August 28, 2025 • 11 mins
Your brand is so much more than a logo and some colors—it’s your personality, your values, and the story you tell the world. In this episode of The Aspiring Solopreneur, Carly and Joe dive into what it really means to build a brand as a one-person business.
From defining who you are (and who you aren’t) to crafting messaging that resonates, they’ll show you how storytelling becomes the foundation for every marketing move you make. If you’ve ever wondered how to stand out authentically without feeling “salesy,” this one’s for you.
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Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Carly Ries (00:00):
Building a brand isn't just about picking colors
(00:02):
and designing a logo. It's aboutdeciding who you are, how you
show up, and what you stand for.In this bite sized episode of
the solopreneur success cycleseries, Joe and I break down why
your messaging and brand go fardeeper than visuals. From
defining your brand'spersonality and values, to using
storytelling that resonates withyour audience, we share
practical insights everysolopreneur needs before diving
(00:24):
into marketing. So tune in tolearn how to craft a brand that
feels authentic, connects withyour audience, and sets the
stage for a lasting success.
You're listening to The AspiringSolopreneur, the podcast for
anyone on the solo businessjourney, whether you're just
toying with the idea, takingyour first bold step, or have
been running your own show foryears and want to keep growing,
(00:45):
refining, and thriving. I'mCarly Ries, and along with my
cohost, Joe Rando, we're yourguides through the crazy but
awesome world of being a companyof one. As part of LifeStarr, a
digital hub dedicated to allthings solopreneurship, we help
people design businesses thatalign with their life's
ambitions so they can work tolive, not live to work. If
(01:06):
you're looking for a get richquick scheme, this is not the
place for you. But if you wantreal world insights from
industry experts, lessons fromthe successes and stumbles of
fellow solopreneurs, andpractical strategies for
building and sustaining abusiness you love, you're in the
right spot.
Because flying solo in businessdoesn't mean you're alone. No
matter where you are in yourjourney, we've got your back.
(02:10):
Joe, we are back with anotherepisode in the series that we
are covering on the solopreneursuccess cycle. The reason why we
are covering this is because ourbook, solopreneur business for
dummies, is basically about thesolopreneur success cycle. We
came up with this in 2022.
I cannot believe we've beenpreaching this message for years
(02:30):
now. How wild is that?
Joe Rando (02:33):
It's very wild. But the whole thing about time
passing is wild. So, I don'twanna talk about that.
Carly Ries (02:40):
Yeah. Exactly. That's a whole other episode.
That's a whole other podcast,actually.
Joe Rando (02:44):
That's a whole other topic.
Carly Ries (02:46):
That is not our spiel. But this is, another
episode in this series, anotherpart of the planning phase of
the solopreneur success cycle.So if you haven't gone back and
listened to the past sevenepisodes or so where we cover
all this, be sure to listen.These are our sound bite
episodes. They're only like tenminutes tops.
And we just give little tidbitson each phase of the success
(03:07):
cycle. But each episode itselfis a standalone, so if you just
wanna listen to this part,that's fine. But if you want the
big picture, listen to the fullsolopreneur success cycle
series. Anyway, on that note,today we're talking about
creating your messaging and yourbrand. In the last episode, we
were talking about marketpositioning and the importance
(03:27):
of hitting pinpoints and all ofthat.
We'll get to that in a second asit relates to your messaging.
But first, let's talk about yourbrand. I think when people come
up with their brand or thinkabout their brand, they're like,
what will my logo look like?What are my fonts? What is my
website? Like the design andeverything. And they really
think visually.
(03:48):
But as a solopreneur, you areyour brand. So your brand has a
personality. Your brand hasvalues. Your brand has beliefs.
