Personal branding

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Personal branding is a strategic process aimed at creating, positioning, and maintaining a positive public perception of oneself by leveraging unique individual characteristics and presenting a differentiated narrative to a target audience.^[1] The concept is rooted in two main theoretical foundations: marketing theory and self-presentation behaviors. Personal branding is often framed in marketing terms such as 'product,' 'added value,' and 'promise,' highlighting its parallels with product branding and its focus on distinctiveness and market positioning. Conversely, definitions of self-presentation focus on personal identity, reputation, and managing one's image, underscoring how people present themselves to influence the way others perceive them.^[2] Success in personal branding is viewed as the result of effective self-packaging.^[3] It is more about self-promotion rather than true self-expression. The distinction between the two lies in the fact that self-promotion is intentionally deliberate in every regard, as the person is consciously crafting their image or persona. In contrast, self-expression can sometimes unintentionally arise from promotion.