Want to sway minds? Do this one valuable thing.

“Tally will break the credit card industry.” At least that what co-founder and CEO, Jason Brown, told his audience at the Sway Minds Technology Summit back in 2018.

He spoke about his company in a way that most over-zealous founders do--with enormous pride and enthusiasm. His energy was contagious and I could feel it had the entire room buzzing.

Tally is the world’s first automated debt manager that will manage your credit cards and pay down the balances faster. By giving users a line of credit, Tally minimizes interest costs and fees by making the right payment to the right card at the right time.

Brown explained that Americans fear credit card debt even more than dying. And it’s true. According to a survey conducted by credible, Millennials with credit card debt find their debt to be scarier than climate change, the threat of war, not being able to retire, and yes, dying. Tally could offer its users peace of mind in knowing that a plan has been put in place to reduce the fear and anxiety often associated with large sums of credit card debt.

The concept is genius, but that’s not what sold me.

Brown spoke with such conviction that he remained in my memory for months to come. He was so memorable that I downloaded Tally 10 months later without even thinking twice.

Somewhat embarrassed for my lack of research, I genuinely asked myself, why did I take out a line of credit with an app before pausing to explore more options?

The answer was simple, Jason Brown.

Consumers trust people--not companies. So it makes perfect sense that my subconscious would associate Tally for being reputable and trustworthy. Jason had convinced me 10 months ago.

And here I was, sitting at my desk, cellphone in hand, downloading his app out of sheer memory.

After the realization had sunk in, I wondered, what would happen if more founders and CEOs spoke about their companies in the same way. Rather, what would happen if more people could hear them?

Bingo.

This is personal branding.

When founders, executives and business owners build their online presence they can actually position themselves as “industry influencers.”

What do influencers do? They sway minds.

They inspire action, drive profit, and increase a company's brand awareness.

When a company’s message comes from a person, we are more inclined to believe it. We relate to humans in a way that we will never relate to companies. Our minds signal that we can trust this person, he or she looks like me, connects with me, understands me… and because of this--, we buy into their message on an emotional level. It actually changes the way we feel.

I bought into Tally after one interaction with its CEO. Just one. (And I’d like to think of myself as a seasoned consumer). That’s all it took for me to make up my mind and download the app--10 months later.

Now, multiply that interaction by 10, 20, 30. Spread it across LinkedIn, Instagram, Medium… You’ll garner more exposure for your business than any ad campaign or PR initiatives.

Personal branding is your unfair advantage, and the sooner you step into your role as leader marketer--building the business of you--the sooner your business will be separated from the competition.

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