From Hidden Talent to Brand Authority — 5 Questions to Ask to Own Your Story with Collette Stone

Summary

TheUPside Podcast — Episode Summary

Episode: From Hidden Talent to Brand Authority — 5 Questions to Ask to Own Your Story
Host: Theresa Flood
Guest: Colette Stone (Director of Marketing, Go Network)
Date: October 21, 2025

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Overview

In this value-packed episode of TheUPside Podcast, host Theresa Flood sits down with branding expert Colette Stone to explore the journey from hidden talents to becoming a recognized brand authority. The conversation dives deep into personal branding — demystifying what it really means, why it’s so crucial (even outside of business), and the transformative questions anyone must ask to own their personal story in the era of digital reputation and AI. Colette shares her own unconventional career path, actionable branding strategies, and pro tips for adapting to the new world of AI-driven visibility.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Colette’s Unconventional Career Path and Branding Origin Story (01:19–07:16)

• Creativity from Childhood: Colette recounts her early creative interests, despite taking practical jobs due to family circumstances.
• Breakthrough Moment: Sharing the bold move that landed her a more creative role at an ad agency — directly asking “what would it take to get that job?” (03:36).
• Career Progression: From Ryland Homes (1996), ad agencies, RV industry, to global branding roles at Verizon, Time Warner, and Denon.
• Personal Insights:
  • “It’s grit and drive and the want to do it. And being resourceful and knowing what to do with the tools that you have.” (07:06, Colette)
  • Emphasis on learning by doing and seeking out opportunities, not just academics.

2. Shifting Definitions: What Personal Branding Really Means (08:11–10:12)

• Evolution Over the Decade: Branding is now about the "digitization of your reputation," not just logos/colors. (Rory Vaden’s definition, 08:40)
• Consumer vs. Brand Control: Shift from brands dictating perception to consumers defining it.
  • “Consumers are making the rules. And so you have to tell your story in a way that will connect with them.” (Colette, 09:16)
• Emotional Connection: The real brand is about how you make people feel (e.g., Nike), not your design palette.

3. Who Needs a Personal Brand? (10:12–13:05)

• Widespread Importance: Branding isn’t just for business owners — applies to doctors, lawyers, leaders, and service professionals.
• Brand Journeys: Typical coaching takes 8–16 weeks, with a big emphasis on understanding your "why."
• Iterative Process: Revisiting the brand as one evolves.

4. The “Five Questions” Countdown (15:12–27:49)

5. Am I Willing to Evolve? (15:13)

• Openness Needed: Growth requires flexibility and periodic refreshes — “If you’re not willing to be Gumby-like and mold and shape, then I’m of no use to you.” (Colette, 15:20)
• Transformation Happens Midway: Many clients end up somewhere unexpected (podcast example, 17:28)
• Memorable Moment: Unique brand applications — e.g., a client’s listing presentation as a cookbook to tie in her love for cooking (18:19).

4. Am I Ready to Be Consistent? (19:05)

• Consistency Across Platforms: Branding requires uniformity in appearance, language, and behavior.
• Trust Factor: “Consistency... develops trust.” (Theresa, 21:52)
• Brand archetypes: Knowing your “brand character” helps maintain consistent tone (discussion of Jester, Innocent, Visionary/Magician, 20:37).

3. What Truly Sets Me Apart? (22:08)

• Standing Out in a Crowded Market: Clarity on what makes you unique; avoid “spray and pray” messaging.
• Case Example: Kathy Beck’s highly targeted niche (helping the oldest adult daughter manage aging parents) as the prime resource for those in need (24:52).

2. Do I Know Who I’m Really Serving? (25:06)

• Story-Based Targeting: Go beyond simple segments — create detailed avatars, write letters from their perspective, dig into pain points and dreams.
• Emotional Resonance: Storytelling builds connection (“Dopamine drips” when you tell a compelling story, 26:55).

1. What’s My Real Why? (27:03)

• Mission: The Core Motivator: Keep asking “why?” at every step — personally and in service to others.
• Foundation for Everything: “You can’t move forward unless you fill in all of those holes, spend weeks in that why conversation.” (Colette, 27:03)

5. Implementing Brand Clarity in the Age of AI: Generative Engine Optimization (Geo) (28:43–34:18)

• What is GEO? Positioning content to be recommended by AI engines (like ChatGPT), not just Google.
• Actionable Tips:
  • Use video captions/transcripts (AI reads text, not visuals).
    • “AI does not watch the video… You gotta have captions.” (Theresa, 30:15)
  • Create blog content and social posts that answer real customer questions.
  • Add clear, local, niche-specific phrasing in captions for reels and posts.
  • Optimize ‘alt text’ on social images/posts for double visibility (34:15).
  • Pro Tip: Link Instagram reels that are part of a series for continuous engagement (33:14).
• Book Recommendations: “Hook Point” by Brandon Cain for learning how to write attention-grabbing hooks in social content (32:07).

