Personal Branding: A Case Study of Jesus Christ
Yes, it may seem crass to talk about Jesus Christ in the context of personal branding. Jesus started his ministry with no desire for self-promotion, ministering to offer mankind salvation.
Yet, none of you can deny that Jesus of Nazareth is the single most influential personal brand of the last 2,000 years. In fact, when you examine Jesus Christ through the definition of personal branding- the power to influence the emotions, perceptions, and actions of others – Jesus’ brand is as big as it could get.
Why Does Jesus’ Brand Work?
- Authority and Credibility
Most Christians view the gospel as the source of knowledge of God’s kingdom and as the absolute, infallible rule book on human behaviour. In the same way, personal brand authority is what attracts new business, creates more opportunities and drastically shorten sales cycles.
- Emotional power
Issues like salvation, sin, eternal life and damnation all evoke overwhelming emotions that can change the course of nations, shake communities and alter entire communities. When people form an emotional attachment to your personal brand, it becomes hard for them to separate themselves from you- they’re in for the long haul.
- Timelessness
Jesus cannot be misquoted, discredited or degraded. The New Testament described him as a ‘flawless’ man. He has a collective church infrastructure to support Christianity and millions of missionaries all over the world doing his work. Simply put, Jesus’ brand is immortal. People should know you, not by the organization you work in but for your profession, your domain.
Jesus’ Domain
Speaking of domains, a domain provides a base upon which to build a brand. Jesus’ domain and personal brand is Christianity. His domain motivates charitable giving, comforts those at loss, breeds the occasional cult and at some level fuels the Christmas economy.
Personal Branding is Gold in this Information Age
Your personal brand is a vivid indication of the best you have to offer. The performance, contributions, and values that investors, potential partners, and prospects, can expect from you.
In this digital age, you simply can’t afford to leave your personal brand at the mercy of the public. If you don’t control your personal brand, someone else will.
The key take away is consistency. Developing a discipline of being consistent in your agenda in order to accomplish an objective is critical to the success of your brand. Finally leveraging available resources, for Jesus it is missionaries, in the modern day world you cannot avoid social media.