Marketing Profs

Business is becoming more and more competitive. Small business is the fastest-growing segment of business in most parts of the world.

And thanks to the Internet, your competitors are no longer just the businesses down the street. They are the businesses in the next town, in the next country and even on the next continent.

So, as the leader of a small business, how do you succeed in a dynamic world of increasing complexity with a much larger set of competitors?

The answer seems too easy to be true: Be yourself.

To succeed with your small business and keep it on the right track, use your personal brand—your unique promise of value. In the world of small business, the corporate brand is the personal brand of its leaders.

Inextricably Linked

These brands are inextricably linked. You need only look at successful entrepreneurs like Ben and Jerry, Richard Branson and Bill Gates to see that entrepreneurial ventures take on the values and passions of their leaders.

According to Nation's Business Magazine, “Branding is the hottest concept in marketing today, and, it's an idea that is not just for the deep-pocketed, highly glossed Coca-Colas and Nikes of the world. An increasing number of independent-business owners are embracing branding as the guiding philosophy for building their companies.”

Being true to your personal brand ensures that your business stays on course and remains highly differentiated and valuable to your target market.

Christophe Ginisty, managing director of the communications firm Rumeur Publique, says, “Buyers are putting their trust not only in a company, but in the leaders of that company. For small businesses, the leaders are often even more important. It is critical to ensure that the leaders are an integral part of the corporate communications strategy and that their personal brands are clear, relevant and accurate.”