6. Getting Started: Brand Building at Any Stage (34:19–36:18)

• For Brand Beginners: Start by getting your profile in order, share relatable and helpful content, and tell real stories (not just posting keys-at-closing pics).
• The Four H’s Framework (35:08):
  • Humor (ex. Sally Morales)
  • Happenings
  • Helpful (ex. Hannah Conway)
  • Heard (make your audience feel seen)
• Memorable Quote: “Everybody is a voyeur. We want to know what’s going on in your life... because we’re voyeurs and we want to connect.” (Colette, 36:11)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It’s grit and drive and the want to do it... And being resourceful and knowing what to do with the tools that you have.” — Colette Stone [07:06]
• “Consumers are making the rules. And so you have to tell your story in a way that will connect with them.” — Colette Stone [09:16]
• “Consistency... develops trust.” — Theresa Flood [21:52]
• “If you’re not willing to be Gumby-like and mold and shape, then I’m of no use to you.” — Colette Stone [15:20]
• “You can’t move forward unless you fill in all of those holes, spend weeks in that why conversation.” — Colette Stone [27:03]
• “AI does not watch the video. You gotta have captions.” — Theresa Flood [30:15]
• “Everybody is a voyeur. We want to know what’s going on in your life... because we’re voyeurs and we want to connect.” — Colette Stone [36:11]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |----------------------------------------------------------|-------------| | Colette’s career & brand journey | 01:19–07:16 | | Defining personal branding | 08:11–10:12 | | Who needs a brand; brand journeys | 10:12–13:05 | | Five essential questions – countdown | 15:12–27:49 | | GEO & AI, actionable digital visibility strategies | 28:43–34:18 | | Starting from scratch & the Four H’s framework | 34:19–36:18 | | Notable quotes, memorable stories, and pro tips | Throughout |

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Final Thoughts

This episode is a practical and inspiring masterclass for anyone ready to clarify their story — whether you’re an agent, entrepreneur, leader, or creative pro. Colette Stone’s five essential questions provide a scaffolding for authentic branding, while her insights on AI-era best practices make the conversation especially relevant for today’s digital landscape. Listeners are encouraged to invest in their growth, embrace evolution, and above all, own their unique story — because the truest brand success starts from within.

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Bonus content: Subscribe at teresaflood.com for a special branding guide and additional resources from this episode!

Transcript

[A]

Welcome to the Upside Podcast, where we help you get unstuck in your life and your business by elevating your thinking and provoking meaningful change from the inside out. Today I have amazing guests with me, Colette Stone and Colette. Thank you.

[B]

Thank you.

[A]

Because you have been such a huge influence on me. The Upside Podcast would not exist if it wasn't for Colette. So if you enjoy listening to these episodes or you just enjoy seeing me be incredibly uncomfortable in my life, you can thank Colette for pushing me to do this.

[B]

Well, we push each other to do different things. So I am now teaching branding in market centers. And now you have a podcast.

[A]

I know we're pushers, but that's good because you make we make each other better, and that's. You want to surround yourself with people that are going to push you to do a little bit more than what you would do naturally. So. So you are the director of marketing for the Go Network.

[B]

I am.

[A]

Which is a pretty big job. You have a lot on your plate, and I just want to chat with you. First and foremost, I want to hear your story. And then we're going to get into personal brand and we're going to talk about what personal branding is and give people some things to really think about as they start to develop and build their personal brand. But tell us, tell us about you, Colette. Tell us your story. How did you get to. To being a brand guru?

[B]

So I think it kind of came naturally when I was a child. I always, you know, drawn architecture like big houses and was in the back room of my parents house and I was singing. So I've always been sort of creative. Okay. But I didn't have that chance. My father was a welder and he ended up getting laid off. And so I wasn't able to go to school. So what did I do? I used my skills and I ended up being an administrative assistant for many, many years. Okay. But I always had that creative gene in the back.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And I ended up getting a job with Ryland Homes and I was the sales and marketing coordinator.

[A]

Okay. How long ago was this? What year was this?

[B]

This was 1996.

[A]

O.

