A guide to building a personal brand that attracts global opportunities (+ examples)
Imagine this: instead of spending hours applying for jobs or sending out countless pitches, you wake up to an inbox filled with offers for dream jobs you never applied for. That’s the power of personal branding!
A personal brand helps you stand out in a competitive job market. It positions you as an expert, so recruiters and decision-makers come to you—not the other way around—because they believe you are the right person to help them solve their problems and drive results.
In this blog, we will explain what a personal brand is, show you how to build one as an African content marketer, and explain how to use it to land global opportunities.
Table of contents
1. Why build a personal brand?
2. Components of a powerful personal brand
Why build a personal brand?
A personal brand is your professional identity and reputation. It represents what you stand for and how people perceive you. In essence, it’s the physical, emotional and psychological reaction people have whenever your name comes up.
Building a personal brand in 2025 is non-negotiable. 70% of employers prioritize a personal brand over a resume and it’s easy to see why. A personal brand allows you to showcase your values, talents, skills and uniqueness more than a resume or a cold pitch would allow.
Several African content marketers have benefited greatly from building a personal brand. John Iwuozor’s strong LinkedIn presence helped him land clients that helped him make 20k dollars monthly as a freelancer.
Chima Mmeje is another person who went from being an unknown content writer to a content marketer for top brands like Semrush and MOZ and even secured a work visa in the UK. Needless to say: a personal brand can change your life.
Let’s look at the reasons why you should build a personal brand in more detail:
1. Access global remote opportunities
Building a personal brand on social media can attract key decision-makers worldwide, including the UK and US, and give you access to jobs and opportunities beyond your immediate environment.
2. Increase your earnings
A personal brand allows you to increase your earnings by participating in the global job market and earning a foreign currency.
Let’s say you used to earn N300,000 managing social media pages for local businesses in Nigeria. If you land a global job opportunity, you could earn a global average of $3,000. This way, you earn significantly more for the same services.
3. Stand out from the competition
The job market continues to grow more competitive, and this trend is likely to continue in the future. Building a personal brand helps you stand out and stay memorable.
4. Build influence and thought leadership
When you share your knowledge about your job and career to help others, you become influential and establish yourself as a thought leader. This can lead to more opportunities.
5. Future-proof your career
By building a strong personal brand, you ensure that you'll never lack job opportunities. This is because a personal brand helps you stay visible and communicates your skills and credibility, which keeps you top of mind for recruiters, hiring managers, and potential clients.
Components of a powerful personal brand
Elements of a strong personal brand
Here’s what you need to build a strong personal brand.
1. Unique value proposition
Your unique value proposition (UVP) is a clear statement that defines the unique skills, strengths, and value you bring to the table. Ideally, these should be things that are important to your target audience.
2. Clear brand identity
Your brand identity is your visual style, tone of voice, and the way you present yourself consistently across all platforms. A clear brand identity helps you stand out and stay memorable.
3. Authenticity
A strong personal brand should be authentic. Everyone values originality. Don’t try to be someone you're not. Instead, it should emphasize the great qualities you already have.
4. Strong online presence
Having a well-maintained online presence, such as a professional LinkedIn profile or an active personal website, ensures you're visible to the right opportunities.
“Create a track record. Talk about your work. Talk about your processes. Talk about your losses as much as you talk about your wins. Experience should have a healthy dose of both.”
How to build a personal brand in 2025 using LinkedIn
“One client found me after searching the keyword “cybersecurity writer” on LinkedIn. They were impressed by my (past)website and the brands I’d worked with, then reached out. These factors were the key reasons they chose to work with me.”
A strong online presence is essential for building a powerful personal brand. While you can build a personal brand on any social media platform: Instagram, X, Tik Tok, and YouTube, we have found LinkedIn to be the most helpful for African content marketers as it is the largest professional network.
You can meet key decision-makers and connect with professionals all over the world. Additionally, LinkedIn has a dedicated job search tool and other features that make it easier for you to stand out and grow an audience.
Let’s build a personal brand from scratch using LinkedIn!
1. Define your brand
Defining your brand gives you a sense of direction and helps you identify characteristics that are consistent or inconsistent with the brand you want to build. Here’s how you can define your brand:
Start by answering the question: "What do I want to be known for?”
Identify your niche/ideal customer profile (ICP): This is a detailed description of the ideal company or individual you want to target for your services. Define them using attributes like age, location, size, revenue, pain points and goals.
Choose a unique value proposition (UVP): Identify what problem you solve and how your solution stands out.
