Elevate Your Personal Brand with This Game-Changing Strategy

Achieve 10X Success in Your Career and Business with this Step-by-Step Guide to Crafting Your Unique Value Proposition (UVP)

I am a big proponent of Personal Branding and its power for Job Applicants and people who are trying to grow in their Careers and Business Development. Over time, most people have come to realize this.

However, today, I want to speak about the one thing that, if not done right, will not make a difference, whether you have a personal brand or not. It is the one thing that will give your Personal Brand 10X powers. So before you start making a Personal Brand, this is the first thing you must work on. In fact, I tell people this is the foundation of your Personal Brand.

Just like a building has a foundation, so does your Personal Brand. It, too, has to have a foundation—a weak foundation of a building results in a building collapsing. The same applies to your Personal Brand. If this one thing is weak, it's as good as not having a Personal Brand.

What is this Personal Branding Foundation? It’s what’s called a Unique Value Proposition or UVP.

A UVP is essential for a person looking for a job, someone trying to grow faster in their career, and also for a business person trying to get more customers.

The question arises: “Why is a UVP important? As I mentioned earlier, the stronger your UVP, the more effective your Personal Brand. A strong UVP will also differentiate you from the rest of the market. How?

I'll show this for the three categories of people it works for, along with a step-by-step on how to build a UVP for each category of person. But before I start, I want to show you the power of a UVP for each category.

It Differentiates you from the competition.

1.  The Job Seeker: Imagine you do not have a job. Your previous Organization downsized without warning you, and you are worried that you won’t get a Job because the news says that the job market is not great because of a down economy. Now imagine you start applying for jobs, and to your surprise, every job you are applying for gets you an interview. That is what a UVP will do for you. 

2.  The employee looking for growth: Imagine you are the youngest person on your organization's management team. Imagine growing at a pace that others say is impossible. Imagine meeting an unknown person from your industry, and they say, “Yeah, we have heard a lot about you.” Imagine getting Job offers even though you have never applied for a position. Imagine being invited to be on the board of a new company. This can happen if you have an exceptional UVP and Personal Brand while sitting in your existing position.

3.  For the Business Owner struggling to move their business to the next level: Could you imagine not having to sell? Magic happens for you because everyone considers you to be the authority when it comes to your business industry. Just imagine customers waiting for your products to be released. Your UVP builds a community that sells for you. Brand Ambassadors get you more sales than your sales team. This is possible only when your UVP differentiates you from your competition, when you literally are in a blue ocean market. That is what every company wants to achieve. With a great UVP, you can accomplish this and so much more.

Now that you know the possibilities, then comes the question, “How can you build the perfect UVP?” I will answer this question for each category of person, as mentioned above, in a step-by-step guide.

I.      Identifying the needs of your prospect.: This is the first part of your UVP, understanding what your customer wants.

a.  For the Job Seeker (Someone looking for a Job): If you want a job, you must first start by identifying your customer's needs. In this case, your customer is the hiring manager/recruiter.

This is a convenient tip that will help you build a massive demand for the work you do. Bring awareness to your future employers on the expertise you can bring to the table, along with the enormous success you have brought to your previous employer with the said expertise.

To do this and much more, this is what you will need to do.

a.  When doing your job search, pick a minimum of 10 jobs you really want to work at. Now copy all 10 of the Job Descriptions into a Word Document. Once that is done, relax, grab a cup of Tea or Coffee, a notebook (for notes) and, read each one of these JDs, and ask yourself the following questions (hint: use your notebook to take notes),

                            i.     “What are these hiring managers really looking for?”

                          ii.     What are their most significant issues? What keeps them up at night?

                         iii.     Now ask yourself this question, “How can I help in each of these areas? What expertise do I bring to the table that could resolve these issues? Your answers will be part of your foundation for your UVP, which will also make its way into your Resume. Also, remember that you may be able to identify the solutions to the problem but may not have the expertise to do so. Jot it down because that will become part of your Career Development Plan / Training that you must undergo to become someone in high demand.