[B]

A long time ago. Back when Internet was still squealing.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

But they gave me sort of my first baby step into it. So I was able to go on photo shoots of the brand new homes and I got to be. I was able to pick out the pictures and kind of see where they were going to be set and everything in the brochures. And so that was my start Ryland Homes shut down in the Northwest, didn't meet their quotas and how fast they wanted to build, et cetera.

[A]

And you're from where?

[B]

I am from the Willamette Valley, Not Portland. Valley of Oregon.

[A]

Clear. Not Portland.

[B]

Got it. Portland.

[A]

Understood.

[B]

So anyway, I got laid off, but I was introduced through an IT person to a gentleman who wanted an executive assistant at his ad agency. And he also worked in real estate. It was gated real estate properties with golf course communities and memberships. And so I walked in and already knew that he was also. Did a little research, also hiring an accounting executive. And I just knew I wanted that other position. And I don't know why I wanted that other position, but I'm learning that when I got down in the chair and he asked me why I wanted the position, and I said, actually, I would like this position, but I know you have an account executive. Okay. Opening. And he said, yes, I do. I said, what would it take to get that job?

[A]

What a gutsy question.

[B]

Gift for you. Something I had never done in my entire life. But something. Somebody. Somebody was tagging me on the shoulder saying, this is your path.

[A]

It's a gutsy question because I think a lot of people would just disqualify themselves and never ask the question or just go into it, maybe with an entitled mentality. But to ask the question, what would I have to do to be the person that you would hire for this job?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Okay. So what did he say?

[B]

He said, well, you're gonna have to earn it if you want it.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And I did. Okay. And we grew, and I ended up being the director of creative there at the agency. Small agency, but we did work on projects with large agencies. I got to work on the this will date me to the Microsoft.net campaign. And also the Polycom Starfish phone was one of my accounts.

[A]

Interesting.

[B]

So, yeah.

[A]

And then what was next?

[B]

What was next was. That was the dot bomb.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So I helped startups okay. With their ideas. Some things worked out, some things didn't. And then I ended up not. I ended up in a situation where I was working in the RV industry, a great job, had a lot of fun in it, learned how to do trade shows, did a lot of traveling, and I was able to have a department of 12. So it was probably one of my funnest jobs. And I had a lot of great friends there. And that's when I met my husband, Rock, and he's in the FBI, and so he's like, why don't you come on down To California. I got a specialty, and so we got a house there, and I couldn't take the job with me. And that's when I got hired at Verizon. Okay. And started in Fortune 50 companies. And my story kind of went up from there. From Verizon, I got recruited into Time Warner and spent seven years there. And after Time Warner, one of the transfers was to San Diego. And I worked for a company called Denon. They're a large consumer electronics company. And I was in global branding there. Wow.

[A]

And then how did you get to Texas?

[B]

So while we were in San Diego, my husband's parents lived in Merced, California, in the Central Valley. And his father had been diagnosed with early stage dementia. And so my husband called the human resources department at the FBI and did a little calculating, and he said, well, I can make 11 more dollars a day just opening my eyes. I think we're gonna. I'm gonna retire and we're gonna go help my parents.

[A]

What a good man you married.

[B]

I did. I married an amazing man.

[A]

I bet he can't tell any of his secrets or I'd have him on the Upside podcast and can't tell any of. I know you have to kill me. And we really don't want that. So. We're not.

[B]

We do not. So that's how I got into it.

[A]

It was an impressive resume.

[B]

Thank you.

[A]

And I love a story. I'm not a college graduate. I have a two year associate degree. And. And I've never been really one that believed you have to have a degree or that that matters to anybody, really matters to anybody. I mean, I understand it matters to people, but I think so much of life is learning and earning. And by earning, I don't mean money. I mean earning that next opportunity and who you know, and just being faithful in the one thing and that door opens for the next.

[B]

It's. It's grit. It's grit and drive and. And the want to do it.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And being resourceful and knowing what to do with the tools that you have.

[A]

Well, we're so glad you're at the Go Network now because you are doing such an amazing job building our brand as the largest franchise brokerage in the U.S. yes, we are. So when you decided to get into real estate brokerage, you picked one of the biggest and the best to be a part of and to help build that brand. And then you. You are also helping build our agents individual brand. And I know you love that piece of it.

[B]

I absolutely love it.

[A]

You just love when you talk about It.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

And I was one of your pet projects. Or should I say science experiments?

[B]

Not sure.

[A]

You're like, I'm Teresa. We need to do something with your complete lack of branding and social presence and do something with your life.