Set SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) goals you want to achieve with your personal brand, for instance, attracting high-paying clients.
2. Create an account
Now that you're sure what you want out of your personal brand and set goals for yourself, you can now create an account.
Visit the LinkedIn website and sign up using your professional email: Optimize your intro by including your location, current position, education, industry, website and contact information. Edit your profile URL to contain only your name without extra characters; this helps your profile link look more professional. For example:
✅ www.linkedin.com/in/ayo-david
❌ www.linkedin.com/in/ayo-david12345
❌ www.linkedin.com/in/ayo-david-marketer
Choose a professional profile picture: According to a study by the University of York, it takes a 33-millisecond glance at your profile picture for people to form an impression of your trustworthiness, status and attractiveness.
This makes your profile picture the most powerful component of your LinkedIn profile. Ideally, you want a headshot where you're dressed professionally and preferably with a smile. Make sure the picture is clear, of high quality and appealing.
There are several tools to improve the quality of your headshot. For instance, PFP maker allows you to change the background of your image. With Snapseed and Adobe, you can edit your profile picture to be clearer and more appealing.
Source: LinkedIn
Design your LinkedIn banner to highlight your UVP: Your LinkedIn banner is one of the first things people see when they view your LinkedIn profile. Make a good first impression by highlighting your expertise and credibility.
You can fill your LinkedIn banner with brands you have worked for in the past, results you have driven, your unique value proposition or even a picture of you at an industry event.
Keep it simple and uncluttered. You can use a Canva template to design one quickly, or you can outsource to a graphic designer for more professional results.
Source: LinkedIn
3. Optimize your LinkedIn profile
“There could be a thousand ways to make money on LinkedIn, and I’m sure 99% of them would require you to have an optimized profile.”
A well-optimized profile increases the chances of recruiters finding and reaching out to you both within and outside LinkedIn. Here’s how to optimize your LinkedIn profile:
Choose a strong headline: Highlight your UVP in your headline in a way that’s catchy and easily memorable. Let your audience know what you do, who you do it for and the value you offer.
You also want to include relevant keywords to increase the chances of your profile showing up whenever anyone searches for your service. You can also include a link to your portfolio and personal website.
Source: LinkedIn
Write an about section that drives conversions: Think of your about section as your elevator pitch, an opportunity to flesh out what you have written in your headline. Although it’s an about section, it’s not actually about you. You should write it with your ICP in mind. What do they want to know? What are the things they care about? What are they looking for?
For instance, if you're a content writer, you can highlight qualities that help you stand out, like your ability to meet deadlines or the results you have driven for clients. Another thing to be conscious about in this section is incorporating relevant keywords in your industry.
LinkedIn has its search feature and you should optimize for it. You want to ensure your profile pops up whenever a searcher searches for an SEO specialist, content marketer, social media manager or whatever services you render. To find relevant keywords, start by reading job descriptions to find skills and qualities recruiters typically look out for.
Add your experience: List your work experience from most recent to least recent or from most relevant to least relevant. Highlight the work you did and the results you achieved in each role. You can use bullet points to make it easier to read.
Include skills and endorsements: Add all skills relevant to your industry and niche. Add as many as you can. LinkedIn uses the skill section to recommend you for jobs or show how much of a strong fit you're when you apply for jobs. Asking colleagues to endorse your skills will significantly improve your credibility.
Display education certificates and licenses: This is where you include the degrees or certifications that you have acquired.
Showcase any recommendations: Recommendations from people you have worked with in the past serve as social proof, which can increase your chances of getting hired. You can reach out to former/current colleagues and politely ask for a recommendation on LinkedIn.
Add awards and recognition: Include any awards you’ve won that are relevant to your professional brand.
Causes: Here, you can add any causes you support to give your profile a touch of personality.
Remember, a 10/10 LinkedIn profile helps you stand out of the crowd and brings you closer to landing your dream opportunity.
4. Create a brand identity that stands out
Define your brand voice: This is the tone and style you intend to use to communicate with your audience. It helps you stand out and maintain brand consistency. Decide whether your tone is conversational, professional, or inspiring.
Incorporate visual identity: Use images, visuals, or colors that make your brand memorable. You can use the same color palette for your LinkedIn banner, carousel and any other posts where you can.
Consider a personal website: A personal website shows you're serious about your personal brand and builds trust. It allows you to showcase your portfolio, achievements, personal information and any other interests.
5. Share content consistently
“Don’t be afraid to toot your own horn. Worked with big brands? Let everyone know. It’s not bragging, it’s marketing” - John Iwuozor, Freelance writer and content strategist.”
