Brand Compass: Personal Branding for Consultants & Experts

Have you contemplated creating a course or online programme in your business?

I’m not a fan of the hype of “build a course” and they will come. In fact, building a course or a programme is not an easy journey, but it also doesn’t have to be hard.

I decided we need to dig into this, on the show, so that maybe I can open you up more to the benefits of looking at diversifying how to capture and harness your knowledge and ultimately how to deliver it in different ways to your ideal clients.

My guest today is well versed on this and when he and I got to talking about the subject, I knew instantly that we were coming from the same angle on this – because he and I are really grafters – we aren’t afraid of hard work and believe that there needs to be thought and process baked into how you approach this course or programme building situation.

Come join us. I even share some of my behind-the-scenes experiences of building my group programme.

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𝗚𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Glen Long is an Online Course Creation consultant, teacher and mentor.

His background is steeped in learning and he gained his experience building successful courses for a well-known online entrepreneur that generated over $1 million and served more than 1,000 paying students.

Glen is an unusual chap in that he also used to work for BBC Comedy Online where he was a script editor and producer working with writers and performers to create viral comedy clips.

Today he helps business owners create effective and engaging courses which blend seamlessly with their offline services and heighten the value for their ideal clients.

𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗬 𝗥𝗢̈𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗨𝗡𝗗 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Shelley is a systems-led brand strategist working with knowledge experts…those who teach, educate, consult, advise or mentor others. Her specialism is in value propositions, the product eco-system sitting inside brand strategies.

South African born and British-grown, Shelley has worked with 150+ brands across 30+ industries through her consultancy and agency work, and spends the majority of her time running her group programme, teaching micro businesses how to transform their expertise into a momentum-building brand machines.

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All episodes are video recorded and can be watched in the website show notes at shelleyrostlund.com/podcast, or on YouTube. (Click here for the full audio transcribed version).

A short, digestible tidbit to snack on as a quick reflective prompt, a rally for new thinking, or to just throw a challenge out there for you to take up - should you choose to. These are dropped in between my normal episodes.

This episode is about digging into what your Future You wants from Present You. Until you have practically articulated exactly what it is that your ideal future looks and feels like, it’s going to be hard to shape a brand strategy that gives you purposeful direction, or craft a marketing plan that will support your objectives.

I also share how I deal with this kind of thing inside my group programme. I physically and practically help the participants to reflect on this important topic FIRST before we do anything else.

Come listen to this short pod bite – I’ll give you something to think about.

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Shelley is a systems-led brand strategist working with knowledge experts…those who teach, educate, consult, advise or mentor others. Her specialism is in value propositions, the product eco-system sitting inside brand strategies.

South African born and British-grown, Shelley has worked with 150+ brands across 30+ industries through her consultancy and agency work, and spends the majority of her time running her group programme, teaching micro businesses how to transform their expertise into a momentum-building brand machines.

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All normal episodes are video recorded and can be watched in the website show notes at shelleyrostlund.com/podcast, or on YouTube. (Click here for the full audio transcribed version). There is no video available for POD BITE episodes, like this one.

I introduce the concept of Brand Banking to you by explaining an example of how I choose what I share openly and what I don’t.

This concept was brought to my attention by the talented Margaret Mark, who co-authored the book ‘The Hero and The Outlaw’ with Carol Pearson. Together they were the birth mothers of the 12 Brand Archetypes which are used extensively today by brand strategists.

I use the Brand Archetype Framework in my group programme to help service-based professionals identify and articulate their brand personality. The archetypes help to give them “permission” to be the diverse human they are, as well as a focussed professional communicating their competency and humanity in a way that lights them up and is highly engaging and attractive to their ideal clients.

Join me in this conversation where I share how you can use the concept of Brand Banking to effectively manage the treasure of value and meaning you hold in your business.

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𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗬

𝗥𝗢̈𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗨𝗡𝗗 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Shelley is a systems-led brand strategist working with knowledge experts…those who teach, educate, consult, advise or mentor others. Her specialism is in value propositions, the product eco-system sitting inside brand strategies.