[B]

So tell the truth.

[A]

What is the truth?

[B]

You're the one that said, I think I want to do something personal. Brandy, when you came back from theater.

[A]

Reunion, I thought that was all you telling me I should do it.

[B]

That was afterwards.

[A]

Okay, maybe I.

[B]

The how and the what and why were different.

[A]

Yeah. So it's been such a fun process. But let's get into branding because I think personal branding right now. Nobody was really talking about personal branding 10 years ago. Not really. I mean, we were talking about logos or we were talking about it. Keller Williams, build your own brand.

[B]

Not.

[A]

Not the brand of the company. That's always been a philosophy in our world, but it wasn't personal branding in the same way that it is today. So when we're saying personal brand and everybody should have a personal brand, what does that mean?

[B]

Well, someone we both follow, Rory Vaden, says it's the digitization of your reputation. And I absolutely believe that it's your Persona like magnified a thousand times. And that means a lot of things because we've gone from, and I was just teaching a class earlier today, Urban, we've gone from the brand based marketing to consumer based because everything is out there. All the reviews. Everybody can find everything they want to about you. So.

[A]

So, meaning the consumer is actually marketing for you by what they're saying. Is that what you're saying? Well, you.

[B]

That's user generated content. But no, the consumer has more choice where it was the brands making the, I don't want to say demands, but making the rules. And now consumers are making the rules. And so you have to tell your story in a way that will connect with them.

[A]

So what is a brand not?

[B]

A brand is not a logo. Yes, a brand. Not colors like till I'm blue in the face. It's not a logo, it's not a colors. Nike isn't a brand. Their brand is how they make people feel. Their brand is what they make, what they make people feel about themselves. That's a brand. It's that emotional connection.

[A]

And, and so everybody has a reputation. It may or may not be digitized and it may or may not be purposeful. As far as putting out there really what we want people to experience. Right. When they encounter us, encounter our business, but encounter us personally. So who should have a brand?

[B]

So I think that, you know, leaders at GO should have a brand. I think they should absolutely brand themselves because it not only helps us, but it helps them. Maybe they want to make a career step after goals. Maybe they want to do something like a podcast, write a book. I'm currently working with one of our leaders and it's going to be amazing. It's just going to be absolutely wonderful. And her journey has just started. But, you know, there are conversations that we need to have. You and I work together for like nine months building this, and hers is going to be at least nine months. There's some that are shorter. So we have different brand, what I'd call brand journeys. We have different brand journeys. There's an eight week, there's a 12 week and a 16 week. What they get is different within all of those. But we spend a lot of time in the why. Yeah, I think you and I spent two months in the why.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And then we go into the why and we go into the vision and the mission, and then sometimes we go back to the why. Does it, does it still work? Because we've changed a couple of things. But you have to start with why. Simon Sinek is right. You got to start with the why. I know that Rory says start with the who, but we get to the who.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And it all mixes together. And then your, your language is ready to write that everything put together with all those other things that everybody else says is a brand. The logo and the colors, that's the brand.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And how you use that or utilize that and to communicate to people who are, who are supposed, you're supposed to be reaching.

[A]

So I can't remember the exact statistic. I'm going to say maybe like it was 66% or 70% of consumers want their professionals they're working with to have a personal brand. And it was things like doctors. Yes. And lawyers and which. I think lawyers have actually done that more so for a long time because all the, you know, accident attorneys on tv, they have been very much kind of built gavel going. Yes. I feel like they were, they were so progressive in that way. But it's interesting to me because in the real estate space, it makes a lot of sense.

[B]

Right.

[A]

Because the consumer really is. Is. They're not in the relationship with the agent. They're not buying the home. They're choosing to work with the individual or the team or the, the company. And so. But really, across all industries, we're seeing more people understand the importance of building, building their brand.

[B]

Yeah. There has to be A reason to believe. So when we launch something go. I put together these one sheeters called Reasons to Believe. And so the consumer wants that as well. They want a connection. We're scrolling on the socials. Seeking connection. That's what they were launched for, is to connect people. And so there has to be a way that you build that connection. You build, you tell people that you get them unstuck and you prove it by being on this podcast and how you do business in your market center.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

That's a brand. It's not just the logo.

[A]

Which we'll circle back at the end of this because I want to tap on AI for just a minute. And I think what you said is so powerful. It's the reason why AI won't replace us. It'll enhance us. Is that power of human connection.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

And it's about AI and branding, enhancing the beautiful parts of who somebody is, what they bring to the table so uniquely and powerfully them and uncovering that. I think most people don't know what makes them so special. No.

