How to Build a Personal Brand as a Student - Pt 1
Live responses from two students who dared to climb and scale up the personal brand ladder - and how they made it...
Hi,
It’s Okey again, from AIESEC in Enugu.
And today, I’ve got a ‘brand’ new question for you. (Pun intended)
{Incase you missed previous editions of Okey from AIESEC in Enugu, consider subscribing so you’ll always get our emails delivered straight to your inbox.}
…
What does “personal branding” mean to you?
To some it’s building brand(s) in their names… to others, it’s putting their face out there as the main star of attraction (and/or publicity).
While both definitions are correct, personal branding could mean a lot of different things.
But to round it all up…
A personal brand, in my words, is the story you tell the world about yourself.
It’s your reputation… your digital footprint.
For instance, imagine you're a small business owner. Your personal brand would be your logo, tagline, name, and whatever is it that you do.
Take Indomie as a case study - Their brand name is ‘Indomie’ and what the world knows about them is ‘Noodles’. Even though they may produce other products or items, It’s noodles we’ll always know them for.
Another case study would be Dangote. Some people might not even know that he makes Pasta (spaghetti); but once we think of cement, we immediately think of Dangote.
That’s the power of personal branding.
One thing you should also note is, personal branding doesn’t even have to be about what you produce alone - services also count as personal branding. Be it that you give massages like Amani Spa, or that you make meals people love like Hilda Baci, or that you sing like Burna boy; all these are personal brands, and whatever it is they do, is the story they’ve told the world about themselves - and that’s what they are now known for.
Hope you’re still following?
Good.
Because now, we’re down to the main questions of the day… “How do you actually start and scale a personal brand?” and “What benefits can you get from this as a student?”
To answer this, I decided to invite a few personal brand owners and close friends of mine to take the stand and share with us how they got where they are now, and the entire journey they’ve experienced so far.
…
AISHA’S STORY
Aisha
CEO of Nails By Aisha
300Lv Microbiology Student
“Please tell us who you are”
R. “My name is Aisha and I’m the name and face behind Nails By Aisha, which is my personal brand.”
“Interesting… Tell us more about your brand”
R. “Okay. So Nails By Aisha is a nail brand where I make, design and fix nails for my clients to their desired taste.
So yeah, I’m in the beauty niche.”
“When was your brand founded?”
R. “Nails By Aisha was founded… or rather, I created Nails By Aisha around June last year . So It’s been over a year already.”
“So like.. what was the motive behind choosing your niche? What made you go after nail art? Was it passion-driven or something else?”
R. “I wont say there was actually a passion per say. Really, I just needed a handwork, something I could do, something that’ll keep me busy. And I guess nail art just crossed my mind and I decided to do that.”
…“So basically, you just wanted something doing yeah?”
R. “Yeah basically. I needed something to get my hands on, and also something to keep the cash flow coming so yeah i decided on nail art”
“How are you able to balance being a student and a brand owner at the same time without feeling like you’d jeopardize or prioritize one over the other?”
R. “Hmmm… It's not easy oh, it's not easy at all having a business as a student, because without even knowing, you’re eventually going to concentrate on one over the other.
Personally, I would say that I concentrated on my business over school but nevertheless, I’m still trying to manage them both.”
“Were there times when it felt a bit overwhelming? Like a thought telling you to give up?”
R. “Of course not!”
“Because before I started I knew this is what I wanted. So right now I’ve not felt the need to give up because I have a target, an aim to meet up with - that’s my drive.
So no I’ve not felt the urge to give up just yet but yes, it can be overwhelming.”
“How long do you recall that it took you before you started seeing Return of Investment from your personal brand?”
R. “I actually started seeing returns from my brand in December last year. But there was a major step-up for me early this year. So let’s say December to maybe February. That’s about 6-8 months after I started.”
“If you could go back to let’s say a year ago when you were just starting out your brand, what would you have done differently for your brand?”
R. “Everything right now is going according to plan. But if i could go back, I kind of wish back then that I had more resources at my disposal to boost my business.”
…so technically speaking, ‘more upfront capital’?
R. Oh yes! More upfront capital would’ve helped boost my brand like a lot. But all the same, I’m very happy with my progress. Like I said everything’s going according to plan.
“So apart from school and your brand of course, what do you occupy your time with?”
R. “Well nothing else actually. It’s just my brand that helps keep me busy. I don't focus on anything else apart from it.”
…and school?
R. “Yes😂, and school.”
“What advice would you give out to every young person out there aspiring to build their own personal brand?”
R. “Well… I’ll actually advise them to work hard. Hard Work pays a lot. I’d also add that you shouldn’t give up on anything you decide to put your hands into.
So Final Question…
What’s next for you?
What others ‘stuffs’ or businesses can we expect from our ‘personal brander’
R. Okay… so apart from this, I’m actually looking into starting a second business - A perfume and jewelry business. It’s currently in the making now but definitely look out for that.
Alright. Thank you so much Aisha, it’s been a great time with you. I’m looking forward to your second business endeavor.
R. You’re welcome! And I'm looking forward to your orders😁
…
FAITH’S STORY
Faith
CEO and chef behind Sparkies Foodies
300Lv Biochemistry student
“So how’re you feeling today Faith?”