South African born and British-grown, Shelley has worked with 150+ brands across 30+ industries through her consultancy and agency work, and spends the majority of her time running her group programme, teaching micro businesses how to transform their expertise into a momentum-building brand machines.

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All episodes are video recorded and can be watched in the website show notes at shelleyrostlund.com/podcast, or on YouTube. (Click here for the full audio transcribed version).

In this episode:

The idea of the show is to dig into the cross section where your brand meets the humans you serve. This episode is a little side step to swivel that magnifying glass around to look at YOU...the human behind the work, and how you meet the person you serve.

By "meet" I mean how do you metaphorically meet them where they are...in their place of need...and then work with them to move through the solution and resolution of their challenge.

In this episode I share where I am on my manifesto journey to articulating what a true subject matter expert is. I've been 'on tour' with this and I've had some great input from people to hear how and why they think the way they do about this topic. (If you haven't listened to episode 17, make sure you do. Its 15mins and is the start to this journey, but you can still listen to this one in the meantime).

I'm sharing what I've found so far, and what I've learnt about me as a subject matter expert trying to find her wings. AND...I know what's next to dig into, on this. Come join me, will you?

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𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗬 𝗥𝗢̈𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗨𝗡𝗗 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Shelley is a systems-led brand strategist working with knowledge experts…those who teach, educate, consult, advise or mentor others. Her specialism is in value propositions, the product eco-system sitting inside brand strategies.

South African born and British-grown, Shelley has worked with 150+ brands across 30+ industries through her consultancy and agency work, and spends the majority of her time running her group programme, teaching micro businesses how to transform their expertise into a momentum-building brand machines.

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All episodes are video recorded and can be watched in the website show notes at shelleyrostlund.com/podcast, or on YouTube. (Click here for the full audio transcribed version).

I don’t know about you – but as soon as someone says the word “niche” I want to cringe into a little dark corner of ignorance, poke my fingers in my ears and pretend it’s not important.

If you feel the same – you are in good company. My guest in this episode has actually made this subject a whole lot more palatable for me. I’m not a fan of the word niche…but the concept of narrowing your focus and attention makes a world of sense to me.

In this episode, I talk to Evelyn Starr, who is a US-based marketing consultant and brand expert who has deep and wide experience in helping clients to navigate their world and help them to articulate and commit to what their specialism is.

What you will find in this episode is that Evelyn neatly brings us around to how joyful it would be to not only work out what your specialism is, but how much more joyful your working life could be if that specialism is magically linked to your own ‘why, or your brand’s purpose.

Curious? Come join us.

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𝗚𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Evelyn Starr is an author, brand expert, and marketing consultant with over 25 years of marketing strategy and research experience. Evelyn uses her keen powers of observation and insight to help clients wow their customers and grow their businesses.  She specializes in working with ‘Brands in Adolescence’, brands that have stalled after their initial success.

Evelyn's award-winning book, “Teenage Wastebrand: How Your Brand Can Stop Struggling and Start Scaling”, shares how she likens brand growing pains with that of teenagers navigating life.

Her clients have ranged from small businesses like Laird Superfood and Harbor Sweets to global brands like Hasbro and Gillette.

𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗬 𝗥𝗢̈𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗨𝗡𝗗 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Shelley is a systems-led brand strategist working with knowledge experts…those who teach, educate, consult, advise or mentor others. Her specialism is in value propositions, the product eco-system sitting inside brand strategies.

South African born and British-grown, Shelley has worked with 150+ brands across 30+ industries through her consultancy and agency work, and spends the majority of her time running her group programme, teaching micro businesses how to transform their expertise into a momentum-building brand machine.

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All episodes are video recorded and can be watched in the website show notes at shelleyrostlund.com/podcast, or on YouTube. (Click here for the full audio transcribed version).

As a subject matter expert there are some things you need to be really conscious about when it comes to the work that you create and generate. (If you are not sure you are a subject matter expert – listen to ep17, this will help work that out).