[B]

And I don't think.

[A]

Would you agree with that?

[B]

I do. Because the first part of the workshop that I just did, people are dumbfounded. They're sitting there looking at their paper and like it's just a simple brand statement. Like who are you uniquely positioned to serve and how do you do that? What is your unique, special quality? And a lot of people, I think that they. They're so taped inside the box that they can't see outside the box. Yeah. That that's what people are like me or you're for. To help them figure that out.

[A]

Well, and I think it's one of those things. Could you develop your own personal brand on your own? I think you could to some degree. And when somebody helps you peel back those layers and ask those questions, there were times I got teary eyed. There were. And I don't know that I would have gotten there on my own, but you prodded and you poked and you dug and you allowed me to come face to face with something, things that were very amazing in the process. And so I would encourage anybody listening that wants to go on a personal brand journey that it is worth an investment. Because allowing somebody who's a professional and who just loves to uncover greatness in people, it's magic.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Okay, let's go. You have five questions that everybody should ask themselves or that you would be asking if you were leading them through a brain journey. Now, I know if you're doing that it's a lot more Than five questions. Trust me, y', all, it is a lot more than five. Five questions.

[B]

Only three questionnaires. And then I asked those questions.

[A]

Yeah, they're like 70. No, I'm kidding. Okay, so I'm just gonna. You shared these questions with me, so I'm just gonna tee you up with the five. I'm gonna chat about them a little bit. Okay. And we're gonna do it as a countdown.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

So that number five question is, am I willing to evolve? Why is that such an important thing to ask yourself?

[B]

It's one of the questions that I ask people as they're going into the brand journey. Like we do. Discovery calls, book a 15 minute call. I want to know why you want to do this, what your goal is. I'm going to look at what does success look like to you and are you willing to evolve? If you've got everything figured out, then I'm no help to you. And if you're not willing to be Gumby like and mold and shape, then I'm of no use to you. So you have to be willing to evolve on the get go. And then a brand should always be revisited a couple of years later.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So like go network. Like iFinder. We just refreshed iFinder's brand, which looks awesome. Thank you.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So iFinder was a product that had to prove itself and so it evolved.

[A]

Which it's for anybody listening. It's an investor network of several hundred investors that can provide multiple instant offers to a seller. So it's a tool for our agents to be able to go out there and take more listings and provide optionality to a seller.

[B]

It's an awesome.

[A]

It's an awesome tool.

[B]

Okay, so talking about branding, so we refreshed the brand and its rebrand or its refresh was on positioning. So it was sort of asking for business before as we were proving itself. And now it's more on purpose. You have proven ourselves. We know it's a great tool. We know there's a place for it in the marketplace, especially now in this market.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

And so our branding on the consumer side and Also on the B2B side is more on purpose. It's not so much more confidence too, though. It's more confident. It is. Fonts we use didn't change. They're just bigger hooks and taglines. Just more confident, more clear. And everybody wants clarity. That's one of the.

[A]

So how many people do you think that start a branding journey, end up at the end of it in a very different place. So me, for instance, who had zero intention of doing a podcast. I mean, you said you should do a podcast, and I was like, no, not doing that. What else you got?

[B]

Comment episodes later.

[A]

I know, right? So how many people do you think that is part of it? They go in thinking one thing and they end up going through the journey and it looks, maybe not completely different, but it looks very different than what they started out thinking that they were going to be.

[B]

Well, sometimes my favorite moment, because like you, I love the transformation moment. To me, I get teary eyed when the client's happy, when they're going, oh, my goodness. And sometimes that's a little bit along the way if some. Some light bulb goes on in me and. And I go, oh, my gosh, this is what your listing presentation is going to look like. I just did one of those.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

To digress a little bit. She loves to cook. She connects through cooking. And she also does pampered chef on the side.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Her listing presentation is a cookbook.

[A]

How cool.

[B]

So just sometimes light bulbs go on and it's that. Okay, thank you, Lord, for that, for that idea. But she loves it so much and she just lights up to me. That's my reward.

[A]

That's awesome.

[B]

That's my reward. That's. So you have to be willing to.

[A]

Evolve and you'll probably never do another cookbook listing presentation again. That's so uniquely to this.

[B]

And it's going to connect people that she. That connect with her right through her cooking.

[A]

It's not meant for everybody.

[B]

It's not meant for everybody.

