By Mike Pinto
Professional Speaker and Personal Branding Expert

Are you ready to see revenues increase dramatically? Do you want to work with clients you really enjoy? Are you looking to accomplish more in less time? One proven way to reach these inspiring goals is to craft your own brand.

“My brand?” you may ask. “I'm a financial adviser, not a soft drink or a laundry detergent.”

I encourage you to think again. Of course, you're not like Coke or Tide, you're more like Michael Jordan, Oprah or Donald Trump. Each is a personal brand. And, yes, you as a financial adviser are also a brand.

I've worked with advisers who are not interested in building a brand and have provided me with a myriad of reasons on how they've built their businesses without ever becoming one. My response is usually, “that was then, this is now and branding today is simply not a choice.” All of us have a brand. Our brand is seen as positive, negative or neutral and the only element you can control is how your personal brand is perceived.

If you don't craft your own brand, you leave it to the competition, and the industry and its stereotypes to do it for you.

To appreciate what branding is, consider what it isn't.

It's not about false advertising or gimmicks. It's about crafting your brand based on who you really are – not what you do but who you are. Great personal brands are authentic and reflect the true values of a financial adviser. A great personal brand will actually transcend what you do.

Hence, the goal for you as an adviser is not to just have a brand, but to have a Breakaway Personal Brand. A breakaway brand is distinctive and unique. It's attention getting and sets a standard that anyone other than you would be unacceptable. A Breakaway Personal Brand positions you as the one to call for financial advice or counsel.

The best definition I have heard is this:

“A personal brand is a crafted personal identity that stimulates a meaningful emotional response in a specific target audience about the values and qualities for which you stand.”

A personal brand is the gut instinct, the feeling people have about you that will strike an emotional chord, inspire confidence and be at the foundation of an enduring relationship.

So how do you do it?

In building your personal brand there are three key factors to take into consideration.

1.Great personal brands are personal and tell a story.

A true skill in marketing is the ability to tell your story and tell it well. Some advisers have said, “I don't really have a story.” My response is always, “You might surprise yourself.” Start by creating four lists:

1. Your Abilities

2. Your Achievements

3. Your Activities

4. Your Adversities

Look at the experiences of your like. That is where the essence of your brand lies. What are you truly passionate about? What makes you feel alive and vibrant? Next, craft it into a great story. I have seen advisers create tremendous campaigns on their passions from mountain climbing, golfing, baseball and musical interests, just to name a few.

2.Great personal brands stand out in the sea of sameness.

Unfortunately, the marketing efforts of most advisers look the same. Ask yourself, does your marketing reinforce the stereotype of your professional because of its similarity to all the others?

The Breakaway Personal Brand stands out from the crowd and create a dramatic fist impression. The branding collateral connects visually with potential clients and makes them want to find out more. This is what you should strive for when creating branding material.

3.Great personal brands have a focused benefit.

What word or phrase do you want potential clients to think of after they have finished looking through your marketing collateral? Whatever it is, it's the one to build on.

Take the next step.

Statistics show that 70% of the meetings that financial advisers have with prospacts result in new clients. With this assuption in mind, a key to helping your business grow is to be in fron tof more prospects. Branding can help you do that when it is done well – and this si a result of quality referrals from your best clients.

The next step for you is to get started in the branding adventure. Ask you Hogn hancock Funds Business Consultant about Quick Start materials that can help you initiate your branding campaign. These materials can help you discover a great deal about your business – your true business goals and how those interact with your personal life. Exploring these vital topics will put you on track to increasing revenues dramatically, working with clients you really enjoy and accomplishing more in less time. Get started today!