Brand Compass: Personal Branding for Consultants & Experts

The words community and membership are thrown around by many ‘gurus’ on the net. In some instances, the way they are using the terms are not really true to the form that they take in reality.

I bring Mark Masters on to help me to dig into this subject a bit more and we flesh out the nuances between ‘community’, ‘membership, ‘subscription’ and even…’audience’. My feeling is that if you understood these concepts a bit better – you will be able to work out which of these is what you are actually looking to create in your business.

Community, just on its own, is a hot topic especially in the world we find ourselves now where brands are being encouraged to create communities to better engage with their customers at the coal-face and understand their needs better.

For me, better communities mean better business. They bring businesses closer to the humans they serve. What do you think?

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𝗚𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Mark Masters is a marketing consultant, content marketing agency owner, author and speaker. He has created and built a community called YouAreTheMedia.co.uk, a marketing learning environment for micro and small businesses around the world.

His consultancy and agency work is highly focussed on helping his clients to become a trusted source in their industry through clearly articulating their purpose and value, creating content that is linked to that and sharing carefully crafted value-based messaging consistently. One of his specialisms is centred on building community.

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).

We take the greyness out of what ‘personal brand’ means and make it relevant for you – as a subject matter expert. While this is getting a lot of meaningless attention on social media (potentially for the wrong reasons) – personal brand as a concept is age-old. Think Cleopatra, Caesar, King Tutt, Attila the Hun, or even Mother Teresa.

I’m joined by the effervescent Christine Gritmon, a personal branding consultant, to dig into why personal branding is so vital for professionals and especially for subject matter experts. And…if you are a ‘quieter’ professional or an introvert – we chat a bit about how you can make personal branding more comfortable for you.

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𝗚𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Christine Gritmon is a personal branding consultant, Twitter chat host, live streamer, social media trainer, and speaker. 

She hosts her own 'Let's Talk Brand' podcast show on the Adweek network and gets to chew the fat with some of the crème de la crème of professionals in the social media, digital marketing and branding space.

Christine is married to Gregory, they have two young children and they live in Nyack in the state of New York.

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).

My topic today may resonate with you, I know its becoming more and more of an issue for the people I have been talking to - who are either consumers or run their own business.

And that is this balance between the quality of your product or service…versus the experience your customers or clients are having in buying that product or service from you.

I feel like since the pandemic, particularly amongst local small businesses - my experience as a customer has diminished, while their prices have increased and their care in my experience has hit an all-time low.

It’s worrying me. Micro and Small businesses carry our economy (at least here in the UK) and if they start to be disengaged with the humans they serve - this is really not going to help our economic and societal post-pandemic recovery.

In this episode I share my framework of how you can dig into this important area of planning your Brand Experience – so you can bake loyalty into your client’s experience of working with you. Loyalty pays dividends (and I share some interesting stats to back that up).

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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 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 chat to my friend, Ian Anderson Gray, about his journey of finding the “thing” that he has become known for, as a knowledge worker, or subject matter expert.

Come listen as Ian shares how a review-based blog post he wrote about Hootsuite, which has reached 7million views to date, kickstarted his road to becoming the Live Video specialist he is recognised as today.

It wasn’t a smooth ride to the “top”, Ian candidly shares how he struggled with imposter syndrome and has had to overcome his own self confidence issues to clearly stand out and be the professional we all look to as a guiding light in the Live Video space.

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𝗚𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Ian Anderson Gray is the founder of the Confident Live Marketing Academy and is the host of the Confident Live Marketing Podcast. He helps entrepreneurs to level up their impact, authority and profits by using live video confidently.

He is also the co-founder of 'Select Performers' – a family-run web agency and is the voice behind his 'Seriously Social' blog, which focusses on live video and social media tools.

He’s an international speaker, having spoken at Social Media Marketing World in San Diego, Content Marketing World in Cleveland and many others. People can work with him in a one-to-one capacity as a trainer and consultant, or inside his Content Marketing Academy in a group environment. He has a real passion for making the techno-babble of live video and social media marketing easy to understand.

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.

==================

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 (under 10mins) 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 pointing out when you are using "consultant speak" and why it’s not an effective way to get someone NEW to understand you quickly. Have a listen and see if you catch yourself doing this.

I share some tips on how to pull your handbrake up and make some corrections BEFORE you speak, or click that SEND button on a social media post.

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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 moment-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.

Andrea and I chat about how she has shaped her business over time to gain her ideal working life, depending on what stage or season she’s been at in her life.