[A]

Okay, so question number four. Okay, this is a big one because I think this goes against all human nature. And that is, am I ready to be consistent? Tell me more about that.

[B]

I see a lot. What? Consistent in everything. Consistent in how you talk, consistent in how you show up, consistent in how you portray yourselves. You know, branding isn't just your colors. But if you show up red, black and gray and white one day, and then you're purple and magenta and yellow another day, it's like, is that the same brand? Did. Did they lose a realtor? Am I signing up with the right realtor? Because if you are going from one color scheme to another, you need to do an announcement, you need to take care of that. But with other things, inconsistency, it could be your language. If you're all of a sudden starting to, you know, you've been very safe and sort of corporate and banal with your language, and then all of a sudden you're very Playful, like, who took over? I noticed those little inconsistencies, and I know the public does too, because they're like, wait a minute. I used to connect with them unfollow. Interesting because they seem playful. And sometimes when someone. And you've taken the brand archetype test, if someone tests out in my shop under, like, the Jester or even the Innocent, or even what we both tested out as is what we call the magician. But I like to say it's visionary, because magicians kind of connote that there's trickery going on. You don't do any trickery. We like the transformation, and that's what the magician is all about. But with the Jester brand archetype, you have to be very careful because it is very playful. And you and I can both be playful, but you have to be able to come in and care for that a lot. So you can't just go from being a, I don't know, a roller to jester. Mm. Somebody's gonna notice that. And that's all very, you know, brand language, but I think you see that where people are going from being consistent to one thing and inconsistent to another thing. And I notice that with an agent that was in a market center, and I went, did they change brand? What are they doing with their brand? Like, I don't even know who this is anymore. All their open house things are kind of all over the place. And I actually connected with them and they said, we lost our social media person. And so we're all kind of doing a little different thing. I noticed. So you have to be careful on your inconsistency. And it's also consistent consistency on how you show up. Are you answering your emails? Are you answering like, that is part of the brand too.

[A]

Right.

[B]

It's not just the things that we see in our face. It's, you know, posting consistently, it's answering your emails consistently, it's answering your calls consistently, it's how you carry yourself consistently.

[A]

What develops trust.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Consistency is one of those huge things. Develop trust.

[B]

Real estate and brands, you lose your trust. We've seen some brands recently that have lost trust. And, you know, that's a lot of market share, and realtors don't have a lot of market share to lose with losing trust.

[A]

Okay, question number three, what truly sets me apart? We kind of talked about this a little bit, but what else about that?

[B]

So, you know, with the brand that I'm doing, that is doing the cookbook, you have to find out what is uniquely you, that if you're doing a listing presentation across from like me to you. Like, what am I going to say that's special? What about me is special? What do I offer that's special? What sets you apart from the. I don't know how many realtors are in the Dallas Fort Worth area? 50,000. If 50,000 people go to that listing presentation, how are you going to set yourself apart? And there have been some brands that I've worked on that have found that uniqueness and really, really done a good job of carrying it out and like going into a niche. Yeah. I have this saying called spray and pray. Like, no realtor should be spraying and praying. Maybe when they first get out of real estate school draft is kind of serve everybody. But, you know, who are you uniquely destined to serve? Like, are you going to serve the. I don't know, the anchored adult female like Kathy Beck's doing and doing a great job.

[A]

So great story about that. So. So Kathy did her. Her brand with you. And her, her avatar is the oldest female child in a family who has the responsibility of aging parents and having to make hard decisions, feeling stressed and overwhelmed. And she has so much clarity on who she's speaking to. So I'm an only child. About a month ago, I get a text from my mom saying, can you meet us on Saturday at a couple properties? We're looking at selling our house and doing one of these, like independent living retirement type communities. And out of nowhere, wow. I was like, okay. And they apparently had been talking about it for an entire month, which is not very long. And they are already. That was less than a month ago. They're under contract. We're listing their home today. This has moved so fast. And I had not, I didn't understand the model of these. I'd never seen this before, kind of how these communities work. And so who did I call? I have an office of 600 realtors who many would have been great choices to call and probably could have explained to me how these work and is this, you know, a good assessment for my parents? But because I knew this is who Kathy loves to help, she was immediately my first call. And I said, kathy, tell me, is this good for my parents? Is this a thing? Tell me more. And she assured me all was well.

[B]

The pitfalls, she knows all about that. So agents with certain certifications, you know, they go after certain things. And I have actually, I have like three people in that realm in, in the brand shop right now. So.

[A]

Exciting.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Okay. Number two question, do I know who I am really serving so it kind.