You need to think so much moreabout just the visuals that
people see because your brand ishow you are represented in the
world. You need to think aboutyour tone. Are you lively and
(04:10):
funny? Are you helpful? Are youserious and educational? Not
that you can't be lively andeducational. I think that's the
one that we try to be. But youreally need to think through
this. I recommend a solid week,like a week's worth of work to
put into like, once you've doneall the other phases and
everything, of course, andunderstand your pain points and
whatnot that you're trying toaddress, spend a solid week
(04:31):
thinking, who are you? how doyou want to portray yourself out
in the world? And what do youstand for? those are big things
when it comes to your messaging.And once you know who you are
and how you want to representyourself, you need to get that
out into the world. And the bestway to do that is through
(04:52):
storytelling. We talk aboutDonald Miller. His story brand
framework, which if you haven'tfollowed that, I highly
recommend you check that out.it's just a great way to get
into the frame of mind of how toget into the mind of your
customer, of your audience, andtell a story that would resonate
(05:13):
with them.
Because once you know what youvalue and what you represent,
you need to resonate with them.And you need to do that before
you even get to your marketingefforts. You need to understand
how to hit them. And then onceyou do, then you can incorporate
the storytelling and everythinginto your marketing. So
storytelling is key.
And it'll separate you from somany people because so many
people rely on AI these days. AIis super helpful And it can
(05:37):
certainly help tell a story, butit doesn't take the personal
tone quite like you would.
Joe. You look like you're gonnasay something.
Joe Rando (05:48):
No. go ahead, but I just wanna go back because I
have a question about somethingyou said a little earlier. But
finish on Jay Acunzo.
Carly Ries (05:54):
Yeah. He's I mean, we love his methodologies. He's
a respected marketer and writer,and he always talks about
resonance. And that's kind ofwhere I was going that. But
sorry. What were you gonna say?
Joe Rando (06:05):
Well, just going back to what you said initially
about, who do you wanna be. I'mjust curious, you know, that
seems like a great idea, butpotentially dangerous if you do
it wrong. I just wonder, whenyou think about who you wanna
be, who you wanna present as,does it need to be like a subset
(06:26):
of who you really are? Or can itbe invented? I think it depends
on your business. I thinkauthenticity and transparency
are key. When you're workingwith one person business, I
mean, for me, you know, I'mchitchatting. I'm very social
and everything. And if I have abusiness where I try to hide who
(06:49):
I am, sometimes it comes off asinauthentic. but I'm in
marketing. So I want my voice tocome through.
Carly Ries (06:57):
But on the flip side, if you're a marketing
consultant, consulting foranother business, but you're a
solopreneur, you're just hiredout as a contractor, You need to
take on the tone of thatbusiness, obviously.
Joe Rando (07:09):
Right. But I mean, you're also marketing yourself
to get that work, and that'swhat I'm talking about. I think
it would be really dangerous, atleast for me, to try to pretend
to be somebody I'm not.
But I also think that I don'twanna be me soup to nuts. I
(07:30):
mean, it's just you don't wannasee me at 10:00 at night.
Carly Ries (07:35):
Well, same. But I mean, it's your brand's
personality. Because you areyour brand, but you're still
thinking through it as yourbrand's personality.
Joe Rando (07:43):
Right. So you're taking a subset that you feel
ties back to the business, makessense, and is congruent with the
business and presenting that.Okay.
Carly Ries (07:53):
That's a good clarification. Thank you. But
once you get the storytellingdown, then that is when you can
craft your audience messaging.And that's when it kinda starts
to lead into your marketingefforts. And that is when we're
circling back on the marketpositioning and really hone in
on the pain points.
So once you know how to tell astory, once you know what you
represent, that's when you cantie everything together and
(08:15):
really speak to your audience toget your product out there,
which is messaging and yourbrand are your business. I mean,
that's how you're represented.So these are just really
important things to thinkthrough as you lead into your
marketing efforts. In this pointof the planning process, the
next phase is to plan out yourmarketing, and these are the
building blocks to get you toputting all of this together.
Joe Rando (08:38):
But once you figure all that out, then you get to
pick out your colors and yourlogo and all that.
Carly Ries (08:43):
Yeah. I mean, I feel like you should figure out your
brand first and who you are.