When I was a franchise consultant - looking at the aspect of intellectual property (IP) became a necessity in building the value into my client’s business. I still have this as a habit in the consulting work I do today, even though its brand strategy I focus on. Protecting your IP is really important to secure your value and also to create brand assets.

In this episode, I talk to Stephen Ruse, who is a UK-based solicitor specialising in Intellectual Property. Come listen as we walk through what you need to be thinking about when you create original work – whether that is a book, a course, or a proprietary model. We also touch on the difference between copyright and trademarking.

Investing in listening to this episode, may spark some action which will pay dividends in years to come. Curious? Come join us.

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𝗚𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Stephen Ruse is a senior associate at Howes Percival, a legal firm which has 6 offices in the UK and supports clients around the world.

Stephen’s specialism is in Intellectual Property and IT - he advises his clients on areas like: registering and protecting their trademarks, IT and Software agreements, and in commercialising their IP.

𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗬 𝗥𝗢̈𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗨𝗡𝗗 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Shelley is a systems-led brand strategist working with knowledge experts…those who teach, educate, consult, advise or mentor others. Her specialism is in value propositions, the product eco-system sitting inside brand strategies.

South African born and British-grown, Shelley has worked with 150+ brands across 30+ industries through her consultancy and agency work, and spends the majority of her time running her group programme, teaching micro businesses how to transform their expertise into a momentum-building brand machine.

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All episodes are video recorded and can be watched in the website show notes at shelleyrostlund.com/podcast, or on YouTube. (Click for the full audio transcribed version).

Growth is a really weird, personalised experience. I find that it helps to talk it through with different business owners, because everyone’s triggers for growing …or growing in a specific way are different.

This is why generic advice never works. “Guru” advice never works. Talking, listening and gathering a variety of insights helps inform your thinking about what would or could work for you.

In this episode, I talk to Suzy about how she came to realise that being a freelancer was just not going to cut-it. It was stressful, it wasn’t allowing any freedom for her personal life and she had really just created a really bad “job” for herself. Come listen as we walk through her thinking and decision making to where she is today…running a franchise of virtual assistants based on her core beliefs.

Nothing is easy. Business is hard. However, if you get the balance right – the hard work can be joyful work too.

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𝗚𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Suzy Sanders is a business owner, author, speaker and professional coach. She founded her virtual assistant business in 2016 and four years later, she grew the business through franchising and, as at the time of us recording, she has 6 franchisees across the UK supporting a thriving global client base.

Suzy has been featured on the BBC, Huffington Post, and PA Life - sharing her finely-tuned approach of putting the strength of collaboration and community at the heart of business. She emphasises that business success is not always about more money, but rather about more kindness, integrity, impact, empowerment and adventure. 

𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗬 𝗥𝗢̈𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗨𝗡𝗗 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Shelley is a systems-led brand strategist working with knowledge experts…those who teach, educate, consult, advise or mentor others. Her specialism is in value propositions, the product eco-system sitting inside brand strategies.

South African born and British-grown, Shelley has worked with 150+ brands across 30+ industries through her consultancy and agency work, and spends the majority of her time running her group programme, teaching micro businesses how to transform their expertise into a momentum-building brand machines.

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All episodes are video recorded and can be watched in the website show notes at shelleyrostlund.com/podcast, or on YouTube. (Click here for the full audio transcribed version).

I talk to Daren Smith, Founder of Craftsman Creative based in Provo, Utah. What I love about this episode is we get into the nitty gritty of designing a product ecosystem and what that looks like on the inside – for Daren.

You’ll learn how he had to shift his focus from his technical skills to where his REAL value lies – and that is what I call your ‘marketable’ skills. The pandemic kick started a whole new way of working and generating income for this video and film producer.

Come join us. Daren is great at articulating what he does and so much so, that he now teaches other film and video producers how to do what he has and leverage their time better.

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𝗚𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Daren Smith is a film producer, author, podcast host and business strategist. He started his business Craftsman Creative after over a decade of running a video production company and working as a freelancer on projects for businesses ranging from start-ups to Fortune 50 companies. 