[B]

Of goes back on the niche thing. But we both spoke about that anchored adult female. You have to not only attend to the niche downsizers, first time buyers, but you have to actually write a story for them. So, you know, pinpoint who you're talking to.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

What age are they? Where do they shop? You know, what music do they listen to? What kind of car do they drive? We did that with you. And these people were a mess.

[A]

No, I'm kidding, I'm kidding, I'm kidding, y'. All. Just joking.

[B]

So we do that with them too. And the new thing that I'm doing to get them even closer to it is we're writing that story and it's almost like a letter to that person or a letter from the person to the realtor. This is who I am. Here are my pain points, here are my high points, and here is everything on my shoulders. And so. And I wrote Kathy's. We were like both in tears. It was because this is a very, very tender part of life. Yes, it is. Like everything is on the shoulders of that anchored adult female. And I think that there are certain things in life that we can connect with people on and realtors can connect with people on. Because real estate is like, one, it needs more levity and two, it needs more connection. And again, social media, they're on there to connect. And so if your brand connects with them, especially when we're telling stories, because there's something that happens in our brain when somebody's telling us this story. The dopamine drips and then there's this through line connection, almost like a thread, like I am now connected to you. Follow dm. Powerful. Yeah.

[A]

All right, number one question, we're going to come full circle as you kind of tapped your toes around this at the beginning. What's my real why?

[B]

It all starts with why? Why do you want to do it? Why do you want to build a brand? That's the first question that's in the Discovery call. But I continue to ask that, what's your gut? Why? Why do you want to do this for you? Why do you want to do this for your customers? Why do you want to do this for your external fear? So we have that concentric circle. We just start filling in those layers and you keep peeling them back, and I keep asking why, keep asking why. And you can't move forward unless you fill in all of those holes, spend weeks in that why conversation. And, you know, we just move on to the vision and mission and the purpose and the Elevator pitch. And it all starts coming together. So yep, it all starts with why.

[A]

All starts with why. All right, so if you're taking notes and. And actually, so normally I don't do a training guide that comes out on Thursdays when I do an interview. But for this one we are going to do a Thursday email with these questions and can we throw some bonus content in?

[B]

We can.

[A]

Oh yes, I just put you on the spot. What were you gonna say? No, I mean, she's all in. Okay, so if you're not subscribed to teresaflood.com you need to go subscribe because on Thursdays I send a follow up training guide to the single episodes where it's just me teaching so that you can use that for, you know, teaching or tea leading or whatever. But for this one, we're gonna send you some special collateral on branding. We're gonna do it special only for upsiders. So. So, okay, I want to take the end of this conversation and really talk about AI integration because that is the hottest topic right now.

[B]

It is.

[A]

And that is most. I feel like I was dreaming last night about AI. I was tossing and turning in my sleep thinking about GEO and how I was going to build GEO and generative engine optimization and also talking to that with my agents and realtors. This is, we're not behind, but now is the time. So I think that the brand goes so beautifully in with geo and so explain to everybody if they're just kind of learning on the AI conversation, what is geo? Why is it so important? And how does branding and having a clear brand play into us getting recommended by AI?

[B]

So Google is now a verb because everybody says just Google it, right? We all went to Google. Nobody says Bing it, Yahoo it. It's all Googling it. So but what the first action now is to chat GPT it, which is kind of long. I feel like we, we need to figure something out. We need to brand it.

[A]

Rebrand. Okay.

[B]

Anyway, Crockett just doesn't sound good. Anyway, so we with building a brand, what you can do is you can, you know, make videos like this. You make long form, cut it up, make sure everything has transcripts and that goes into the edge because the AI.

[A]

Does not read, does not watch the video.

[B]

Watch the video.

[A]

It only does captions. That is a big tip for people out there.

[B]

Tip.

[A]

You gotta have the captions.

[B]

Gotta have captions. And then what the realtors should also do or hire me to do is to write blogs that answer the top questions, answer the questions that are in Those videos also. So you've got, you know, part number two, actually part number three, long form, short form, and blogs.

[A]

And blogs.

[B]

And blogs. And so you put it all together and you start coming on, um, and there's different things that you can do, but, you know, you just need to know what the top questions are.

[A]

Well, and I think when you have so much clarity on who you're speaking to, you know what those top questions are. So give somebody. What would be the first couple things that somebody should do? Okay, so let's first of all say somebody who is on social media, who has a. Has a brand on social media. So they're regularly posting, they're pretty consistent with their messaging. They know who they are, and they want to really start focusing on the generative engine optimization. So that when then somebody goes to ChatGPT and says, who is the greatest realtor in Plano, Texas, in this neighborhood, they're getting recommended. What is the first couple things that they need to add into their. Their game plan?

