Personal branding for startup founders can build trust, attract clients, and boost visibility. Learn practical steps to grow your profile.

The importance of personal branding for founders

Personal branding for founders is the basis of how potential customers, investors, and collaborators perceive you, which in 2025 usually means online. Despite this, people still buy from people, so your personal profile opens doors that company branding alone cannot. 

For this reason, it must be clear and consistent exactly what that personal brand is. 

Are the results exactly what you want people to know and think about you, professionally? Would you hire YOU, based on what you see there?

If not, then we have work to do!

The trust-building advantage

When potential clients and partners feel they “know” you even before you’ve met, that they relate to you personally, you’re already ahead. 

I’ve seen this firsthand as an e-⁠resident and programme envoy. The credibility of operating within Estonia’s transparent, EU-based business environment and writing for this publication reinforces my authority in other interactions. It’s part of my social media content and thought leadership around borderless business and remote work.

I also work hard to ensure my social media presence is congruent and relevant. It must stay targeted to the work I love doing and the changes I want to see in the world.

Visibility in a crowded market

Standing out in the startup world is a challenge. Thoughtful personal branding gives you a unique voice, values, and story. Look at the Perplexity results again – are you being confused with others in your market? 

Consistent messaging across your online presence makes it easier for the right opportunities to find you. This includes media features, speaking engagements, or investor introductions. It’s similar to the content marketing strategy for your startup. You also need a plan for your own branding.

Personal branding vs. company branding

That’s because, while your company brand reflects your business mission, products, and services, your personal brand is about you. It’s your values, expertise, and credibility. The two may overlap, but they do serve different purposes. When combined strategically, they amplify and reinforce each other.

Remember that, as well as buying from people, people invest in people. That means as a founder, your personal brand needs to be credible and distinct. The good news is that it’s easier to differentiate yourself as an individual than a business. You can let your unique character shine through your personal brand.

Getting started with personal branding

Every strong personal brand is rooted in clarity and consistency. Here’s where to begin.

Clarify your mission and values

Ask yourself what you want to be known for. Align this with your professional goals and the causes you care about. For example, my own mission – supporting borderless entrepreneurship – fits naturally with e-⁠Residency’s values of trust and opportunity, making it easier to speak with authenticity when I write here, and then share these posts with my network.

Define your audience

Speaking directly to your ideal stakeholders is especially important in personal branding for startup founders. Those might be potential customers, investors, media, or peers. 

Knowing their priorities shapes your tone, topics, and channels. What do they value? What helps them choose one product/service over another? You should conduct some user research to gain a complete understanding of this. 

It’s also worth taking a good look at your competitors’ efforts. 

You can get some AI help with this! Try:

Choose your primary channels

Pick one or two key platforms where your audience is most active, and where you will post and engage regularly. 

For most personal branding, LinkedIn is a powerful option for many founders, offering high visibility and credibility. It’s the first place any potential collaborator will check you out.  A fantastic profile here, combined with careful attention to engagement, will support and reinforce your personal brand. 

For tips, see e-⁠Residency’s guide on social media marketing for businesses, and above all, remember that these are social networks – not broadcast channels. Your posts matter and need to align well with your personal brand, but it’s in the comments and DMs that the magic happens.

Building authority online

You need to build substance, as well as presence, to establish authority with people you’ve never met. Here’s how to show, not just tell, your expertise.

Thought leadership content ideas

Share your insights on industry trends, lessons learned, and practical advice. Write articles, publish LinkedIn posts, or contribute guest features about things that matter to you, and show what drives you personally in business. Yes, you can use generative AI for this, but be careful not to lose your personal voice and authenticity. It’s better to tell your own story if you can. 

Resources like “Media monitoring: the ultimate guide” can help you spot timely topics to comment on. This helps to develop your reputation as someone people trust for expert opinion. It’s also a great way to build your authority while developing effective personal branding as a founder.

Media outreach and public speaking

Proactive outreach to journalists, podcasts, and event organisers can place you in front of new audiences. If you’re an e-resident, your international story often adds extra interest. The article ”Media coverage and how to grow your business” offers practical advice here. Solo founders can do a great deal individually, long before they’re at a stage to hire a publicist.

One way to ease into this, if it sounds intimidating, is to remember that social media is public speaking. If you engage in high-profile conversations, ensure you add insight and value, as you’re already speaking publicly.

Many people trust social recommendations and opinions more than legacy media anyway nowadays, which is why personal branding for founders definitely needs to include social proof and peer-to-peer communication.

How to use social media for personal branding​

Case studies, testimonials, and visible collaborations are all part of how to create a personal brand. Don’t be afraid to ask satisfied customers for their feedback, and make it easy for them to support your personal branding strategy.

For example, if they say something spontaneously lovely in an email, ask if you can use it on your website, or if they’d mind pasting it into a LinkedIn testimonial if you request it through the app.

As a founder, being part of respected networks like the global e-⁠Residency community also signals credibility to potential partners. There will be relevant networks and communities in your industry or business area to explore, too.

You can often also post in these networks to reinforce your success as an entrepreneur and become a respected voice in your community.