While he is still producing feature-length films, he is also a trained business coach, using his deep and wide experience in the creative world, to guide other creators who need help with strategy, outcomes, and mindset, in their business.

𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗬 𝗥𝗢̈𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗨𝗡𝗗 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Shelley is a systems-led brand strategist working with knowledge experts…those who teach, educate, consult, advise or mentor others. Her specialism is in value propositions, the product eco-system sitting inside brand strategies.

South African born and British-grown, Shelley has worked with 150+ brands across 30+ industries through her consultancy and agency work, and spends the majority of her time running her group programme, teaching micro businesses how to transform their expertise into a moment-building brand machines.

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All episodes are video recorded and can be watched in the website show notes at shelleyrostlund.com/podcast, or on YouTube. (Click here for the full audio transcribed version).

I shine a light on the term: subject matter expert. Its occurred to me that this is a bit of a mystery for people. Heck, I'm not even sure I really like the term.

I feel the challenge is that without fully understanding who you are in the eyes of your ideal customer or client - could mean that you’re miscalculating your worth and value. If you don't identify yourself as a subject matter expert and don't necessarily see how powerful you are for the people you serve - then we need to dig into this term and get you more comfortable with it.

On the flip side, I also tackle what not many will...and that is: how do you qualify a subject matter expert? My belief is that there are three big areas of responsibility for subject matter experts or knowledge workers.

In this episode I share how I value TRUE subject matter experts, and how they need to hone in on what I call their proficiency ratio to really position their personal brand well. 

I'd love you to listen and then let me know what you think about what I think is the beginning of a manifesto for great, compelling subject matter experts. Ones who focus more on how they help those that they serve, rather than on how fast they can grow the number of their followers.

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𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗬 𝗥𝗢̈𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗨𝗡𝗗 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Shelley is a systems-led brand strategist working with knowledge experts…those who teach, educate, consult, advise or mentor others. Her specialism is in value propositions, the product eco-system sitting inside brand strategies.

South African born and British-grown, Shelley has worked with 150+ brands across 30+ industries through her consultancy and agency work, and spends the majority of her time running her group programme, teaching micro businesses how to transform their expertise into a momentum-building brand machines.

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All episodes are video recorded and can be watched in the website show notes at shelleyrostlund.com/podcast, or on YouTube. (Click here for the full audio transcribed version).

Today…’how you work’ can be whatever you want it to be. Never before have we had so much flexibility in designing what our working day, week, month or year looks like.

I bring my talented friend Alison O’Leary back on the show (she’s on EP2 as well) to help me with this discussion. You’ll hear us try and help you, the listener, with defining what “IDEAL” looks like for you, and also give you some pointers on where to start when sitting down to intentionally work out HOW you want to work.

This is an important exercise to do, and discussion to have in order to break any unhealthy and unproductive habits you may have carried over from your employed life…into your own way of working inside your business. Let’s crack this nut together. The more ease you bring into the functional mechanism of how you work – the more joy and enthusiasm you will experience in running your business and in serving your clients.

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𝗚𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Alison O'Leary hails from an impressive corporate background working for over 20 years in London in the Communications and Marcoms industries.

Today she runs her own life coaching business, www.livetrue.co.uk, specialising in career change to facilitate life change. She is an ‘Ideal Life’ advocate and the designer of the Work Wonderland™ process, her own proprietary way of helping people to place their unique strengths, gifts and passions at the heart of their decision-making and planning.

𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗬 𝗥𝗢̈𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗨𝗡𝗗 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Shelley is a systems-led brand strategist working with knowledge experts…those who teach, educate, consult, advise or mentor others. Her specialism is in value propositions, the product eco-system sitting inside brand strategies.

South African born and British-grown, Shelley has worked with 150+ brands across 30+ industries through her consultancy and agency work, and spends the majority of her time running her group programme, teaching micro businesses how to transform their expertise into a moment-building brand machines.

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All episodes are video recorded and can be watched in the website show notes at shelleyrostlund.com/podcast, or on YouTube. (Click here for the full audio transcribed version).