6 ways to use copywriting to build your personal brand

6 ways to use copywriting to build your personal brand6 ways to use copywriting to build your personal brandDoesnt it feel like advice about building a personal brand is everywhere lately? Its true that a big part of building your personal brand is showing up on social media and maintaining an aesthetically pleasing, strategic website. But the thing that really makes or breaks your personal brand is your messaging. From blog posts to newsletters (and even Instagram captions), youre the one shaping how others view you through words.When youre struggling to bring it all together, the best place to start is on your website. Social media platforms will come and go, but website copywriting is one of the seven pillars of your personal brand as an entrepreneur since brand clarity- how you want to be perceived by others- is where it all starts after you define the purpose of your business.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and moreWriting your website might totally freak you out, but it doesnt have to be such an undertaking. Keep reading for six ways you can use copywriting to build your personal brand and have confidence that what you want to say matches up with how you say it.Start by writing your websiteGoing through the steps of writing your website copy and then moving outwards towards other communications like blogs, newsletters, social posts, and even podcasts is a solid strategy for finding the brand voice that fits you.Before you start writing, make sure youve given plenty of thought to what youd like to be known for. Which topics are you an expert in? Which tafelgeschirrs or products are you selling, and who are you selling them to? These are the questions you should answer before digging into your homepage. If youre lost, look back on your social media posts. How did you use these posts to communicate with your ideal client or reader?To make the process of bring ing it all together a little less scary, try writing the homepage headline first. A typical format is I help ideal client with specific goal by list or one-liner of what you do. Yours might look a little like this I help creative service-based businesses shore up their marketing strategies through SEO and social reach.But this isnt the only way to write a homepage headline. Feel free to get creative hereFind the intersection between your voice and audienceAs youre writing the pages of your website, youll want to bank words, lingo, and stories you find yourself using a lot. While youll want to avoid repetition, its definitely a good idea to know which words work with your personal brand. But youre not the only one reading your site.When writing, you should always remember to speak to your ideal client. If youre unclear about who that is, pause the writing process and poll them. If you dont have readers yet, pop into a Facebook group in your niche and ask for feedback. Genuinely, of c ourse.Youll want to know what their pain points are so that your offerings will be much more specific to them. Plus, you may get some ideas for what to write straight from your audience.Make a brand guide with core valuesIf you make a brand guide before you write anything, its all too easy to fall into analysis paralysis. Instead of banking all your words and ideas beforehand, a better way to solidify what you want to write is by quantifying whats unique about your service in the form of core values.What do you believe and how is that absolutely necessary to run your business? What is unique about what you offer? These are questions you should ask yourself and write down, especially in a saturated niche.Look at unique words for inspirationAn important element of writing your website is characterizing the tone and style of your brand. Is it exuberant? Bookish? Classy? If youre stuck describing what you want to write as fun or nice, get inspiration from out-there or untranslatable wor ds on Pinterest or the thesaurus. You may not be packing your copy with these words, but youll definitely benefit from the fresh ideas.Learn from voices outside your industry to really stand out.Staying in your lane and not interested in the competition? While it may seem like a good idea to avoid looking at the competition at all costs, its a good idea to see where your competitors stand so your pricing and offers match up with the industry. Its also a great way to see how your website copy can present you as a unique and separate solution from your competition. Still, you dont want this to drive your entire strategy.Look to those slightly outside your industry.As a copywriter, I would not want to pay too close attention to a fellow writer, but I love looking to designers websites to see how other creatives present themselves.When youre writing, dont look at their webpages. Try to focus on what you want to do. Take notes on what works, and use those to guide you instead.Dont rely o n design to tell you if your copy is goodWhen you have a pretty website, its all too easy to get swept away by design. Thats why you should avoid writing your website words directly into your template. Open up Google Docs and type away. Check for errors, read aloud, and dont let your design tell you that the copy is working when it isnt. Wording should come first, and then you can beta test it in the live preview.This article first appeared on Create and Cultivate.You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from Benjamin Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, according to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people