The Brand Within: How Personal Identity Can Transform Your Business (Episode 150)

Are you having trouble building trust with your audience? Well, here's the secret. Leverage your personal identity. That's right. Studies have shown that people trust people more than they trust brands. So it's time to get real and share your personal story. That's how you build trust and connect with your customers.

[00:00:23] Let's dive in. I'm your host, Chris Schwager. So why leverage personal identity in the first place? Well, there's three reasons why leveraging personal identity can be beneficial. It builds trust faster. Now, we all know video is a trust building exercise anyway, but as I mentioned earlier, people tend to trust individuals more than the faceless brand.

[00:00:45] When you share your personal story and connect with your audience on a personal level, you are much likely to build trust and establish a deeper connection with them. And you stand out, of course, video as well. One of those amazing things about video, you'll stand out when you've got video. By embracing your personal identity within video and sharing your story, you are standing out and differentiating yourself from other businesses in your industry.

[00:01:12] There may be other companies similar to what you're offering, but no one else has a unique story and perspective like you do. You stand out. Just by being you. And it encourages a following. Sharing your personal story can also help your build. Uh, It can also help you build a community around your brand.

[00:01:37] Now I just wanna pause here for a second because that caught my attention. I've seen people interpret this in, um, a different way to what I'm thinking. This is not a rambling for you to go on and on and on about. What it is you do, why you do it, and this that, and the other for three minutes. That's pretty bloody boring.

[00:01:56] That's your cv. They can catch it on LinkedIn. This is an opportunity for you to make this story about connection, about something that correlates to what all people feel as a universal appeal, which I think is worth mentioning when people feel like they know the person behind the business, they're more likely to feel invested in the brand and become loyal customers.

[00:02:19] So how can you level leverage your personal identity to build trust to your customers? Well, let's start by sharing some personal stories. Many business owners hesitate to do this for various reasons, like being introverted or feeling uninterested, or thinking that their business is separate from them.

[00:02:40] But it's essential to understand that we're wired to trust things that are similar to us. We buy from people that look and feel and sound like us. I shouldn't say feel, but look and look and sound. Definitely. Uh, when you share your story and connect with your audience on a personal level, you're more likely to trust and, and build that trust and, and establish a deeper connection with them.

[00:03:06] Applying a personal brand to your business. Look, it's, here's an example. Instead of sending a, a bland written email, the, the, one of the best things we've ever done is to send a personalized video, email or attached, uh, to a video signature to your customer so that they can see that your emails come from you, not just the brand, right? Remember, your personal identity is a valuable asset to your brand.

[00:03:35] I've gotta give you the hottest tip here at Ridge Films because for the last couple of weeks we've been, uh, looking for a full-time employee. We've had a hundred applicants. Do you know how many cvs we've looked at written cvs? Zero. You know why? Because we believe in our process to actually ask them for that first one minute little intro video from them for us to gauge whether they are human, they speak English, um, and what their level of expertise and experience is a lot given through their body language and the way they articulate their story, their message. Right. That is so valuable in the recruitment process. If you are not doing, I've gotta create a separate podcast for this cuz it's unbelievable that immediate connection you would get by seeing someone in video form for the first time rather than just relying on their cv. Uh, if you're not doing this in your recruitment process, man, I'll tell you straight up, it is a. No, I'm not. I will not say game changer ever again. I don't wanna say game changer. Oh, I don't wanna take your business to the next level. I'm trying to really do my best to avoid those. But look, it's exciting because it minimizes your time, invested scouring endless amounts of cvs. I don't know if that's you or your team doing that, but it's not a great use of your time. Just get that personalized video because if they're determined to work for you, They'll, they'll, it's not that hard these days to send a nice little one minute video just about them. Nice little personal, informal message from them.

[00:05:17] Okay, let's get back on track. Being genuine when sharing personalised stories. Well, I gotta say it does come a long way. Nobody expects perfection from you. Right. Keeping it real is crucial. When per sharing these personalized stories avoid coming up with a story that is not true or contrived or you're trying to force it.

[00:05:37] Oh, geez. Um, I've got a whole nother strand. I can go on here with the latest, um, documentary called Finding Michael. Oh, I. Bloody production values through the roof, and yet there is something very unsettling about that whole story. If you go and have a look at it, I think it's on, um, I think it's on Disney.

[00:06:00] Uh, yeah, that could be on Disney. Go and have a look at it. Gimme your thoughts. Um, Kind of great in theory that is wrong on so many different levels, ethically. Uh, tell us what you think. Look, uh, back on track here. So a void coming out with a story that is not true to you or creating a fancy one that doesn't resonate with your audience. People can smell insincerity from a mile away, so always stay true to yourself and your unique identity.

[00:06:29] Embrace it. Embrace your unique identity, your brand, your personal story. Identity is what makes you stand out from the crowd. Use your unique qualities, quirks, and experiences to your advantage, whether it's your sense of humor or your love for a particular hobby.

[00:06:48] Incorporating these aspects into your business can help you build a stronger connection with your customers. Be true to yourself, and let your personality shine through as this will make you more relatable and appealing to your target audience. So don't be afraid to apply your personal story to your business and see the positive impact it can have on building trust and establishing deeper connection with your customers.

[00:07:15] Always keep in mind, you are your ultimate asset. By leveraging your personal identity, you can build a stronger brand and connect better with your audience.

[00:07:26] Are you ready to take your personal brand to the next level? Well, Did I say next level? I thought Christine had abolished this from the script. Okay.

[00:07:35] Are you ready to take your brand, personal, brand, upper notch? Perhaps if you type in something like this to chatGPT, it is still kicks up. Next level game changer. Oh, it's so. Bloody monotonous and cliched. Uh, I've shared my point.

[00:07:54] We offer personalised coaching by the way, and guidance to help you create real and engaging video content that allows you to connect with your audience on a deeper level.

[00:08:04] Uh. Contact us today to learn more, and don't forget to subscribe to our channel for more valuable Video Made Simple ideas. That's all for this episode. Episode I'm suffering. If you listen to last week's episode, have struggled with it at brain trauma, so my speech is affected somewhat, but I'm blasting through it and showing my vulnerability.

[00:08:25] Look, that's all for this episode. Thanks for listening and see you next week. Bye for now.