Today you can’t have a robust business without a solid personal brand. But it’s not always easy to know where to start. That’s why I wanted to share with you a list of 15 personal branding experts whose content will help you to develop and polish your own brand.

Personal branding^[1] is an important part of your business’s PR and marketing strategy. It is more than a simple “look at me” tactic. 

Modern audiences want to know the person behind the brand. What are you like? What do you stand for? What expertise do you have? These are just some of the questions that you need to answer on your way to developing your personal brand.

But how exactly can you do it?

While we’ve written before about personal branding^[2] — in particular, what it is and how to do it — we wanted to do something different with this post.

We wanted to add some other voices on this subject to help you. With that in mind, we’ve rounded up 15 of the brightest minds in the personal branding^[3] space. They are authors, public speakers, podcasters and bloggers with their own special content that will help you develop your strategy. 

Note: Since we felt that all of these experts are leaders in their space, this is not a “ranked” post — rather, it is in alphabetical order and showcases each expert’s individual accomplishments.

William Arruda

Twitter Handle: @WilliamArruda^[4]

Many people across different industries have proclaimed William Arruda^[5] as a personal branding guru — and there’s no doubt that he lives up to this title. 

Arruda went from a branding expert on IBM/Lotus to doing something he was passionate about: creating his own company, working with individuals to develop their personal brands. His company, Reach^[6], is now a global success, with certified coaches in 49 countries.

His venture does not stop there, though, He went on to co-found another company, called CareerBlast.TV^[7], which features snackable video content that is designed to help professionals “blast” their way upward in their careers.

All of this, paired with his numerous blog posts, books (his latest is Digital)  and public speaking engagements, make William Arruda a star in the personal branding field.

Dorie Clark

Twitter Handle: @DorieClark^[8]

Author, speaker, professor and coach are just a sampling of the titles that Dorie Clark has earned. The New York Times described Clark as an “expert at self-reinvention and helping others make changes in their lives.” ^[9]

Among her accomplishments are three books, Entrepreneurial You^[10], Reinventing You^[11] and Stand Out^[12] — the last one having been ranked as the #1 Leadership book in 2015 by Inc. Magazine. She also writes regularly for Harvard Business Review.

As a renowned public speaker, she has spoken for many large companies and was ranked in Inc. Magazine’s list of “100 Great Leadership Speakers for Your Next Conference.” 

To top it all off, Dorie Clark has worked as a professor for a number of business schools, including Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, teaching the art of branding strategy and sharing her expertise with a new generation.

Tim Ferriss

Twitter Handle: @tferriss^[13]

Tim Ferriss is recognized as one of the leading experts in digital media and personal branding. He has experienced a long and eclectic career — ranging from entrepreneur to TV personality to investor — and he has shared a lot along the way

He is the author of 5 books that have been listed on both the The New York Times and Wall Street Journal’s bestselling lists. The 4-Hour Workweek^[14] and Tribe of Mentors ^[15]are just two titles that have earned Ferriss his reputation as an acclaimed author.

His podcast, The Tim Ferriss Show^[16], is yet further proof of his media expertise and he has reached a number of milestones since its creation. This podcast often makes #1 in the Business podcast section of Apple Podcasts and has been listed as the “Best of” Apple Podcasts for 3 years running.

His accolades includes landing on the list of Fast Company’s “Most Innovative Business People” and Fortune’s “40 under 40”. All of these accomplishments make Tim Ferriss one of the leading experts in personal branding and thought leadership.

Ryan Foland

Twitter Handle: @RyanFoland^[17]

As a keynote speaker, business owner and author, Ryan Foland^[18] is a leading expert in communications strategies for personal and corporate brands. He is the co-founder of InfluenceTree^[19], a brand that specializes in developing and maintaining personal brands.

He is also the creator of the now-famous theory of 3-1-3 — a process in which pitches start out as three sentences, are trimmed down to 1 sentence and then condensed into 3 words. 