Joe Rando (08:46):
Absolutely. Because, you know, you think about
creating a logo before you comeup with this butterfly logo,
then you decide that you're, youknow, you're greedy, get it
done. It's like, well, the logogoes out the window. Right?
Carly Ries (09:01):
In the process, you should already know who your
customers are. You shouldalready know who your
competition is. You shouldalready know all of this. So
when it comes to branding, atthis point in the success cycle,
you should be well equipped todevelop your brand and your
brand standards and everythingbefore you get into the market.
I mean, you're set up forsuccess at this point.
So this is when you do developyour brand, and you can hear
(09:23):
your storytelling and all that.
Joe Rando (09:25):
Can I tell a quick story? So when we were doing
LifeStarr, I had a very clearidea of what I wanted the logo
to be like, but I was smartenough to hire a professional to
help me put together the brand.I basically gave her very clear
ideas about what this logoshould be like. And she came
back with, I think she came upwith five options.
(09:47):
And so four of those optionswere basically based off of my
instructions. And the fifth onewas this. it was the logo that
we used. So she understood whatwe were trying to do, who we
were trying to help, and thenlistened to me explain what I
(10:08):
thought it should be like andgave it one shot of what she
thought it should be like, andshe won because she was a
professional, and I am not.
So just all my point is that, ifyou can afford to get a
professional, a goodprofessional to help you with
some of that visual stuff thatmost of us aren't necessarily
masters at. It's not a badinvestment, but get the other
(10:31):
stuff done first.
Carly Ries (10:32):
Yep. Love it. Well, again, we're just scratching the
surface today. Be sure to checkout our book, Solopreneur
Business for Dummies. And fornow, please share this episode
with a friend.
Leave a five star review forreal. We so appreciate it. And
subscribe to this podcast onyour favorite platform, and
we'll see you next time on TheAspiring Solopreneur. You may be
(10:54):
going solo in business, but thatdoesn't mean you're alone. In
fact, millions of people are inyour shoes, running a one person
business and figuring it out asthey go.
So why not connect with them andlearn from each other's
successes and failures? AtLifeStarr, we're creating a one
person business community whereyou can go to meet and get
advice from other solopreneurs.Be sure to join in on the
conversations atcommunity.lifestarr.com.
Building a brand isn't just about picking colors
(00:02):
and designing a logo. It's aboutdeciding who you are, how you
show up, and what you stand for.In this bite sized episode of
the solopreneur success cycleseries, Joe and I break down why
your messaging and brand go fardeeper than visuals. From
defining your brand'spersonality and values, to using
storytelling that resonates withyour audience, we share
practical insights everysolopreneur needs before diving
(00:24):
into marketing. So tune in tolearn how to craft a brand that
feels authentic, connects withyour audience, and sets the
stage for a lasting success.
You're listening to The AspiringSolopreneur, the podcast for
anyone on the solo businessjourney, whether you're just
toying with the idea, takingyour first bold step, or have
been running your own show foryears and want to keep growing,
(00:45):
refining, and thriving. I'mCarly Ries, and along with my
cohost, Joe Rando, we're yourguides through the crazy but
awesome world of being a companyof one. As part of LifeStarr, a
digital hub dedicated to allthings solopreneurship, we help
people design businesses thatalign with their life's
ambitions so they can work tolive, not live to work. If
(01:06):
you're looking for a get richquick scheme, this is not the
place for you. But if you wantreal world insights from
industry experts, lessons fromthe successes and stumbles of
fellow solopreneurs, andpractical strategies for
building and sustaining abusiness you love, you're in the
right spot.
Because flying solo in businessdoesn't mean you're alone. No
matter where you are in yourjourney, we've got your back.
(02:10):
Joe, we are back with anotherepisode in the series that we
are covering on the solopreneursuccess cycle. The reason why we
are covering this is because ourbook, solopreneur business for
dummies, is basically about thesolopreneur success cycle. We
came up with this in 2022.
I cannot believe we've beenpreaching this message for years
(02:30):
now. How wild is that?
