If you don’t know what finished looks like, you’ll never finish.
This is exactly the problem people have with standing out.
“I know I want to write but I don’t fully know what to write about?”
This question came up quite often when I coached a few people on how to write manuscripts for their books.
Another version was: “I feel I know what I want to write, but so many people are already writing about the topic, so what’s the point?”
This issue extends beyond just writing books.
I’ve heard a similar version for people hesitant from building an audience, starting a business, or building a brand.
The internet has made it possible to reach people in remote parts of the world.
But these connections come with confusion.
Lost Intentions:
Many of us get lost in the noise, struggling to stand out.
All over the place.
Not knowing where to start.
Then on the other side of the fence, the so-called gurus are not helpful.
They say “Niche down,” which puts you inside this tiny little box. A few weeks later, you feel inauthentic and then you stop.
Then you wonder.
“How am I ever going to be better?”
“How will I or my business ever stand out in this crowded market place?”
Here’s the secret:
It’s not about being better.
It’s about being different.
You need a sense of where you want to go, first.
“But there are so many people that want to go where I want to go, how will I be different?” I hear the yells of the naysayers.
Yes.
You then have to take people on this journey while being the guide to get them there.
This is what makes up your brand story.
In an era, where most tasks are getting commoditized, unique experiences and well-crafted brands will be one of the most valuable things you can have as a business owner and through your career.
Brand is the most important asset you have and it’s all about scaling trust.
Simple 4-step Process to Build an Intentional Brand:
I came across a YouTube video about the guy who helped big marketing names, such as Gary Vaynerchuk and Alex Hormozi, scale their brands.
Thought it was click bait.
I clicked.
The 1-hr video delivered on its promise.
In the interview, Caleb Ralston, with his woodsman beard and boyish hat, said something about building a brand that caught my attention: “Brand is the intentional pairing of relevant things, done consistently.”
He gave examples:
Nike pairs with athletic greatness.
Harley-Davidson pairs with rebellious freedom.”
So…
What do you want to be paired with?
How do you want to be remembered?
He went on to share a 4-step brand story framework that’s been in my mind ever since.
It starts with the end in mind and all you have to do is reverse engineer to reveal your brand story..
With this framework, you’ll gain more clarity about the brand you want to build, be more intentional about how you communicate it, and take actions that are more aligned, genuine, and authentic.
Here’s the framework:
Let’s work backwards in four steps. I’ll use myself as an example since I’ve been thinking about this recently.
4. Desired Outcome?
Let’s start from the end.
What is the desired outcome you want?
Do you want:
– to be the CEO of a mid-size business?
– to make 7-figures annually by the time you’re 45?
– freedom to travel with your family, without worrying about money?
Most of us don’t do this simple exercise. We throw whatever on the wall to see what sticks or wait for someone or a group to tell us what we should want in life.
If you spend time on this exercise and be intentional of your desired outcome, you are probably ahead of most people out there.
I’ve been thinking about this a lot. It’s a work in progress but my desired outcome is to help people scale autonomy in the digital and automated-era of the 21st century. This means helping people gain creative freedom and leveraging technology to build a more well-rounded life on their own terms.
Spend some time to determine your desired outcome
Try to be as specific as possible.
Once you have that, working backwards becomes a lot easier and everything you do starts to fall in line.
3. Known for?
The next question to answer is “what do you have to be known for to get your desired outcome?”
Let’s use my example above. If my desired outcome is scaling autonomy for others, I would like to be known for helping people build businesses that allow them to live a life of autonomy (or that integrates with their ideal lifestyle).
Since we live in a capitalist world, economic freedom is a key to living a well-balanced life, which gives people the creative freedom to continue building autonomy.
This means having a base that pays the bills, developing a craft that allows you to grow, and nurturing hobbies that integrate a more fulfilling life.
Think about what people will have to associate with you or know you for to get your desired outcome.
2. Do what?
Most successful brands are outcome based.
You have to do something to be known for it. It’s just that simple. I know a lot of brand builders are just out there, talking. Trying to coach others to become coaches that coach other coaches. Where does it end?
You have to gain experience doing something to be known for it.
Again, using myself as an example, I want to help people build businesses that give them the freedom to integrate with their ideal lifestyle. What does that look like? Well, everyone’s ideal lifestyle is different. So there’s a task of defining what that is. But let’s focus on something more direct – building a business.
There are many things that can be done to build a business – hiring, operations, product development, financing, supporting the entrepreneur’s emotional health. Based on what I’ve done, I want to help with sales and marketing. I can go a step deeper on sales and marketing: building sales funnels, messaging, positioning, product marketing, and so on. This all boils down to helping businesses get customers.
In order to be known for building businesses, what I can do is help businesses build a revolving pipeline of quality customers.
Get clear on what you have to do to become known for it.
1. Learn what?
Go learn how to do what’s needed.
In my case, I have to learn effective ways to get quality customers into businesses – mine and others. Luckily for me, that’s what I’ve been doing for my business and clients. That’s why I spend a lot of my time discussing marketing, persuasion, storytelling, writing online, and effective communication to attract an audience.
Doing this exercise, I realized I can do more around learning and executing an end-to-end approach of building a sales funnel that converts leads into paying customers. (Will start writing about this some more).
If you haven’t done what you need to do in the step before, this brand journey framework gives you the perfect place to start. You know exactly what to learn today.
Once you begin learning, you can simply start sharing your learning journey online.
From learning to doing to being known to desired outcome. This is your journey. Take people along.
Final thoughts:
If you don’t know what finished looks like you’ll never finish.
Your desired outcome might shift once you get there. Use this brand journey framework to walk backwards and build everything based on that. It will become clearer what’s for you and what isn’t, making every piece of activity and communication you put out there intentional.
Start with the desired outcome.
Yours Truly,
Nifemi