Perhaps a professional certification or affiliation could also enhance your personal brand? Or an advisory or non-exec role that would fit your portfolio career? You wouldn't take these things on for personal branding alone, but they can underpin your more tactical daily efforts by building long-term credibility and visibility.

Personal branding examples

Every personal brand is unique, but there are a number of common elements you can identify and consider deploying in your own strategy.

Successful founder personal brands

Founders who successfully combine personal and business branding often focus on storytelling and community. Many remote-first entrepreneurs use e-⁠Residency to underline their credibility when building cross-border relationships.

Dan Michaeli (Glia)

Co‑founder of Estonia’s 10th unicorn, Glia, Dan Michaeli is a standout example of personal branding through business achievement. An American by background, Michaeli adopted e‑Residency early to manage Glia remotely. He cites Estonia’s digital-first approach and e‑Residency as key enablers of credibility and seamless cross-border operations.

Laura Roman

Recognised for her strategic PR work, Laura uses social media and LinkedIn to grow her influence and connect Estonian entrepreneurs with international communities. Her consistent, authentic engagement, such as co-founding a non-profit connecting vocational talent between Estonia, the Nordics, and Spain, has positioned her as a trusted international thought leader within the e-⁠residency community. 

Jan Lagast (ImpactBuilders)

As the founder of ImpactBuilders, Jan uses his e-⁠Residency status to operate a cross-border consultancy focused on helping leaders create lasting positive change. His personal brand blends strategic insight with a strong purpose-driven narrative, emphasising business impact beyond profit. By aligning his professional mission with e-⁠Residency’s values of trust and community, he positions himself as a credible partner for global clients seeking transformation without geographic limits.

Maya Middlemiss (your author)

Personal branding is about seizing opportunities, so I invite you to check out… my own!  I take a multipronged approach to personal branding; LinkedIn (let’s connect!) is a core part. I share my published work and opinions related to remote work in Europe and remote readiness and resilience for teams. I speak and write publicly, and I contribute to events and advisory work that reinforce the values I believe in.

What they did differently

These are all examples of founder-led brands of different sizes that engage with their audience and back their opinions with evidence. They also use their business activities and public remarks to reassure clients and investors. They also regularly offer their own unique perspectives on current events and trends, rather than simply passing on the ideas of others.

How to create a personal brand: a step-by-step plan

Here’s a simple starting checklist for founders:

These actions compound over time, positioning you as a trusted authority in your space.

Common mistakes to avoid

Inconsistency

Irregular posting or mixed messages can dilute your brand. Consistency builds familiarity, and familiarity builds trust. Everything needs to line up and tell the same story.

Your cover photo, your headline, the events you attend, the podcasts you guest on, and the comments you make are all elements of your personal branding.

For this reason, you need to be clear about your values and the image you want to promote. Keep your personal and professional messaging distinct. Don’t start posting your food photos and pets on your LinkedIn (unless being a food/pet influencer is part of your personal brand).

Over-promoting

An effective brand offers value before it sells. Marketing and advertising are not the same thing. As well as being annoying, you will lose your identity if every post is a sales message.

So, balance promotional posts with educational or inspiring content. Think about how you can help your audience with what they need, rather than what you can get. Give first. Answer specific questions where you can offer an informed response, and before long, people will be tagging you the next time someone asks about that subject.

Over-automating

Yes, personal branding is yet another item on our lengthy founder to-do list, and we have great software tools to help us now. But get those tools to work on scheduling, analytics, and processes, like in the research example above – not on replacing your voice or your views!  Apart from anything else, you risk disappearing into a slew of AI slop and being utterly indistinctive.

Be human, be authentic, be real.

(But avoid performative vulnerability, and trends like those “sobbing CEO” selfies – if you’re laying people off, it’s about them, not you.)

Neglecting engagement

Communications work both ways. Respond to comments and join relevant discussions to strengthen your network and add value to the conversation.

Find out where the dialogues and debates that matter to your market are happening, and go and get involved in them – thoughtfully, positively, and creatively. Join in forums, roundtables, and comment threads that move your communities forward.

How e-⁠Residency supports global founder branding

When you build a personal brand that reaches across borders, the right infrastructure can make all the difference. E-⁠Residency of Estonia offers a practical way for founders to run a fully online, EU-registered business from anywhere, which in turn supports a more credible and visible personal profile.

Because the Estonian government backs the programme, e-⁠residents benefit from a secure digital identity that makes verification easy. This is always reassuring potential clients, partners, and investors. Managing company administration entirely online also frees up time to focus on thought leadership, community building, and client work.

Many founders use e-⁠Residency as part of their brand story, showing they are part of a forward-thinking, international network. It can also open up opportunities to speak at events, contribute to cross-border projects, and collaborate with peers in over 170 countries.

Remember, strong personal branding for founders is not about self-promotion – it’s about building trust, communicating value, and creating opportunities that extend beyond your immediate network. 

By clarifying your mission, showing up consistently, and engaging meaningfully, you shape how the world sees you. Tools like e-⁠Residency can support that journey, giving you the credibility, connections, and flexibility to tell your story on a truly global stage.