                          iv.     OK, so you figured out their problems and the solutions you can bring to the table. Now, where should you place this information in your resume?

a.  You will need to scatter it throughout your Resume. However, most of it will go into your Introduction, which is your Profile / Executive Summary. Let me give you an example. Let’s imagine you are an accountant, and all ten jobs are looking for someone who is an expert in managing costs (cost controller). Your Executive Summary would look something like this:

                                                i.   As a distinguished Cost Controller with a rich 10+ year tenure in the high-tech sector, I have carved a niche in spearheading strategic cost reduction and budget optimization initiatives. My reputation is built on crafting and executing groundbreaking cost control strategies that consistently yield significant financial enhancements across diverse corporate landscapes I have worked for. In my current role, I have been instrumental in orchestrating a comprehensive overhaul of financial processes. This strategic move has led to a staggering cost saving of over $________ million for the company, underscoring my deep analytical acumen, mastery in financial planning, and relentless pursuit of fiscal excellence. My ability to blend strategic foresight with practical financial solutions has consistently resulted in bottom-line improvements, making me a pivotal asset in any fast-paced, high-pressure, result-oriented business environment.

b.  You want to show that you have done those things that keep the Hiring Manager up at night. Find achievements that show this (maybe from your existing job or previous jobs) and add this to your Achievements Area.

c.  You may have skills that were mentioned in the Job Descriptions. See what is needed and place those in your Resume's Skills Area Section.

b.  This will differentiate you and make you stand out from other candidates when the hiring manager/recruiter picks up your Resume / CV.

c.  This part of your UVP will get you the Interview and, eventually, the Job!

b.  For the Employee looking to Grow in their Organization: This is your secret weapon. Get into a habit of asking questions and become an avid researcher when keeping on top of your industry both within and outside your Organization (In your industry). Start asking and researching.

a.  What are the pain points in my industry?

b.  What is keeping Senior Management at my Company up at night?

c.  What are the latest requirements in my Industry?

d.  What is the future of my industry and my role?

e.  Am I ready for changes that will ultimately come?

Once you have these answers, ask yourself one last question – Do you have the skills and the experience to resolve all the above? If not, then you need to start looking at ways to fill in those gaps.

It would be best if you were on top of your game, ensuring that you are improving yourself year on year with what is demanded in your industry.

Your biggest asset is your knowledge, so you need to keep learning. We live in the best time in history when acquiring knowledge has become so simple.

Google, ChatGPT, YouTube, Books, Audiobooks, Podcasts, Online Training, and more are all at your fingertips.

Being on top of your game in your industry could lead to amazing things, like getting hired at a higher salary and probably a higher position in or outside your organization.

You need to understand that you are looking at becoming a powerhouse, a Superhero in your field that everyone will want to hire. Doing this will increase your demand, and you will find Job offers coming your way, left, right, and center, without even having to apply for a position.

c.  For the Business Owner struggling to move their business to the next level: It's funny, but I totally believe in this and something that my wife brought up the other day in a conversation. However, she was speaking about it from the perspective of her job while I am using it in the context of Business.

It rang a bell with me as I totally believe in this saying.

“People do business with people". This is so true, and when you look at some of the Top businesspeople in the world, you will see why. And this doesn’t apply only to businesspeople. It works for employees and people looking for jobs.  

Take Tesla's Elon Musk, who has built his brand and continuously pushes it to the next level by being active on X(Twitter). How many CEOs are active on Social?

Gary Vaynerchuck is another example, who took his father's wine business from a 3 million Dollar Annual Revenue Company to a $60 Million Annual Revenue Company by building his brand by making videos on YouTube.