Joe Rando (02:33):
It's very wild. But the whole thing about time
passing is wild. So, I don'twanna talk about that.
Carly Ries (02:40):
Yeah. Exactly. That's a whole other episode.
That's a whole other podcast,actually.
Joe Rando (02:44):
That's a whole other topic.
Carly Ries (02:46):
That is not our spiel. But this is, another
episode in this series, anotherpart of the planning phase of
the solopreneur success cycle.So if you haven't gone back and
listened to the past sevenepisodes or so where we cover
all this, be sure to listen.These are our sound bite
episodes. They're only like tenminutes tops.
And we just give little tidbitson each phase of the success
(03:07):
cycle. But each episode itselfis a standalone, so if you just
wanna listen to this part,that's fine. But if you want the
big picture, listen to the fullsolopreneur success cycle
series. Anyway, on that note,today we're talking about
creating your messaging and yourbrand. In the last episode, we
were talking about marketpositioning and the importance
(03:27):
of hitting pinpoints and all ofthat.
We'll get to that in a second asit relates to your messaging.
But first, let's talk about yourbrand. I think when people come
up with their brand or thinkabout their brand, they're like,
what will my logo look like?What are my fonts? What is my
website? Like the design andeverything. And they really
think visually.
(03:48):
But as a solopreneur, you areyour brand. So your brand has a
personality. Your brand hasvalues. Your brand has beliefs.
You need to think so much moreabout just the visuals that
people see because your brand ishow you are represented in the
world. You need to think aboutyour tone. Are you lively and
(04:10):
funny? Are you helpful? Are youserious and educational? Not
that you can't be lively andeducational. I think that's the
one that we try to be. But youreally need to think through
this. I recommend a solid week,like a week's worth of work to
put into like, once you've doneall the other phases and
everything, of course, andunderstand your pain points and
whatnot that you're trying toaddress, spend a solid week
(04:31):
thinking, who are you? how doyou want to portray yourself out
in the world? And what do youstand for? those are big things
when it comes to your messaging.And once you know who you are
and how you want to representyourself, you need to get that
out into the world. And the bestway to do that is through
(04:52):
storytelling. We talk aboutDonald Miller. His story brand
framework, which if you haven'tfollowed that, I highly
recommend you check that out.it's just a great way to get
into the frame of mind of how toget into the mind of your
customer, of your audience, andtell a story that would resonate
(05:13):
with them.
Because once you know what youvalue and what you represent,
you need to resonate with them.And you need to do that before
you even get to your marketingefforts. You need to understand
how to hit them. And then onceyou do, then you can incorporate
the storytelling and everythinginto your marketing. So
storytelling is key.
And it'll separate you from somany people because so many
people rely on AI these days. AIis super helpful And it can
(05:37):
certainly help tell a story, butit doesn't take the personal
tone quite like you would.
Joe. You look like you're gonnasay something.
Joe Rando (05:48):
No. go ahead, but I just wanna go back because I
have a question about somethingyou said a little earlier. But
finish on Jay Acunzo.
Carly Ries (05:54):
Yeah. He's I mean, we love his methodologies. He's
a respected marketer and writer,and he always talks about
resonance. And that's kind ofwhere I was going that. But
sorry. What were you gonna say?
Joe Rando (06:05):
Well, just going back to what you said initially
about, who do you wanna be. I'mjust curious, you know, that
seems like a great idea, butpotentially dangerous if you do
it wrong. I just wonder, whenyou think about who you wanna
be, who you wanna present as,does it need to be like a subset
(06:26):
of who you really are? Or can itbe invented? I think it depends
on your business. I thinkauthenticity and transparency
are key. When you're workingwith one person business, I
mean, for me, you know, I'mchitchatting. I'm very social
and everything. And if I have abusiness where I try to hide who
(06:49):
I am, sometimes it comes off asinauthentic. but I'm in
marketing. So I want my voice tocome through.
