Developing Content That Expands Your Personal Brand And Generates Leverage
Setting yourself apart from the crowd as a personal trainer, yoga teacher, circus performer, etc. can seem daunting while the process of building your audience often seems like nothing less than a chore. Even once you have built an audience, you must develop that momentum into income by attracting clients, paid performance gigs, and sponsorship deals.
Today, I’m going to breakdown an example of exemplary social content, break some of your bad habits, and dispel common myths surrounding the process of content creation. Building your brand and developing an audience doesn’t have to be complicated and it doesn’t have to be a chore.
Let’s break this down. The original video (later converted into the animated gif seen to the left) was shot using a mobile phone, not a professional camera. It was held steady-ish, but did not use a tripod or post-production image stabilization. The subject matter featured a single feat instead of being a compilation of many. The non-gym location, humorously casual footwear, and playful smile further communicate the notion that this was impromptu.
Videos that are “produced” often carry an unintentional message of “LOOK AT ME!!” and cultivate the perception of narcissism in the minds of the audience. While professionally produced videos have their place, it’s important to highlight elements of passion and play by using the tools regularly at your disposal.
The video, converted to a looping gif by one of her fans, was submitted to /r/gifs on Reddit and was seen by 3.4 million people in 24 hours.
In the comments, Redditors identified the woman as Jessica Bogdanov and linked others in the thread to her Instagram. Bogdanov posts a menagerie of high personality videos with her fans often submitting her content to subreddits like /r/gifs, /r/FitWomenGifs, /r/xxfitness, /r/awesome, etc.
In discussing Bogdanov’s content with an aerialist/performer friend met at Burning Man, she objected to say that “most people will prefer to not create a video until the trick or skill is perfected.” The perceived safety of waiting until something is “perfected” is a siren call luring you towards the rocks.
“Life is a journey, not a destination.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Perfection takes practice and the process of practice cultivates your story. By waiting until something is “perfect” you narrow the bridge your audience must cross in order to connect with you as human. Your drive to develop weaknesses into skills is your platform for connecting with the audience.
Bogdanov exemplified this in a recent post with the caption:
“Bad idea doing this with wrist pain but I’m stubborn.”
Cater the tone of your content to the masses who have an appreciation for your talents and skills, but might only aspire to play in the junior leagues.
If you’d like feedback on your content, feel free to email me.
Once you have found your voice and are publishing content with—even a small amount of—regular audience engagement, you can start leveraging existing communities like those within Reddit to amplify your voice.
