Let’s face it, not all of us are born to be loud and boisterous, but if you’re not an outgoing person, it can be hard to get your business noticed in a noisy marketplace.
So how do you get your brand out into the public sphere without grabbing a megaphone or putting yourself on show? The answer: quiet disruption.
A quiet disruptor is someone who has a positive effect on the world, without being showy, loud or in your face. They do not need to be in the spotlight because they are quietly getting on with the job of making life better for other people.
Believe it or not, many influential business people in history were introverts. The likes of Warren Buffett, Larry Page and Mark Zuckerberg have all been reported as being shy and introverted individuals, who struggled being thrown into the limelight. Each began their careers by working their magic from behind closed doors until the success of their respective companies forced them into the public eye.
If that strikes a chord with you, and you’re one of those quiet achievers who isn’t comfortable showing up on socials, putting your face on billboards, or being the focal subject of marketing campaigns, then let’s talk about some branding strategies you can use to build your business profile.
- Know your customers: If you’ve honed your target market and know exactly who you’re talking to (i.e. demographics, interests, dislikes, hobbies, even what they eat for breakfast), then it’s much easier to build connections without needing to pull out the megaphone and spruke yourself. Spend time narrowing down your customer avatar so you can talk directly to them.
- Offer a solution to their problem: Once you’ve locked down your customer avatar, understand and address their pain points. What are they struggling with and how can you help them? Sell them a solution, rather than your product or service.
- Be a heart-centred business: Investing in relationships is key here—you’re building trust and giving people reasons to engage with you, even when they have other options available to them (which is basically always). You might not be comfortable attending big events, or networking groups, so remove that stress and focus on building relationships one person at a time.
- Write a blog or e-book: Quite often for introverts, written content is more within the comfort zone. Write in-depth, high-quality content that addresses the pain points of your target customer. This allows you to focus on providing valuable insights and solutions in a way that feels safe for you, without the need to pitch to journalists or meet with publishers.
- Email marketing: This allows you to communicate with your customers (and potential customers) in a controlled and thoughtful manner. You can nurture your leads over time, by creating personalised email sequences that provide valuable content, address common questions, and guide subscribers through the customer journey. If you feel brave, you can even include videos!
In summary, if you concentrate on building the relationship with your customers and emphasise the problem you’re solving for them, then you’ll shift the focus from you to ‘them’. Your customers.
Once you’ve mastered that, you’ll be able to bring your own brand of quiet disruption to your business as you build your profile without ever having to step foot in front of a camera.
