a brand? Is that really more kind of an internal discussion, internal guidelines that you have with yourself?

I mean, I don't know. I think that term started with like influencers, right? And this desire for them to like have this personal brand, which is like them bringing themselves to the public in a very forward facing way. But I know for A lot of people, that they're uncomfortable sharing too much. And I hear from so many clients and business owners, you know, that I just. I don't feel comfortable. I don't feel like sharing that much. There needs to be boundaries. So when I think of personality, I think of something that there's no boundary. Right? Everyone's got a personality. It's usually in the forefront in some way. And yes, some of us have bigger personalities than others, but everybody has those, like, unique, defining characteristics that make them who they are. So how do you figure out what is that defining characteristic or something that you can put into your messaging where you don't feel like you're sharing anything overly private, but you feel like you're giving something that at least creates a level of distinction around your message and who you are?

Okay, that's fair. So I'm curious, because now I'm thinking this might have some generational elements to it, like we started discussing, but why would you say that having a personality brand is more important in today's climate? Do you think it's because younger generations are making it more important, or do you think that's only part of it?

I think that's part of it. I think the bigger piece is the cluttered landscape and the fact that there's so much content out there, there's so much messaging, there's so much competition. Right. And while there is room for everybody to play in the sandbox, how do you create stronger connections with your audience? If you're too generic, if you're just trying to be like everybody else, you're gonna get lost in the pool. Right? Nobody's gonna come to you. There's gonna be nothing that distinguishes you from everybody else. You could offer the same services, you know, you could do a great job, but nobody is latching on to your message because it's not resonating with them. So. So to me, it's so much more important now to have something that defines you and pushes you forward, that creates a stronger connection with people? Because there is so much choice and there is so much clutter, and that's the only way that you're going to cut through the rest of the pool.

Yeah, that makes perfect sense. I keep telling clients that there are really only two things that set them apart. And when you think about it, they're actually one. They complement each other. One is your brand. I hadn't really thought about a personality brand and what you stand for and what that brand stands for. And then the other is their stories, meaning how they have helped clients or customers solve very specific individual problems. I mean, those are two things that nobody can copy. Everyone can copy technology, process, products, you name it. But nobody can really copy your unique personality and the stories that you have created.

Yeah, agreed. And I think people sell themselves short. I think people are afraid to open up a little or be a little vulnerable or share something because they think that it's going to isolate them. And I think it's actually the opposite. The more you own you, the more you own your personality, the more you're going to attract people that respond to that. And there's so many people that are looking for deeper connections nowadays. Right? And, you know, even that deeper connection can be with a brand, and it can be with, you know, a technology company or a healthcare company or a banking company. But they want messaging that speaks to them where they say, oh, my God, this sounds like me. This sounds like they get me. And again, you could offer the same thing as everybody else, but if there's something in your message that resonates with that person, they're more likely to be attracted to your message.

So I want to make sure that we address some of the concerns I can picture some listeners having, and I'm going to throw one at you, which is the I am either very shy or very introverted or both, or I'm a very private person. How can I make this work? I understand what you're saying, but I don't think this is really, for me. I don't feel comfortable at all. What would you say to somebody like that?

So I would say that actually there is a way to make this work. Right. Again, it's like there's levels of personality. You can be shy, but there's something. You have qualities about you. You have hobbies that you love. You have passions that you do. You have, you know, quirks in your shows that you love. How do you bring out something that you know is part of you, but in a way, again, that you're not giving away anything personal? Like, maybe you're really into Star wars and you can put a little mention in your about page. Or, you know, maybe you have a hobby that you really love to do that you can somehow thread throughout. Like, I always go back to the resume story because we all used to have a section on our resume for, like, skills and hobbies, right? Why do you have that there? That never was anything about the job. It was always random stuff like you do tai chi or yoga, or you're a collector of stamps or whatever. But that was Your way of putting your personality into something that was a completely not personal document. So I think about that when I think about bringing yourself into your messaging. There's stuff about you that's not super personal, but it does make you who you are. And so there's a way to bring that forward without overly sharing. And just because you're shy doesn't mean that you don't have things that you love and that other people can latch onto that they also love. And maybe they're shy as well.

Yeah. So what I'm hearing you say is that your personality is already kind of cooked, so it's really about letting that shine. You're not saying, hey, you need to be loud, obnoxious, and portray yourself as a total extrovert. Because I think that's what a lot of people think of when they say, oh, personality brand. They think you got to be like Gary Vee. And that's not the case.

Not at all. I mean, to me, it's actually the opposite. The personality brand is your personality and what makes you you. And so whether or not you're, like, big and bold and you're out there for the world to see, which is how I am, or you're much more reserved and you're much more quiet, and you're much more introverted, which is how a lot of my clients are. But they still. When we have conversations, like, we still engage, and they're still sharing things about themselves and their life that we can use to kind of hone that message so that their copy still sounds like it came from them, as opposed to being written by a robot or someone who doesn't know who they are.

Yeah, yeah. It doesn't quite jive. Right. It's like, I think they're trying too hard. What if someone doesn't like your personality brand? I mean, could this alienate some prospective clients? Is there a risk there?

