Show, Don’t Sell: How to Tastefully Pitch Your Personal Brand

Lead with value, not a “strong voice”. A refined guide to positioning your personal brand with subtlety, strategy, and quiet confidence.

Personal branding can carry a certain ick factor, often because it’s mistaken for self-promotion at its loudest. For many, the call to “speak louder”, “sell harder”, or “stand out more” feels off-brand, even out of integrity. Especially for those who prefer their work and reputation to speak for itself.

But there’s another way — one that’s sharper, and far more quietly compelling. You can build a personal brand that feels like a class act, not a sleezy sales pitch. Here’s how to show your value without shouting: 

1. Share social proof

Let others do the talking for your personal brand. Only in recent years have I come to appreciate the value of testimonials. Having led household name brands as a marketing and communications manager, I didn’t understand how important testimonials were in establishing credibility, especially when your reputation doesn’t yet precede you. For emerging leaders looking to build a personal brand in an industry, testimonials or Google reviews become increasingly important. 

As humans, we are naturally wired to assess risks and turn to tribes to avoid danger. While we may no longer be trying to survive in the wild, testimonials can be a powerful tool for navigating the corporate jungle or to help your business stand out. They are social proof. They show potential customers or hiring managers that they can trust you. It highlights the credibility of your claims. 

2. Let pictures subtly paint a thousand words

Whether it’s your personal brand website or your LinkedIn profile photos, or banners, let carefully curated images tell the story for you. Show your industry credibility and authority with images of you in action. Whether it’s your book release, you behind the scenes in your craft or commanding the stage at a speaking event. Like social proof, speaking engagement images, in particular, project poise and credibility. If event organisers for industry-leading organisations trust your authority, then future customers or co-workers can too. Which leads nicely into Tip #3…

3. Build trust by association

While your professional personal brand might still be emerging, leverage the reputation that other leading industry players have already established. For example, are you a graphic designer contracted by some of the biggest names in the local market? Create a simple section on your personal brand website for ‘Who I’ve partnered with’ and share logos of your clientele. Or, if you have a corporate career, name-drop reputable businesses in key sections of your resume. This reduces any perceived risk your audience is navigating when deciding to work with you. It’s a subtle way to show you're already trusted by the best in the business. 

4. Write achievement-oriented personal branding

The perfect pitch for your personal brand isn’t simply telling your audience what your skills are. It’s also more than simply selling your skills. It’s showing your impact. Shift the focus of your resume or personal branding website from everyday responsibilities to highlighting your achievements. This shows that you don’t simply tick the box of your 9-5 duties, but how you go above and beyond in your work, for your profession and your industry. 

5. Remember, numbers don’t lie 

Quantify your credibility. You can tell the world how many customers you’ve worked with, or the impact you have had on social media stats or sales, or you can let the numbers speak for themselves.

Whether it’s on your resume or business website, add numbers at every opportunity. How many clients have you worked with? How many people have purchased that particular product? How can you rewire the achievements on your resume to evidence your claim with key data points? Let numbers pop on the page for your personal brand. 

6. Use content marketing to sell your skills

As the saying goes, “Marketing tells the world you’re a rock star. Content marketing shows them.” 

In his book, Show Your Work, Austin Kleon highlights the idea of Stock and Flow.

‘Stock and Flow’ is the economic concept adopted by Robin Sloan as a media metaphor. 

When it comes to your media, ’Flow’ is the feed. It’s the posts and tweets. It’s the stream of daily and sub-daily updates that remind people you exist. ‘Stock’ is the durable stuff.

‘Stock’ is what lasts months, even years, into the future. It’s the long-form evergreen content. The key is to grow your stock in the background while you maintain your flow.

Content creation is like showing your workings on your maths test. You get extra points for taking your audience behind the scenes for your processes, to understand your unique point of view.

In the end, personal branding isn’t about turning up the volume for a ‘strong voice’. It’s about tuning into what really resonates. You can lead with quiet confidence. Let others vouch for your value. Allow your results to speak for themselves. Shift from pushing your brand to positioning it with purpose. A strong personal brand doesn't need to shout to be heard. It just needs to be clear, consistent, and credible.