Richard Branson's Top 5 Tips For Personal Branding
Anyone who's an entrepreneur or trying to become one knows the name Richard Branson- one of the greatest entrepreneurs of our time and looked up to by many across multiple industries. As the founder of Virgin Group, which controls more than 400 companies under its web, Richard Branson is a shining example of what personal branding is all about before the internet and social media took over.
He's the maestro of personal branding and has proved it by growing Virgin, which started out as a small record shop to the multinational conglomerate that it is today. So, it's no surprise that when learning brand building, one can learn a lot from the man who's revolutionized the concept of personal branding. Let’s take a look at some of the branding lessons we can learn from Branson himself on how personal branding can change the way people perceive a brand.
Being Big by Being Small
Virgin, although a big group, is made up of numerous small companies that have never been the biggest in the industry. But, that is exactly what worked in Virgin’s favor. A lot of times entrepreneurs try to become the biggest or try to compete with the top names in the industry and although that may work or have worked for a few, their number is very insignificant. That is why it is safer and more rational to bet on becoming big by building up small percentages of the market.
To quote Branson, “Virgin has gotten big by being small. I don't think that any Virgin business has ever been the biggest in its sector. Being small has its advantages – the Virgin Record label was able to attract the Rolling Stones because they know that they wouldn't be lost on a long list of bigger bands.”
He has also said,
“We've had a lot of fun taking on fat cat complacent business. What we've done is be the small guy yap-yapping at the big guys taking a small percentage of their market.”
This further provides proof that to become successful you don’t always have to go big.
Customers are always right
The backbone of any business is the customers. Branson has always emphasized customer satisfaction above all. There are many anecdotes about how Virgin emphasizes customer satisfaction that have become popular over the years. An American Virgin Airlines passenger once tweeted using the onboard Wi-Fi that he unhappy that his meal was not delivered to him. This tweet was picked up by the ground team who immediately contacted the aircraft and had the meal delivered to him in a matter of minutes.
"I've always enjoyed calling randomly selected newly arrived Virgin passengers in one of our limos to say ‘Hi, this is Richard Branson, I wanted to say thanks for flying with us and see how you've enjoyed the flight.” This perfectly sums up how much importance Richard Branson gives to his customers, and so should you.
The Power of Social Media
Even the maestro himself admits that Social media can have a great impact on any business. "We continue to approach social media with a healthy sense of fun." is how he’s describing the use of social media by Virgin Group. He has even provided an example where promoting on social media that “$5 will be donated to KIPP School for every flight booked” saw Virgin Airlines having their fourth-largest sales day ever.
Positivity is the Key to Success
At a very young age, Branson was found to have written a suicide note after being expelled from school. He has turned around since then and has shown nothing but positivity and tenacity in his character. This is reflected clearly in his brands and the messaging they carry. He always likes to keep things fun in both his personal and professional life. This fun and positive approach to life also explain why he's a fan of informal clothing rather than suits and ties. According to him,
“Fun is at the core of the way I like to do business and it has been key to everything I’ve done from the outset. More than any other element, fun is the secret of Virgin’s success. I am aware that the ideas of business as being fun and creative goes right against the grain of convention, and it’s certainly not how they teach it at some of those business schools, where business means hard grind and lots of ‘discounted cash flows’ and net’ present values’.”
Find a Purpose Beyond Profit
One of the most important lessons that any entrepreneur can learn from Richard Branson is that their brands should have a purpose beyond profit to become successful.
“I particularly encourage start-ups to make a commitment to making a positive change in the world… So choose your cause, and put your purpose at the forefront from the start. If you make it part of your story, both your business and the world will reap the rewards…. Business can – and should be – a force for good. This mission makes us innovative in ways we could never have anticipated."
Branson is an anomaly who's enjoyed unabashed fame from his failures just as much as his successes, proving that even celebrities can get away with failures. As long as you have strong personal branding and willing to learn from your failures, you'll find that finding success will become relatively easy