Consistency is key to staying top of mind for your ICP. When you post content repeatedly, you reach more people and have more opportunities to address your ICP's pain points. Think of it like planting a seed. Your ICP may not reach out to you straight after your first post, but they could after your 3rd, 4th or 7th post.
Here are some tips to help you post content that lands opportunities.
Develop a content strategy: Share content that solves your ICP's problems.
Educate: Post how-to guides, tutorials, or tips relevant to your field.
Share your journey: Talk about your current projects, past accomplishments, challenges, and personal aspirations.
Stay updated: Post about the latest industry news, new technologies, or niche-specific data.
Diversify content formats: Experiment with text, infographics, videos, and carousel posts.
6. Build credibility
Highlight testimonials and case studies: Share real-life examples of projects you have completed. Talk about the challenges and how you overcame them to drive significant results.
Ask for recommendations: Request recommendations from past clients or colleagues on LinkedIn.
Source: LinkedIn
Utilize the featured section: LinkedIn’s featured section is the first thing that appears after your bio. Use this section to showcase your best work, achievements, or noteworthy posts that highlight your expertise.
Source: LinkedIn
Collaborate and expand reach: If you're a content writer, consider expanding your reach by guest posting on websites. Search for "guest posts" or "write for us" on Google to identify guest posting opportunities.
You can also collaborate with other content marketers to develop content that can improve credibility. For instance, research on average pay for content marketers or insight into what content marketers look out for when starting a new role.
7. Engage online and build a community
According to John Iwuozor, “you don't need a massive follower count to land top clients. What you need is a circle of industry connections that matters.”
Be strategic with engagement: Like and comment on posts from your ICP or even other content marketers who are well-connected.
Create a target list: To help you keep note on who you're targeting, you can create a spreadsheet of your ICPs and competitors (other content marketers). Turn on post notifications so you don’t miss a post from them. Take every opportunity to start a conversation and build strong connections.
Send personalized connection requests: LinkedIn allows you to send up to 5 personalized connection requests (for free users). You can use these personalized connection requests to improve your chances of building a relationship with key decision-makers.
Engage meaningfully: Regularly share insightful, valuable, and engaging comments on your ICP posts to stay top of mind.
Join a community: Consider joining a community for African content marketers. This way you get the support and resources you need to secure global opportunities. Find top 10 marketing communities for African marketers.
8. Apply and pitch yourself
You don't always have to wait for global opportunities to find you, although some certainly will. But you can increase your chances of landing remote opportunities by doing the following:
Apply for job openings or calls for freelancers: You can use LinkedIn, X, and Pro Blogger, as well as several other job boards and freelance platforms.
Send cold pitches on LinkedIn, X, and Mail: Cold pitches are an effective way to land clients. Sometimes, prospects may not be aware they need help with a particular problem, or they may be but just haven't made the time to look for help.
Cold pitches work best when you send your pitch at the right place and the right time. You don't have to get discouraged if you don't get replies at first, but if you stay persistent, you can send a cold pitch that meets a prospect right at the point of their needs. Here are some tips to help you send effective cold pitches:
Research the company or individual you're pitching to and personalize your message.
Clearly explain the value you bring to their team or project.
Add previous results you have achieved and how you can solve their problem
Keep your message concise and focused.
Sometimes, key decision-makers may be busy. If you don't hear back within three days, don't hesitate to send a polite follow-up message. Consider 5 ways to pitch to international clients as a freelancer.
9. Stay consistent and persistent
Building your personal brand takes time and dedication. Stay patient, and don't give up. Your dream opportunities are on the other side of perseverance. Here's what you can do to ensure you're putting your best foot forward.
Refine your strategies: Learn from feedback and adapt as needed.
Keep posting: Regularly share valuable content.
Engage and apply: Continue commenting, applying, and pitching.
Start building your personal brand now
A personal brand is not just a trend but a powerful asset to your career trajectory. It can help you land opportunities that seem beyond reach and make you a magnet for global opportunities.
Define what you want out of your personal brand, choose a platform, and showcase your expertise by sharing posts that resonate with your ICPs. A personal brand isn't built overnight, so give yourself some patience.
Don't be scared to make mistakes. With each mistake, you know what doesn't work, and you move on to the next. Create that X account, write that LinkedIn post, send that connection request, and start building a personal brand today!
Love insights like this? Read Inside the Marketers’ Room to find real-life examples of marketers who’ve successfully built global brands. Their experiences and advice may be just what you need to move from where you are to where you want to be.