Absolutely. I think if you do it right, you will alienate people. Because the whole point is that by you being who you are, you're attracting the people that are gonna want to be attracted to you, like those. So to me, you are weeding out people that aren't the right fit. Right. If you are. If you know, you know, if you appeal to everyone, you appeal to no one. Right. So whatever you are putting out there in the world, you want to attract the people that love that, that totally get it and are gonna be, like, rabid fans and have this affinity for you. You don't need tons of other people. And in fact, by alienating certain people, they're probably not the right clients for you anyway. They might have been difficult, you might have had a tough relationship. They might not have understood the value that you bring. So I think the more you can be you, the more likely you are to connect to the people that you want to work with to begin with.

I think that's very, very sound advice. I mean, that's the whole point of doing this, right?

Yeah.

Just like when you put yourself out there in the real world. I mean, you don't want to attract just anybody.

Agree. It's like niching, Right. I know you've talked tons about niching. The more broad you are, the more diluted your message. Right. So the more milquetoast you are with your message, the more diluted you're going to have in the audience. But the more you can show in your message and the more finite you can be, the more likely you are to attract the people that are. Are the right people for you to begin with.

Gotcha. Okay, so I'm sold. And I'm already thinking, okay, what can I do to either help ensure that that personality brand is clear, or I feel like I need to maybe start from scratch. Can you share some practical steps for doing this? So what could somebody do to develop that brand and to highlight it to clients and prospective clients?

So there's a couple of things. So I have something that people can get on my website that's called About Me Mad Libs. And essentially it lets you build your about page using the Mad Libs format. And so what I've done is because I just think that everything that we do should be fun, even if you're doing something that's quote unquote professional. So I give you, like, two prompts that are more traditional and one prompt that's more whimsical. And by filling it out, it kind of lets you see where you're willing to have a little fun with your description of how you write about yourself. Because I think most of us it's. Where do you even start? I don't know where to start. I don't know how to write about myself. I don't want to boast all of these things. So when somebody gives you something that you can just kind of fill in, you fill it in. And it's always surprising to me how by the time somebody gets towards the end, they're really having fun with it and they're really opening up, and it just kind of reveals things that you probably never thought you'd be willing to Share or things that you never even realized were part of your own personality but are now coming out into your messaging.

I know I'm going to ask you at the end about your website, but is there a particular page on the site where people download that?

Yeah, if they sign up for my newsletter, which is only every two weeks, they'll get the Mad Libs for free. So that's kind of like the little fun perk. But another way they could do it is I would say, like, try to pretend like you're writing to a friend as opposed to writing for a client or a brand, and see how you feel when you're writing to a friend and see how you can deliver your message in a way that feels. You just tend to write more like yourself and less stiff and just kind of freeform. And maybe same thing, like, pick a topic and just pretend like you're writing that topic to a friend as opposed to writing it for your client. And that sometimes will also open up ways where you're like, oh, God, I realize I use this word a lot, or I tend to say this expression, or I tend to have this kind of salutation. And it's again, just taking down the barriers. Because I think when you think, oh, I need to turn on my business hat, I need to turn on my professional hat, all of a sudden all of who we are gets suppressed. But if you change who you're writing for to somebody that you know, a friend, your mother, your grandmother, whatever, it loosens up the restrictions and you tend to be a lot less formal, and you can really kind of see the type of language that comes out in the message like that.

I like that a lot because actually, now thinking back, that piece of advice is what really helped me. So a few years ago, I started writing a weekly newsletter that I publish on Sundays. I still publish it. And the whole idea was, okay, just one thought, one very specific idea, and just a very casual conversation about that. So I don't even outline it. I just have the nugget, and then I just start writing about it. And it gets minimal editing. And that has really. It was very difficult at first, but that has really enabled me to open that gate, if you will, and let that personality shine through. Because it's unfiltered, right?

So you're doing it and you didn't even know it.

No, I didn't know it. Yeah, exactly. So I like that idea because it's a good building block to making this work.

I was going to say one more thing. You can also reach out to people in your sphere and in your world and just ask them to describe you. Or just pick some words that describe you and just say, hey, I'm just doing this thing, you know, would you mind sending me the top three or five words that come to mind when you think of me? And, like, put together a collection and again, just see how people perceive you, because chances are that's already the personality again that's on display. And then those are things you can use in your messaging.

I like that. Hopefully they'll be honest. Right?

Hopefully you're going to ask. Nothing. Mean. Nothing mean. But like, you know, specific. Ask them to get specific.

Yeah, no, I like that. So what I'm hearing is that there may be two different ways to let this. Once you have something develop. Of course there is your website, actually, three, your website conversations that you would have with prospective clients and clients. And then the other one would be content. Right. Whether it's your blog, newsletter, a podcast, whatever it might be, it seemed like those are three ways to think about it. I'm just trying to kind of categorize things. Does that make sense?

You mean think about it in terms of, like, defining your personality, brand.

Yeah. Where are you going to communicate that? How it's going to be communicated? In what form, medium?

