As a leader in my beloved direct sales company, I was totally blind-sided by this announcement on a call that we were made aware of just one hour prior. It was before Zoom calls were a thing and so this call by the owners of the company was an audio only call. We couldn’t see their faces to give us some sort of clue on what was about to happen.
Sure, our company had been making some changes and adjusting to the market in order to grow, just like any other company. Some of the changes were working and some of them left us scratching our heads. But I trusted that the owners had our best interest in mind. Also, from a relationship point-of-view, I loved how real, authentic and genuine our founders were. That is a lot of the reason why I think I trusted them too much and what caused me to create communities for Strategic Branding For Network Marketers.
So when I heard these three words, “We are closing”, it felt like a punch in the gut. Literally. I felt sick and I immediately starting jumping to questions like:
What will I do now?
Where will I go?
Do I even want to stay in direct sales?
What else would I do that could quickly fill in the gap financially for my family?
What about my customers?
Will they still trust me if I go somewhere else?
Should I go back to college? Get another degree?
How those words changed my business.
While I didn't know where I would go after that, one thing I did know for sure--- I would NOT rely on a corporate brand again. I wouldn’t do it for my customers and I most importantly, I wouldn’t do it for myself.
The funny thing is, I knew there was a better way to do business so that my customers did trust me and stuck with me no matter what industry I moved into. I knew it because I had studied it and received my college degree in it, but somehow I didn’t connect it to my own network marketing business when I started in 2012.
The missing piece was creating my personal brand.
Branding For Direct Sellers that is in alignment with your core values, speaks to your ideal audience and is easily recognized gives you an edge in network marketing. Your personal brand will never change if your company changes. Your brand organically attracts your audience, fills your in box with authentic leads and grows your business in a way that feels true to who you are.
Here are some facts about personal vs. company branding:
• People are more likely to purchase from someone who has an established personal brand over a company brand.
•Having a brand with a personal identity and connection makes you more relatable and trustworthy.
•Consistently showing up with your personal brand sets you apart in the sea of sameness so your customers aren’t confused on who to shop with: the company or you.
•Building your brand around your core values means you build your relationships with your customers which leads to more referrals.
What would it be like to:
- Stand out in the sea of sameness?
-Spend less time on the phone?
-Attract your dream team members and grow your business with so many authentic and qualified leads that convert that quickly climb to your company’s highest pay rank?
Once I started implementing my personal brand across all of the online and in-person touch points I had with my audience, I noticed BIG changes. I noticed things like:
•Business owners introduced me at events using my brand without any nudging, prodding or bios sent out in advance.
•People recognized me in my community at events purely from social media and knowing exactly what I stood for.
•Social media engagement from my idea target audience doubled.
•Authentic referral orders doubled.
•The hours (and hours and hours) of time I used to spend chasing cold leads was replaced with serving new clients and building relationships.
•Revenue for my businesses grew 45% each year.
About me.
I'm really not a unicorn but the signature system I developed is what takes entrepreneurs and direct sellers from guessing and randomly sharing company graphics because they don't know what else to post, to be leaders in their company, creating an authentic following and consistently growing their sales and their team members.
Leading large teams of over 100 people; selling $5,000+ consistently and earning dozens of incentive trips since 2012, matched with my strategic branding and graphic design experience since 1993, gives me a unique perspective on developing, designing and coaching women in their own network marketing business with a brand that is in complete alignment with their values. This technique in personal branding produces increased revenue, relationships and referrals for my clients.
As a Strategic Branding Coach For Women, I feel passionately about sharing my system with other women in network marketing, direct sales and with women entrepreneurs to elevate the industry.
Women who work with me get a complete roadmap on how to use strategic personal branding tools; who their ideal audience is; how to align their brand with their mission to reach their goals and how to increase their income year after year.
Don't wait to hear the words "We are closing" before you create your brand. Let's look at your personal brand and see what we can do today to increase your ROI. Click here to schedule a complimentary branding audit.
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