We dig into how she is shaping her offers today, and what impact the pandemic had on the decisions she has made. Andrea is also quite well known for her funny side and using a caricature in her early days to “be” the social media professional with a difference. (Did you ever see Grandma Mary?)

Andrea is one of the original social media experts who have now been around since the start of the revolution that is the “norm” today of social media and a smartphone-driven world.

I think you’ll really enjoy our conversation – we jump on topics like: how to use your brand personality to be more of YOU, more often (in your business); how to be led by curiosity to evolve what you do for clients; and how to define your working life…how you want it to be.

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𝗚𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Andrea is an author, consultant, international speaker and trainer who specialises in Facebook Ads. She has appeared on top lists on Entrepreneur.com, Inc.com, and other leading business listing sites. 

Since 2009 Andrea has utilised her innate ability to make social media marketing and specifically Facebook Ads easy to understand and implement to directly impact the growth trajectory of thousands of businesses through her training and one-on-one consulting.

She is the founder of Facebook Advertising Secrets an online learning program for individuals and agencies and has welcomed more than 700 students through her programme. 

Part of Andrea’s charm is her witty humour, which she practises often as a stand-up comedienne in her spare time. She lives in beautiful Colorado and is Mom to two almost-grown-up boys.

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.

==================

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).

The subject we get into in this episode is around defining what a Brand Machine is.

This is a concept I use as a working metaphor to teach micro businesses about the mechanism which they can design and build to support them in spinning all those skills plates which they need to, inside their business.

If you listened to the episode I did on my Three Amigos, you’ll know about three of those spinning plates already: Brand, Marketing and Sales. In that episode I talked about how you can build an architecture or framework around you to help you to leverage those different skills at the right time, to the right people.

Your Brand Machine is that framework or architecture.

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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 moment-building brand machines.

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All episodes are video recorded, so you can watch them on the website show notes, or on YouTube.

I talk about a subject which is highly linked to your reputation as well as the value of your brand…and that is the NAME you have chosen for your business.

I decided on this topic for this episode because in the space of a few weeks I had quite a few people within my business community asking for feedback on whether they should change their brand name.

This is not an easy question to answer, because there are a few variables to consider and hence – this episode to dig into that.

My business consultancy background is in franchising so, for me, I will always ask questions around your intellectual property, length of time in business and your reputation.

I reckon this episode will give you some aspects to chew on if you are thinking about changing your name. Don’t make a rash decision about it, listen to this first.

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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 moment-building brand machines.

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All episodes are video recorded, so you can watch them on the website show notes, or on YouTube.

This is a topic that you may “go light” on in your early days of starting your business however, as you get further down your business journey, you realise that: LIFE IS SHORT.

Prepare yourself for an episode which is (hopefully) going to stop you in your tracks and make you re-evaluate putting off making those changes in your business that you have been quietly shoving to the bottom of your to-do list. You know the ones.  

As a micro business it's crucial to stay focused and be efficient with where you spend your time and attention. You only have YOU and, perhaps a handful of people to help, and waaaay less resources (than bigger businesses) - to maximise your output. 

In this episode I share a simple exercise to help you to really soak up what it is that you want in your future, so that you can be honest with yourself about what REALLY needs to change in your current day to day…and really shouldn’t be put off any longer. Its practical – I promise.

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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 moment-building brand machines.

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All episodes are video recorded, so you can watch them on the website show notes, or on YouTube.

We talk about what its like for a predominantly service-based micro business entrepreneur to completely change their business to a product-based business (unrelated to their original business).  

To help me unpack this topic, I’ve invited a long-time business friend Tracey Powiesnik to join me. She openly shares what it was like to create a business which was a complete 180 degree turn on what she was used to doing as a trainer and consultant. Her product was something that she designed and created to help her solve a problem at home (because she couldn’t find anything on the market).

Tracey is a highly qualified and experienced L&D trainer and consultant and now is also an award-winning pet product business entrepreneur.

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𝗚𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗕𝗜𝗢:

Tracey has a strong entrepreneurial background in running her L&D consultancy and training business, working with individuals and teams from businesses in the hospitality, education and professional institutions. Her specialism is using emotional intelligence frameworks to drive engagement and maximise performance.

In 2019, she designed an innovative new pet product called the No Fuss Fill, which has led to her focussing much of her time on her pet business which is gaining traction fast, and has picked up both industry and entrepreneurship awards.

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.

==================

All episodes are video recorded and can be watched in the website show notes at shelleyrostlund.com/podcast, or on YouTube.