Why You Should Judge a Book by It's Cover - the Importance of Personal Branding

Why You Should Judge a Book by It's Cover - the Importance of Personal Branding

Katryna Eastwood
Girl Boss

Happy New Year, friends! It’s the roaring twenties again, right? Are we buying flapper dresses and getting pixie haircuts later? No? That’s cool, I didn’t really want to either.

A lot has happened since I’ve written on the blog. For starters, I graduated from college (more on that in a future post, maybe… most likely, but no promises). I baked multiple things for the holidays and they were so delicious that I made sure there wasn’t a crumb left. I also landed my dream job.

My life is in boxes (said dream job is out of state) and everything is changing, so as a person who thrives on routines and stability, you can imagine my current emotional state is a little rocky. How have I decided to cope with the thrilling reality of an uncertain future? Reading.

Seriously. I’m a big reader. I know everyone says they love to read but I’m not lying to seem cultured or put-together. I’m just a dork who likes books. Don’t believe me? I’m an English major and I also co-run an Instagram book club with my friend Lily Cooper called “Kat and Lily’s Book Club.”

I know you’re not supposed to, but I totally judge which books I’m going to read by their covers. It’s not the number one factor I consider, but a solid title and a really attractive cover can really sell me over in my local bookstore. I actually bought The Boy and Girl Who Broke The World based on these two things. I didn’t even read the back (not going to lie, it wasn’t my favorite book. This wasn’t my best move).

Now, I’m not writing today to tell you to ditch your ideology on books covers and pick up the prettiest book you see. Stay with me, let’s dig a little deeper.

Influencers have become the “rage” recently. In my last corporate job, all of the meetings within the marketing team heavily discussed how influencer marketing has essentially changed the game. On social media, specifically Instagram, these influencers are not hard to find. You probably even follow a few, even if you don’t think you are. Influencers are people who “influence” you (well, duh) and as you adapt their lifestyle into your own, you may also purchase products they purchase as well. A company may pay an influencer to talk about their teeth whitening strips or grocery delivery service, in hopes that they are influencing their audience to purchase the product. It works. There’s data and science behind it. Moving on.

Influencers are successful because they have found a niche audience that fits within their personal brand. This isn’t just eighteen-year-olds with the newest IPhone. There are influencers can be parents who foster-adopted, college students, photographers, writers, artists, new moms, nutritionists, fitness experts, holistic lifestylists, environmental activists, etc. Similar to choosing a table in a cafeteria in high school, the social world is coded for you to find these people are likeminded to you and ultimately create a virtual space that is tailored to your interests.

To be a successful, working professional, you need to establish your own personal brand. This doesn’t mean you’re turning your Instagram into a place to sell teas or put questions in your captions that you don’t really want the answer to. This means creating a space that people can see who you are and what you can do.

Your social media should be a reflection of this brand. This is the book cover of your life. This is telling people why they should work with you, hire you, etc.

Personal branding may seem intimidating, but solidifying a presence on social media can help express to who you are, what you do and overall help you achieve your professional goals. Similar to how I am drawn to a well-crafted book cover, in this society, we are attracted to a well-crafted personal brand. It can elevate you above the competition and set you apart from the dozens of books sitting on the shelves who are waiting for the same opportunity as you.

Past professional standpoints, social media is powerful. You have the power to use it for good.

Share what you believe. Share what matters to you. Be unapologetically yourself, don’t fit into a mold.

I linked some Instagram accounts below to help you get a feel of some established and successful self-brands to inspire you to get on track to create your own. Bonus, these accounts are also accounts that have inspired me during my season of life and maybe they can do the same for you. Think about how cool it could be if your account could do that for someone, too.

I’d love to see your brand and encourage you to ask questions in the comments as well as provide feedback for others.

Let’s lift each other up and support each other on our personal goals!

People who really nailed the whole “personal brand” thing and also have very inspiring content that we all need in our lives

Rachel Hollis

Post-Christmas vaca on Florida's west coast visiting family, resting, & drinking yummy coffee! ☕️ I hope you all had a happy holiday & are looking forward to a fresh new year! ♡ #magicdwellshere

4,685 Likes, 75 Comments - ALLISON ♡ (@allisonbickerstaff) on Instagram: "Post-Christmas vaca on Florida's west coast visiting family, resting, & drinking yummy coffee! ☕️ I..."

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