R. I’m doing great. I'm good.
…”Alright, that’s great
“Please tell us about your brand.”
R. Okay.
The name of my brand is Sparkies Foodies - It’s a kitchen where I prepare and sell meals.
When did you start your brand?
R. Technically, this year… but actually, two years ago. I’ll explain.
So at first, when I started Sparkies, I used to do sales online. So people would place orders, I’d prepare it from home, then make deliveries to them. But eventually I started looking into getting my own shop and going all out; so that's what I did.
I got a place around Behind Flat, got it up and running, and made it my kitchen proper. So that’s where I’m at currently, which is making it a total of 3 years I've been in the business.
What was the motive behind choosing your brand? Was it money or passion?
R. My dear na money😂
But if I must say, I’d put it more like this.
I’ve always had a passion for cooking right from the start. I enjoy cooking and take it as a hobby. I also feel good when I make something for someone and they’re happy with it. I love spreading joy through my cooking, so that was also a motive for me entering the food business and then starting up a kitchen. And I believe with time, it’ll expand to more than that.
“How are you able to balance being a student and a brand owner at the same time without feeling like you’d jeopardize or prioritize one over the other?”
R. I don’t think I'm jeopardizing anyone over the other. For me, it's on a balanced scale.
I run my food business only in the evening when I'm done with classes for the day. So basically I’m a student by day and a chef by night.
Although, I also have some help in that area as well. I have a business partner and co-owner that runs the place when I'm not available. So she handles the cooking around 12PM-3PM then when I get back, I take over till around 10PM everyday. Apart from Sundays though. Sundays are my free days and you’ll need one to successfully juggle being a student and a brand owner at the same time.
“Were there times when it felt a bit overwhelming? Like a thought in your head telling you to give up?”
R. Yes, yes, yes. There were many times like that.
You know as a physical business that’s just starting out, especially as a physical food outlet, people have to know your brand first. They have to taste the food, then they have to love your food, then they’ll tell a friend, and that friend has to tell another friend. And all of that. So at that point when you just newly started, the whole process might be a bit slow; but you're not meant to be expecting many customers coming in. It's a step-by-step process, but I didn't understand this back then.
At that time I just felt like I should give up o, the numbers were not encouraging at all. Business wasn’t booming like I planned. But yeah, at the same time, I reminded myself that consistency is key so I pushed on.
“How long do you recall that it took you before you started seeing Return of Investment from your personal brand?”
R. Well when I was still online, it took me about a few weeks. Let’s say like the first week, it was all about advertisement, brand building and customer hunting. The second and third week, the same thing. Till like around the fourth week, that’s when I started seeing a certain yield, that encouraged me to push on.
Same thing goes to the physical kitchen, but as for that one, I won't really say it was as easy as the online one, and I won't really say it's exactly ‘scaling’ just yet because it’s still new. But yeah, it’s on a process. If I’m to rate it, I’d say it's 30% there.
“If you could go back to a few months ago when you were just starting out your brand, what would you have done differently for your brand?”
R. I would say that I should have given it a bit more time.. kind of like a pause before starting out my physical outlet.
My reasons for that are, firstly, there’s some equipment that I need currently for my brand that's not readily in place and it’s kind of breaching some things for me at the moment.
So had it been that I took a short pause initially, I would’ve re-strategized and found a way to gather the money before jumping into it. So yeah that’s what i would’ve done.
“What advice would you give out to every young person out there aspiring to build their own personal brand?”
R. As the saying goes, ‘consistency is key’. If you're a teenager or youth out there still trying to find your feet, just try to first of all, have a topic. Know what you want to do and how you're going to do it. Secondly; set a goal, a project plan… map it all out. Don't just jump into something when you don't have a plan. If you have a scheduled plan you're working with, at least you’d be able to achieve like 80% of it accurately, if you know what you’re doing.
And lastly, don't give up. At times, you'd be pushed to do so but remember that giving up is not an option. It’s better to strive hard no matter how tough it gets. Painfully but surely you’ll get there.
These are things I usually tell myself, hopefully it’ll help you too.
“What’s next for you?
What others stuffs or businesses can we expect from our ‘personal brander’
R. Firstly, I want to expand my food business first before all else. Scale it up into a restaurant or something like that. Because my passion lies in food, cooking, baking and everything related so I'd like to really pick up more on that.”
I’m also willing to learn new food ideas, new recipes, dishes and all that, I'm willing to do that.”
But even if I do choose to venture into other aspects of business, my second plan will be to start up a test lab. Because like I mentioned, that's my field in school and I'm really passionate about it too so yeah.”
Maybe as time goes on, I'll discover other interests as well, but that's all for now.”
“Alright Faith, that’s our time. Thanks for coming out today.”
R. “No problem, anytime.”
…
Side Notes…
Starting a personal brand is no small feat obviously - there are bound to be ups and downs.
We just heard some of Unn’s finest brand owners discuss their wins, their struggles and their overall success (and pain) points.
From our discussions, you can draw up some deductions of what needs to be done when starting out your own personal brand journey, and if you can adopt the same mindset as them, then you're already fully equipped to take on the hike.
What’s left now is that one step.
So with this, I come to a final close…
Goodluck on your future brand and see you on the next one.