The rain clouds melted away, scorched by the relentless morning sun.

At 8am the temperature in the lowveld was heading towards 40 degrees and we were filled with expectation and excitement, seemingly unaware of the rising heat.

We took a well-deserved week off and opted for a quick getaway in Hazyview, a small town in Mpumalanga, South Africa. We settled at the Kruger Lodge outside of the Kruger National Park and were on our way to the Phabeni Gate for a carefully planned day trip, hopeful to see some wild animals, other than just the normal buck, I must add.

After the formalities at the gate, we finally started driving slowly searching the terrain, left and right of the car, for a sighting that will land as a photo on our ready-for-action cell phones.

We started getting restless.

Around every corner, behind every bush there it was, another buck – impala’s, kudu’s and even water buck but no sign of anything else.

“It is like a lottery” we pacified each other “sometimes you are lucky in the Kruger and see one of the big five but most of the time you have to settle for the beautiful body paintings of the Impala”

I must admit we all started to look and feel bored. We were heading towards Skukuza for lunch and stopped exclaiming the sight of another buck loudly.

Then suddenly there on the left it was, clear as daylight, a leopard!

It was so quick we passed it and had to reverse, questioning ourselves and the accuracy of our sighting.

We spotted her (how were we to know the sex?) unmistakably – a leopard!

The markings on her body clear as daylight, that is a leopard for sure! Our eager cell phones, ready to secure a photo, were disappointed as she disappeared in the African bushes as quickly as we spotted her.

What a reward and the rest of the day was filled with sightings of Giraffes, Elephants, Hedgehogs, Vultures, a Lion, and even a Crocodile. It was one of the best Kruger National Park Day trips we have ever done.

Upon our return while pondering with great satisfaction on the day’s events, it dawned on me that we would have never spotted the leopard was it not for the distinctive markings, its own branding!

That is when I realised how nature, in its own wisdom, reveals the true definition and value of Branding!

A Brand is a name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that helps people identify a company, product, or service! Just like a leopard’s spots distinguish them from a lion or cheetah!

Sometimes business professionals and marketers mistakenly view branding as a slogan or a marketing messaging. However, the purpose and value of establishing a brand is always, recognition first and creates the opportunity to deepen the identification with a slogan or a marketing message that will create an unforgettable emotion.

Think about Nike’s ‘Just Do It’, but the words on its own has no meaning without the symbol.

LinkedIn, as a marketing tool, is a powerful way to create a strong brand identification at almost no cost.

Unfortunately, a vast majority of LinkedIn users, miss this opportunity completely and even spend money on advertising to establish their brand online, on other platforms like Facebook, YouTube and Websites.

The question is, how do you create and establish an unmistaken brand on LinkedIn?

The answer?

The LinkedIn Profile!

3 Distinct LinkedIn Profile Branding Opportunities

Without spending a dime on advertising, you can establish a Brand, personal and business, that will aid in differentiating your business, products, and services from competitors especially in a busy crowded platform like LinkedIn. More so, creating familiarity and top-of-mind opportunities that will always result in generating high quality leads!

What is needed is a deep understanding of the LinkedIn tactics to execute your marketing strategy.

It is more than just a mere presence and has proven to even damage a business brand in being unprofessional and careless in their online activities.

The Profile Banner

The banner is so much more than just a pretty picture or even worse, left to the familiar LinkedIn default display.

The banner is where the ‘leopard’s spots’ will differentiate your brand from being a ‘lion or a cheetah’. The background should be a clear message of who your brand is and what it represents.

It is also an opportunity to create motion by creating a deep heartfelt emotion with a cleverly crafted marketing message.

The Profile Image

LinkedIn is a platform for the business professional. Pictures displaying your latest family editions, pets, or children, is a poor choice.

You want to appear friendly, approachable and leave a good impression. But be sure that it is real and the latest update of yourself. Imagine meeting someone you connected with on LinkedIn, but the in-person version of your connection matched with their profile picture is a completely different looking person.

The effect can be devastating and potentially a lost opportunity!

The Profile Headline

Even though the headline is not a visible display of your brand it can be viewed as the completion of establishing a well-distinguished brand. This is where you need to use words to establish a brand that your potential prospects, leads and clients will identify themselves with.

Let me explain.

Once you have created the image in your profile visitors mind of who you are (the banner), you welcome them to your brand in your natural true self (the profile image). Now you need to create the emotion that you understand who they are understanding their problem or challenge better than what they do!

It is a well-known fact that people buy from people that understand their problem better than what they do!

The profile headline must answer 3 main questions:

1.     Who are you serving?

2.     What will you do or solve for them? In other words what is in it for them.

3.     How do you achieve that? Are you credible!

Do you still focus on branding yourself as the ‘CEO’? If you do, remember, you have just become another ‘Impala’ on LinkedIn!

Final Word

Setting up your LinkedIn Profile and Page is a branding exercise that will serve you well – when done correctly.

But it can be a complete overwhelm and potentially damage your brand rather than establishing it.