What Taylor Swift Can Teach You About Your Personal Brand

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Few personal brands shine as brightly as Taylor Swift’s. She was born with incredible musical talent, but Swift has shared that talent with an incredibly vast worldwide audience by cultivating a distinctive personal brand over the past two decades. The result? Taylor Swift is a phenomenon with a net worth of about $1.1 billion and fanbase of half the U.S. population. Her brand is so powerful that her relationship with Kansas City Chiefs’ Travis Kelce created brand value worth $122 million for the NFL, according to MarketWatch. Her history making fourth album of the year Grammy win only adds to her accolades and appeal.

But what’s even more interesting is the fact that she started out as a country singer, knocked it out of the park, and then topped the charts as a pop artist. And rock. And folk. Yet her brand traits never wavered. Anyone who’s worried that switching careers might mean having to build a whole new personal brand can relax. If your personal brand is unearthed from your true self, it will sustain you even when you’re in the throes of a career reset.

Here are the key elements that have made Taylor Swift's personal brand so enviable and so enduring. Consider how you can apply them to your personal brand plan.

1. She’s real.

At the core of Taylor Swift's personal brand is authenticity. Moving from one genre to another, she has consistently remained true to herself. This genuine approach to her music and public persona resonates with her fans, who appreciate her vulnerability and openness.

Swift's authenticity is reflected in her lyrics, which often draw from personal experiences and emotions. By openly sharing her joys, heartbreaks, and struggles in words that pierce through the aura of celebrity, she creates a profound connection with her audience. This transparency fosters a sense of trust and loyalty. Those are crucial attributes of a strong personal brand.

2. She’s relatable.

Despite her massive success, Swift has maintained a down-to-earth image, making her fans feel like they are on the journey with her. Swift's inclusive social media presence, where she regularly interacts with her followers, has reinforced this relatability.

As a singer-songwriter who’s known for her unapologetic honesty in her work, Swift is never one to shy away from revealing details about her personal life in her music. The details are subtle—but loyal fans are always quick to identify them.

3. She works hard.

Taylor Swift's personal brand is also characterized by her unwavering dedication to her craft. Known for her meticulous attention to detail and relentless work ethic, she has positioned herself as a consummate professional. From strategically planning her album releases to delivering captivating live performances, Swift consistently demonstrates her commitment to excellence.

Her professionalism extends beyond the stage, as she actively participates in the business side of her career. Swift has been vocal about artists' rights and has taken a stand against unfair industry practices, showcasing her determination to protect both her own interests and those of fellow musicians.

4. She has fervent fans.

Strong brands like Apple AAPL and Warby Parker—both companies with high Net Promoter Scores—know that building fans is important, and turning fans into promoters is key to growing and maintaining a powerful brand. Swifties are a major part of the Taylor Swift brand. A survey revealed that over 53% of Americans are Taylor Swift fans, of which 16% consider themselves Swifties. She doesn’t take her fans for granted; she shows them that she cares about their wellbeing. Is having a fervent fanbase a brand trait? Absolutely. Every career-minded person should strive to be known as someone who earns recommendations, testimonials on LinkedIn, and other forms of public praise from respected brand ambassadors.

5. She genuinely cares.

Many celebrities make it a point to perform public service, and to do so very publicly, but Swift demonstrates genuine empathy and compassion throughout her philanthropy, which includes generous support for education, disaster relief, and survivors of sexual assault. This genuine concern for others has endeared her to fans and further solidified her personal brand attribute of compassionate.

She recently showed how much she cares for her fans at two concerts that were part of her Eras Tour. In Rio de Janeiro, she directed crew members to hand out water after fans chanted in the sweltering heat, according to Business Insider. At a concert in Philly, while onstage she reprimanded a security guard who was allegedly being a “pain in the ass” to audience members, preventing them from showing their enthusiasm. The Guard was swiftly removed from the concert.

In social media, Taylor Swift engages with her fans by liking, commenting on and sharing their posts.

6. She’s confident.

From taking risks, like trying out different music genres, to taking on streaming platform Spotify, Swift proves she’s willing to take a stand time after time. She’s committed to her causes and is not afraid to go against the grain when she feels strongly about something.

In 2014, she pulled her entire library off Spotify’s platform because she firmly believes that “music should not be free.” Spotify tried to resolve the dispute by launching a social media campaign aimed at recruiting Swift fans to try to entice her to return to the site. But Swift held firm. The company made changes to its business model to raise royalty rates to a level that would lure back Swift and keep other popular artists from following her lead, according to ShowBiz Cheatsheet.

7. She evolves.

Taylor Swift's evolution is evident not only in her music but also in her public image. Instead of being someone who is constantly shifting gears, she gracefully transitions—from country sweetheart to pop icon, and from era to era. Her adaptability gives her staying power, keeping her relevant and maintaining a strong connection with an audience that now includes multiple generations. But this willingness to take risks and explore different creative avenues is always built on fundamental values from which she never wavers.

Taylor Swift's personal brand is a testament to her authenticity—a genuine commitment to keeping it real, maintaining a fierce work ethic, taking a stand, creating caring and compassionate communities, and feeding her continual curiosity about what’s behind that next door. It’s not surprising that she was named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year for 2023. Effective personal brands are never rooted in imitation, but they can be rooted in inspiration. Take a cue from Taylor and build a career that’s in harmony with your true traits.

William Arruda is a keynote speaker, co-founder of CareerBlast.TV and creator of the 360Reach Personal Brand Survey that helps you get candid, meaningful feedback from people who know you.