[B]

So I think they need to start doing reels that are specific to their niche and their location.

[A]

Okay. And it needs to say it.

[B]

It needs to say it in the caption. In the caption. So a lot of people will post a reel like my day today. That's not gonna get me anything. It's not gonna get them found in ChatGPT. What they need to do is learn how to write hooks. By the way, if anybody hasn't read the book or audible the book hook point from Brandon Cain, it's one of the ones I recommend.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

And in all my classes, I'm like, everybody needs to get this book or read this book or, you know, audible it. So, you know, do your 20%, write it, throw it into chat GPT and tell it to write you a brand new caneworthy hook and see what it comes up with. And go back and take out all the EM dashes and the emojis and all the other stuff that it puts in there and then put back your 20% so it sounds like you again.

[A]

So somebody told me the other day that if you have text though, that you create on Canva, the AI doesn't read the Canva text on Instagram. That it has to be Instagram's reel organically created on there.

[B]

Interesting. I use an app to reformat my stuff. They don't do spaces in Instagram. They need all the releases of all the different things they need to release that Instagram.

[A]

Listen to this episode and do a call it ass and links links within the cod links would be awesome, wouldn't it? Yes. Yeah.

[B]

Great. Let's talk about that.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

A little bit of a segue. So I don't. Something I taught in the class today too is with the reels. If you're telling a story in succession, you can now link each of those reels to each other. If it's like the five things, I could do a five thing and do number five and do number four. Number three, number two, number one and link all five of those reels. So like YouTube things stay connected.

[A]

So pro tip, that's as a reel or as a story?

[B]

As a reel. Five different reels could be tied together so they jump from one to the other and never leave your loop. Like YouTube.

[A]

That's fascinating. Thanks for that insider tip.

[B]

Yeah, insider pro tip.

[A]

I love it.

[B]

Back to back to geo. Yeah. So they need to make sure that it's in their caption if it's a single post. Another pro tip. Put everything that's in that single post caption in your alt text. Not only is it helping the people who are disabled that are going through Instagram and also scrolling, but it is giving them a double whammy of content.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

What else you got? Colette, you got one more tip.

[B]

I think that's it.

[A]

Okay, so what about. So that was for the person who's already has a digitized reputation and brand. What about for the person that is posting a random photo of their kid and they're closing photo with their client and they have not started a true branding journey. What is the first thing you would recommend?

[B]

They need to learn how to get their profile in order and they just need to start posting. Yeah. Relatable content. We love the pictures with the kids. We love the pictures with the. So I talk about the four H's in the training. Humor, the happenings, the helpful and the heard. Are you making them feel heard in their pain points? Maybe it's not one person. Maybe it's your entire sphere. What's happening? What's going on? Closing stories. Not just holding the key. I want to hear the story. Blake Tinkle does an amazing job with that of doing that. So if you're listening, go follow Blake Tinkle and. And look at his closing stories. They're actual stories that hit the heart to get that connection point. Then the humor. Sally Morales does a great job with humor.

[A]

Funny.

[B]

She's so funny. Always getting pulled over. Sorry for driving the record. But yeah, she does a great job. And then her happenings helpful. Hannah Conway in Ellis county she's so good with the helpful, helpful content. And she does a great job at selling through stories, which is a different way. So she does all the tours on the feed and then the stories. She gives all kinds of helpful information along with her life, too. Kids, those things. Everybody is a voyeur. We want to know what's going on in your life. Maybe we don't want to know about the turkey sandwich every Thursday that you're going to go get, but we do want to know that, you know, your kids are in theater and that you also have a life. Because we're voyeurs and we want to finding a way to connect. To connect. Right?

[A]

So good. Colette, you're a genius.

[B]

Thank you.

[A]

We're so lucky to have you at go. And anybody that works with you knows this to be very, very true. So we'll put all of the links to follow you and all your social channels and all the show notes and all of the things. But I just want to thank you.

[B]

Thank you for having me for everything.

[A]

You were amazing today. And we'll get everybody some bonus content.

[B]

Yes, we will.

[A]

Okay. I love it. All right, you guys. Well, thank you for tuning in to another episode of the Upside. When you invest in your growth every single day, it's going to yield you great returns. And always keep living on the Upside. We'll see you next week.