Carly Ries (06:57):
But on the flip side, if you're a marketing
consultant, consulting foranother business, but you're a
solopreneur, you're just hiredout as a contractor, You need to
take on the tone of thatbusiness, obviously.
Joe Rando (07:09):
Right. But I mean, you're also marketing yourself
to get that work, and that'swhat I'm talking about. I think
it would be really dangerous, atleast for me, to try to pretend
to be somebody I'm not.
But I also think that I don'twanna be me soup to nuts. I
(07:30):
mean, it's just you don't wannasee me at 10:00 at night.
Carly Ries (07:35):
Well, same. But I mean, it's your brand's
personality. Because you areyour brand, but you're still
thinking through it as yourbrand's personality.
Joe Rando (07:43):
Right. So you're taking a subset that you feel
ties back to the business, makessense, and is congruent with the
business and presenting that.Okay.
Carly Ries (07:53):
That's a good clarification. Thank you. But
once you get the storytellingdown, then that is when you can
craft your audience messaging.And that's when it kinda starts
to lead into your marketingefforts. And that is when we're
circling back on the marketpositioning and really hone in
on the pain points.
So once you know how to tell astory, once you know what you
represent, that's when you cantie everything together and
(08:15):
really speak to your audience toget your product out there,
which is messaging and yourbrand are your business. I mean,
that's how you're represented.So these are just really
important things to thinkthrough as you lead into your
marketing efforts. In this pointof the planning process, the
next phase is to plan out yourmarketing, and these are the
building blocks to get you toputting all of this together.
Joe Rando (08:38):
But once you figure all that out, then you get to
pick out your colors and yourlogo and all that.
Carly Ries (08:43):
Yeah. I mean, I feel like you should figure out your
brand first and who you are.
Joe Rando (08:46):
Absolutely. Because, you know, you think about
creating a logo before you comeup with this butterfly logo,
then you decide that you're, youknow, you're greedy, get it
done. It's like, well, the logogoes out the window. Right?
Carly Ries (09:01):
In the process, you should already know who your
customers are. You shouldalready know who your
competition is. You shouldalready know all of this. So
when it comes to branding, atthis point in the success cycle,
you should be well equipped todevelop your brand and your
brand standards and everythingbefore you get into the market.
I mean, you're set up forsuccess at this point.
So this is when you do developyour brand, and you can hear
(09:23):
your storytelling and all that.
Joe Rando (09:25):
Can I tell a quick story? So when we were doing
LifeStarr, I had a very clearidea of what I wanted the logo
to be like, but I was smartenough to hire a professional to
help me put together the brand.I basically gave her very clear
ideas about what this logoshould be like. And she came
back with, I think she came upwith five options.
(09:47):
And so four of those optionswere basically based off of my
instructions. And the fifth onewas this. it was the logo that
we used. So she understood whatwe were trying to do, who we
were trying to help, and thenlistened to me explain what I
(10:08):
thought it should be like andgave it one shot of what she
thought it should be like, andshe won because she was a
professional, and I am not.
So just all my point is that, ifyou can afford to get a
professional, a goodprofessional to help you with
some of that visual stuff thatmost of us aren't necessarily
masters at. It's not a badinvestment, but get the other
(10:31):
stuff done first.
Carly Ries (10:32):
Yep. Love it. Well, again, we're just scratching the
surface today. Be sure to checkout our book, Solopreneur
Business for Dummies. And fornow, please share this episode
with a friend.
Leave a five star review forreal. We so appreciate it. And
subscribe to this podcast onyour favorite platform, and
we'll see you next time on TheAspiring Solopreneur. You may be
(10:54):
going solo in business, but thatdoesn't mean you're alone. In
fact, millions of people are inyour shoes, running a one person
business and figuring it out asthey go.
So why not connect with them andlearn from each other's
successes and failures? AtLifeStarr, we're creating a one
person business community whereyou can go to meet and get
advice from other solopreneurs.Be sure to join in on the
conversations atcommunity.lifestarr.com.
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