His UVP was a wine connoisseur who was unlike any other wine connoisseur. You see, Wine Connoisseurs at the time were a bunch of stuck-up men in suits. Think Mr. Belvedere. With Gary, you had a young man who wore a T-shirt and Torn Jeans, making video reviews of wines and discussing his dream of buying the New York Jets someday. He struck a chord with the younger crowd then, who became loyal customers of Wine Library, his dad’s wine shop.

That is the power of a personal brand in business, especially one that is different from others. You stand out like a sore thumb, but in a good way.

So how do you get there? Keep in mind that this applies to all categories mentioned above. Here are a few points:

a.  It’s Important to determine what differentiates you from your competition and put it out there.

b.  It's crucial to understand who your audience is. You need to know what their needs are. What are their desires? What are their pain points? And then be the solution to what they want.

II. The second thing to do is to ensure that you identify your strengths while showing them to the world:

a.  For the Job Seeker (Someone looking for a Job): It is crucial to identify your strengths. Ask yourself these questions:

a.  What are my strengths?

b.  What makes me stand out or makes me better than others?

c.  What soft skills are my core area?

d.  What are my hard skills?

e.  Are there any skills I lack (so that you attain these in the future)?

Once you answer the above five questions and identify them. Add your Strengths, Soft Skills, and Hard Skills into your UVP. Start showing this in your talks, articles, videos, social media posts (and your Resume). This will catch the attention of hiring managers and recruiters.

b.  For the Employee looking to Grow in their Organization:

As mentioned above (the five questions), for those looking for a job, you would now need to do the same not only externally, on external platforms, but also find ways to reflect this internally within your organization.

This can be anything from asking your manager if you can train others. If your manager doesn’t facilitate, maybe speak to HR, participate in company groups, or start one if there isn't one, but get yourself out there.

Speak to upper management and bring your ideas to the market if you can; become an Intrapreneur by taking on Projects or introducing new projects within your organization.

Be the go-to person people can rely on and become the loveable character everyone goes to when they need help.

You get attention from peers and management when you are the go-to person. You are the person who gets things done. That is what management wants. Don't become the donkey of the office; become the celebrity.

Even though I mention focusing internally, this is not the only thing to do. It would be best if you focused on your industry, too. Attend Talks (try to become a speaker) and social media, Join Industry Groups, and get yourself out there.

c.  For the Business Owner who is struggling to move their business to the next level:

For the business owner, you need to take a step back and see the following:

                            i.     How are you/your product different? Compare this with your competitors.

                          ii.     What are your products/or your own strengths?

                         iii.     If you are building your brand as the face of the product/company, then you need to ask how you are different from other CEOs/Products.

                          iv.     How can you market yourself as someone different?

The following parts apply to all three categories.

III.   Be the Solution: The third one is you need to solve problems (in the case of an entrepreneur) or show that you can solve a problem your company is facing (in the case of an employee).

In the case of a job seeker, presenting yourself as the solution to that problem is what will get you that job.

IV.     Make your UVP Clear and Concise: Be clear and concise. You see, your UVP shouldn't be one page long. Your UVP should be in a couple of sentences, five sentences in total.

V.      Keep your UVP Fresh and Updated: You will keep changing/updating your UVP occasionally. This will happen as you carry on evolving. Your UVP will also evolve with time. Make sure that you revisit your UVP from time to time.

VI.     Get feedback from experts: Incorporate feedback into this process, whether from a mentor, career coach, or business coach, who will give you feedback on your UVP. They will tell you if it is aligned with who you are.

I know this was a long article, but my intention was to go in-depth and cover every possible scenario. Excellent, so now you know how to make and maintain your all-important UVP. The foundation of your Personal Brand.  

Now that it's done, how will you showcase your UVP?

Since it is part of your Personal Brand, you must embed your UVP into it. Every document, every piece of paper, every video, on every social media platform, your UVP needs to be mentioned there. You need to project your UVP on your business cards or in meetings; you will have to start living your UVP.

Without your UVP, your Personal Brand is nothing.