5 Personal Branding Musts for 2025

In this era of endless content, executives have never had more opportunities to establish a personal brand.  And it’s not just beneficial for those leaders — employees and customers alike have come to rely on these executives to inform their perspective on business. But the vastness of messaging possibilities can be overwhelming for busy executives looking to build their personal brands.

That’s why the Inc. 5000 Community hosted a week of personal branding workshops for all past and present Inc. 5000 honorees. Each session showcased the advice of an industry expert fluent in a particular platform. Whether discussing thought leadership articles, podcasts, or public speaking, everyone stressed a common theme: a strong personal brand isn’t about self-promotion — it’s about sharing value, solving problems, and inspiring action.  The following are a few of the expert insights and practical strategies offered for building and refining a personal brand.

Consistent posting — but with varying formats.  LinkedIn has emerged as the most reliable platform for executive thought leadership, and on LinkedIn, consistency is key. It builds authority and keeps you visible, according to Jen Rotner, founder and CEO of Elite Creative, which includes a thought leadership arm.  Rotner emphasized the 99/1 rule: 99 percent of people consume content on LinkedIn, but only 1 percent are actively creating it. In other words, fortune favors regular creators.  “The algorithm rewards creators who show up often, authentically, and with variety,” said Rotner, who also advised that LinkedIn advantages posts from personal accounts, as opposed to business accounts.  By posting weekly and mixing formats — articles, personal stories, industry insights, and BTS content — you earn even more visibility from LinkedIn’s algorithm. Rotner added that features like Creator Mode, strategic use of novel hashtags, and consistent engagement (such as tagging and commenting) can significantly expand your reach and reinforce your authority.

Leading with your storytelling chops.  Every effective personal brand exercise begins with a good story, and that includes public speaking. Ashley Stahl is the founder of Wise Whisper Agency, a speaker advisory firm that’s helped more than 100 clients craft signature talks and land a spot on large stages like TEDx.  She recommended beginning any speaking engagement with an emotional hook — a relatable, personal anecdote that captures attention and creates connection. “The opening story is 20-25 percent of your talk,” Stahl said. “It moves people before it teaches them.”  This story doesn’t have to tie directly to the topic; its job is to build trust and inspire emotion among audience members. From there, you layer in the big idea: a perspective or insight unique to your vantage, one the world needs.  But making that emotional connection up front is key to getting people to care — a practice that can scale to any other aspect of your personal platform.

Original insights with wide-reaching impact.  To establish yourself as a thought leader, you of course need to emphasize your own original ideas. But be sure to share insights that resonate broadly, advises Debbie Abrams Kaplan, who edits Inc. 5000 Community member columns for Inc.com.  The goal is to develop topic authority — communicating what makes you or your approach unique while addressing trends, progress, or problems in your industry. “Getting known for a particular issue can define your topic authority, so people think of you first when that issue arrises,” said Kaplan.  Connecting your posts to news topics can make it timely — but only when you can offer an original perspective grounded in your expertise.

A signature podcast framework.  If you’re setting out to create a podcast, start by clearly defining your thought leadership focus, says Pod Digital Media founder Gary Coichy. What unique perspective or value do you bring to your audience? If you have audiences on other platforms, you can use analytics to identify the topics that resonate most with them to help fine-tune your strategy.  Once you start casting, build consistency and audience trust by sticking to a manageable schedule. 

Selective content pillars.  Strong brands are built on multiple “content pillars” — themes that reflect your expertise, experiences, and values. Rotner said almost everyone can base their pillars on thought leadership, personal stories, industry insights, product and service highlights, client stories, team shout outs, and BTS (behind-the-scenes) content. But by sticking to a few key pillars, you make it easy for audiences to associate you with a particular space.

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