People brand themselves for different reasons. Some simply wants to be known like a celebrity, while others use personal branding as a way to market their services or products.

Branding oneself and getting noticed is easier these days than it was generations ago. This is made possible because of the connected world that we have through the Internet.

However, part of personal branding is becoming vulnerable to public opinion, and those who value their privacy will have to accept this fact.

When you start to build your brand, it will definitely feel like you’re auditioning to become a celebrity. And once successful, you’ll get the same kind of attention that they do – both the good ones and the bad.

Branding should be relevant to your target audience. In a world composed of different individuals and groups, reaching your target audience means having a brand that appeals to their interests and issues.

Known celebrities such as Justin Bieber, Oprah Winfrey, and Donald Trump are some of the individuals who rose to fame and fortune as a result of good personal branding on their skills and character.

Chris Malone, co-author of The Human Brand: How We Relate to People, Products, and Companies, puts this to better perspective when he said, “All research suggests faces were the first logos, and people were the first brands.”

So how do you create a successful personal brand? Here are 20 tips.

1. Write Blogs
You do not need to be a professional writer to blog. As long as you are capable of making sense when writing, blogging is a good means of attracting attention.

2. Make Unique Designs for your Blog
People who innovate with the designs of their blogs attract more potential business partners than those who do not. People love working with innovators. So whenever possible, create unique designs for your blog.

3. Create a Personal Logo
Famous companies use logos for their trademark to be noticed and remembered by their customers, both existing and potential. Similarly, making your own personal logo representing yourself makes you more likely to get noticed and remembered. You can do this on your own by knowing a thing or two about graphics-editing software such as Adobe Photoshop or Adobe Illustrator.

4. Make Use of Taglines
Nothing makes a scene or a story easily remembered by anyone than with a good tagline or two. Depending on how catchy the tagline is, it creates impressions that last a long time. Pique your audience’s interest by making use of taglines deemed originally yours. The more catchy and humorous the tagline is, the more likely it gets remembered.

5. Make an ‘About Me’ Page
For the sake of people knowing you, always make use of the ‘About Me’ page. You do not only advertise yourself, you do so on the proper channel while reaping proper credits. Having an ‘About Me’ page is like having your moment at the right setting – you can make use of your bragging rights without appearing like a braggart.

6. Use Social Media Sites
Make use of social media sites such as Facebook, Google+, and Twitter. They are not just free, they are also easy to use while benefiting you from the networks formed through it. Registering for a social media account is as simple as a few clicks of a mouse button and several key presses on your keyboard.

7. Hyperlink Your Social Media Channels
If you already have existing social media accounts, one way for people to notice them is by enabling hyperlinks on each. You do not just directly point them to your social media accounts, you also give them a chance to notice you and form networks with you.

8. Make Use of Podcast
People who are keen to hear a person’s voice will likely know you better through your voice. Make yourself known by these people by giving them a sample of it. This is possible with podcast.

9. Publish Your Video on YouTube
Depending on the video you uploaded, you are more likely to get noticed by people if you upload videos at YouTube. Known celebrities such as Justin Bieber and PewDiePie attained their current status with the use of YouTube. YouTube has already established billions of individual users all willing to watch a video uploaded on it. Make use of YouTube to gain followers to your brand.

10. Be Creative and Make Compelling Content
Listen to your audience and create content that relates to them. You and your audience may be helping one another in the process.

11. Provide an Offer
Literally, an opt-in or a call-to-action. This may be a marketing gimmick, but with enough contacts this may become profitable for you in the long run.

12. Be Yourself
According to Michael Fishman, a marketing consultant and founder of the Consumer Health Summit, “The most effective marketing is not slick and polished, but has an authentic, friendly quality.” No one knows yourself better than you so just be yourself.

13. Make Use of Your Picture
In another statement by Michael Fishman, in regards to the use of one’s picture for personal branding, he mentioned: “[A picture of oneself] immediately warms up any situation and puts down the roots of a trusting relationship.” Do not hesitate to use your actual picture on your existing profiles in the internet.

14. Authorship
If you have the skill for writing, be it through publishing houses or by self-publishing, writing books will boost your credibility to your subject. Similar to making a brand logo and making unique designs in your blog, writing a book can be as simple as having it written by someone else or by yourself. The reward is always best reaped if it is the latter.

15. Be Transparent
When speaking of transparency in relation to personal branding, Fishman has this to say: “Showcasing true stories is more powerful than impressive credentials.” In addition, he stated: “A first-person story is far more compelling than academic degrees or awards.” Part of being true is transparency. People find what they see more credible than those awards you have attained.

16. Be Vulnerable
Possibly one of the difficulties of branding oneself is to be vulnerable. However, being vulnerable means your willingness to display your quirks and failures thereby forming trust with other people. Being vulnerable also means opening your life freely to other people.

17. Your Daily Life
While not all people may see how you live your life on a daily basis, how you conduct yourself and your business on a daily basis is critical to personal branding. The way you live your life on a daily basis speaks more than what you have done well at a single point in your life.

18. Define your Aspirations
Knowing your goals and objectives is one thing to personal branding. Without goals and objectives, you may be walking in circles or randomly walking places without even getting anywhere.

19. Conduct Research
This basically involves an overall assessment on how you’ll pursue personal branding. Learn from others and know your competitors.

20. Managing Your Brand
Everything you have done so far into personal branding will crumble without proper management. Proactively manage all aspects of your brand ensuring reinforcement of your brand attributes and market niche.