The main thrust of his message includes embracing and talking about your vulnerabilities, mistakes, and flaws. While this may seem counterintuitive, Foland argues that by acknowledging these vulnerabilities you build trust and loyalty with your audience. Foland writes about this strategy in his co-authored book, Ditch the Act.^[20]

As a public speaker, Foland has traveled globally to deliver keynote speeches. He is particularly well-known for his appearances on Ted Talks^[21], which have been named some of the top Ted Talks by such publications as Forbes and Mashable.

His accolades include being recognized by Inc. Magazine as a top marketer and being named by Entrepreneur Magazine as one of the “Top Personal Branding Experts.” 

Marsha Friedman

Twitter Handle: @MarshaFriedman^[22]

Marsha Friedman is an innovative and engaging public speaker, author and businesswoman. As a PR expert, Marsha Friedman^[23] specializes in helping people get the media attention they want and to form their own personal brand. Her strategies and innovations have become some of the most powerful in the world.

As a public speaker, she engages her audience with a strong and motivating message: The power of publicity. She has spoken in front of thousands of people throughout the US and Canada on various aspects of publicity. Every speech is designed to motivate her audience and equip them to stand above their competition. Her subject matter includes tips on giving great interviews and how to effectively gain access to the media.

She has created a number of resources to help her audience. Her book, Celebritize Yourself,^[24] delves into how to brand yourself as an expert and get the publicity you want — which, of course, is the point of creating a personal brand. 

GrowthHackers (this is a platform thatt has done an excellent job fostering personal branding)

Twitter Handle: @GrowthHackers^[25]

Headed by Founder and CEO Sean Ellis, Growth Hackers^[26] spearheads the mission of igniting sustainable growth within companies and helping teams to work better together. 

On its site the company has developed a series called AMAs^[27], which invites guests who are experts in their fields to answer a few questions. Audiences are encouraged to ask these experts anything and then they write a reply. It fosters a rich atmosphere of discussion and education that many growing leaders have found helpful. 

The company also hosts GrowthHackers Conference^[28], a yearly conference that invites top growth leaders to share their inspirations for how they’ve built and sustained their businesses. This conference has featured such brands as Spotify, Facebook and Airbnb — and always promises to delight and engage its audience 

In an effort to educate its audience, the brand has also created Growth University^[29]. This online resource is a self-paced training program where people can learn the skills needed to grow their personal brands and succeed in the fast-paced business world.

Meg Guiseppi

Twitter Handle: @MegGuiseppi^[30]

Personal branding performs an important role when people look for jobs — which is where Meg Guiseppi^[31] plays and excels. Through her company, Executive Career Brand^[32], she helps people to build personal brands with the help of LinkedIn — especially executives, with the goal of finding the right job for them.

She helps her clients to pinpoint what makes them authentically “them” and nail down a message that speaks in their own voice and resonates with their audience. She has also created a number of products^[33] designed to help people do this for themselves — including worksheets, ebooks and other resources.

Her expertise in this field has won her some outstanding recognition. Over the years, Guiseppi has been featured or quoted in such publications as Wall Street Journal, Fast Company and Forbes, among others. Since 2007, she’s been the personal branding expert at the major career site JobHunt.org

Cynthia Johnson

Twitter Handle: @CynthiaLIVE^[34]

Over the years, Cynthia Johnson^[35] has worn many hats, including public speaker, marketer, entrepreneur and author — all of which have landed her on our list of experts.

Cynthia Johnson has earned a reputation as a public speaker — both as a keynote speaker and as part of a discussion panel.

Her latest book, Platform, has been acclaimed as the top personal branding book for professionals who want to build a personal brand, find an audience and nurture followers. She is also a contributing writer for such publications as Search Engine Journal, Entrepreneur and Business2Community. She is co-founder of Bell +Ivy, a marketing and PR firm in Santa Monica, CA, and Las Vegas, NV. ^[36][37]

Among her many recognitions, she has been named among the “Top Personal Branding Experts of 2017” by Entrepreneur and one of the “Top 12 Female Entrepreneurs that Inspire” by Darling Magazine.