If you’re starting to build up your business, then you’re probably starting to make a name for yourself. Your name is fast becoming your brand as you assert yourself as an influencer and an ‘authority’ voice in your area of specialism. The trouble is that entrepreneurship and branding don’t necessarily go hand-in-hand. It’s not always easy to know how to build up your reputation at the same time you’re trying to build your business! Here are just a few ways you can make sure your name is as big as your products:

Put Your Name On Your Products

Some entrepreneurs go all out and use their own name as a brand name. If this is a step too far, don’t worry. Lots of entrepreneurs are pretty shy too! Of course, others in business know that selling on is often inevitable. Is it going to prove more challenging to sell on a product that has your name on it?

It all starts with an idea – image source

Put Your Name TO Your Products

An alternative to naming all your products after yourself is to endorse them instead. If you’re in the beauty and lifestyle business, you might launch your own perfume or cosmetics range. If you visit Classic Cosmetics, you’ll see how something as simple as creating a lipstick might lead to an entire range quite quickly. If you’re in fashion, you might find a manufacturer to produce a line of tees or underwear. The list is endless.

The point is that those products will be associated with you as long as you want them to be. You can talk about them in your blog posts, produce YouTube video demonstrations, and market them directly. Make sure they are as unique as you are. As your products become more popular, your personal brand becomes equally well known. Of course, there are times when this wouldn’t be the best course of action. You have to pretty charismatic to pull of a whole video!

Put Yourself On The Line

If you have something to say that is useful to someone else, then put it out there and sign your name to it. You might guest post on a well-known blog. Perhaps you can even start to develop relationships with reporters and journalists writing about your sector? If you offer to help with upcoming stories, they might come to you for a quote. This immediately puts you in the limelight, and you instantly become that voice of authority.

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Be the go-to-girl – image credit

Talk To Those That Want To Talk To You

Staying aloof isn’t going to do you, your business, or your brand any good. People talk about their experiences with well-known people all over social media every day. Stay grounded, charming, thoughtful, caring and helpful. Even if people are negative, don’t battle back or make excuses. Work to solve problems, and go the extra mile. Take time to engage your customers directly.

It’s not easy to build a good brand image for yourself. For a start, you’re very close to it all! It’s hard to detach from it personally. This is why so many celebrities use agents and PR specialists to build their brand for them. At the end of the day, it’s just a public profile, and not the real you.