Yeah, I mean, I think it's in everything. Every message that you put out there and everything you touch. So you're talking about social media? Yeah, social media, yeah, social media, yeah. All the. I mean, any place, you know, email communication, just any outreach to begin with, should have some level of your brand message in it so that it's consistent. Right. It's almost like having your own personal brand guide. Right. Like most companies, most brands, they have a guide. It tells them what their personality is. These are the words we use. These are the words we don't use. Right. This is our style. You know, just, you know, do you have an AP style or a Chicago style? Like, what is your brand guide? And maybe it's creating that for yourself. And like, these are the words that resonate with me. These are things that don't. These are the content pillars that I want to focus on. And anything outside of that, that's not really me. You know, it could be a really fun exercise for a writer to write their own personal brand guide and figure out kind of who they are and what they stand for.

I like that idea because it's kind of freeform. And then you could also incorporate those words that you're getting from your friends and people you do business with. Right. In terms of how they describe you.

Yeah. And to your point. Yeah. And to your point, Ed, like, you can ask clients, too, like I think. Or go back to. Go back to testimonials or go back to your LinkedIn recommendations. And again, just see what. See what the through lines are. What are the same things that keep coming up when clients talk about you or when people have recommended you?

Yeah. Yeah, I like that. You know, sometimes we live in our own little worlds and we have this idea of, well, we have an image of that we want to portray, or we think that, you know, that that's really us. But it's interesting what the world sees.

Exactly.

So one of the things I'm going to come back to something I mentioned a little bit earlier, but I think it's an important thing. It's how can we ensure we don't come across as fake or artificial? I'm sure you'll just kind of re. Emphasize some of the things we've been talking about, but I think that's a valid concern for a lot of people, especially those who haven't done this before. And they just feel like what they have is what they feel comfortable with. Now that they step outside their comfort zone, how can they do it in a truly authentic way?

I mean, to me, there's nothing more fake than not being yourself. Right. So if you have not brought any of your personality into your messaging, then you're not being genuine to begin with. Right. You're putting on some pretend Persona of who you think you're supposed to be or who you think that your brand is supposed to be. So I actually feel like adding that little bit of personality is going to completely shift you from being something that is robotic and you think you should be versus who you genuinely are.

Yeah. Okay. Along those lines, I'm curious on your take on things like politics, current events, religion. You know, I mean, it used to be like three taboo topics. Now it's like seven. You know, talk about what you eat because, you know, people call you a freak. So, you know, what are your thoughts there? Because it seems like those rules keep changing. When I was growing up, they said, avoid these. Now a lot of people are saying no. You know, and for some, it's like, no, some of these things are part of my brand.

Some of them.

How do you make that distinction?

I mean, that's what I was just gonna say. I think it's what you're comfortable with. Like, I don't think I ever talk about politics or anything with my brand. I am Very public about the fact that I'm a big wine person. So that's out there.

That's why I like you already.

There you go. And I do CrossFit. So, like, those are my two things that are always in tons of my messaging and that have resonated with people that tend to come to my. But I think you have to go with what you're comfortable with. Right. So the whole thing, again, back to, like, personality, brand, not personal. It's whatever you feel comfortable sharing, you should share. And I don't think anything is taboo as long as you're owning it and you're saying that this is who I want to be. But I don't think you need to go overboard. I don't think that if you know that you need to get too in the weeds about things that are so potentially that will ignite a firestorm like politics or some of those other things. So I think you just have to use your judgment, saying, you know what? I don't really talk about this in my private life. I'm certainly not going to talk about it in my brand.

Yeah. Unless, of course, you know, you are a political writer or. Right. Some of those.

Yes.

Or you write for a lot of clients where you know that a certain viewpoint that matches yours. I don't know.

Yes. Yeah. I mean, if you're writing for Politica or the Daily Beast or something like that. Yes, of course. Then it makes sense. But if you're writing about the markets and stuff, and probably not.

Yeah. I have some clients who feel very strongly about this. And at first I thought, ooh, be careful. But it works. It works for them. So one of them, for instance, only works with companies that have a point of view or they want to have that point of view communicated well. And he's really good at that. But it's always in areas that could come across as controversial, especially things like with the environment, I mean, which is still a controversial thing. Right. There's so many topics. You know, he makes a really good point that, look, you need to have a point of view, and you do. Don't hold back. I mean, within reason.

And I think that goes back to what you asked about. Would you potentially alienate some audience? Yes. Right. So that obviously your client is definitely alienating some audience, but they're also attracting a much more rabid audience that really aligned to that point of view.

Yeah. Yeah, that's a great point. You don't try to be everything to everybody. So, hey, this is great stuff. Danielle, thank you for sharing. All this with us. I want to make sure that listeners know where they can learn more about you, connect with you. Of course, subscribe to your newsletter so they can get these goodies. Where should I send them?

So they should go to morethanwordscopy.com yeah. And my newsletter is on there. And anything else? I'm currently doing a workshop right now to help people kind of figure out their brand and their brand message. So that's on there. And all my social channels, which I'm not going to list, but they can also find me there.

Super. Well, thanks for coming on today.

Thank you.

Really enjoyed this discussion.

Yeah, me too. Thank you so much.

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