Personal Brand Story and Expression in Sales,
with Reme Mancera and Beatriz López Lumbreras

Welcome to Intersection Chats. I am Reme Mancera, a personal brand story strategist. And today, we are going to talk about the intersection between personal brand story and expression in sales. And I am delighted to have here today my guest. Welcome, Bea.

Thank you for accepting this invitation. Thank you for having me. I’m super excited. Yeah. So please tell us a bit about what you do.

Yeah. I have fifteen years of sales experience. And in the last three years, I’ve been fired from for being too outspoken. So now in my business, I actually work with women in activating their voice so they can be more expressed in their brand, and they can build that trust that is going to turn into more sales. Great topic.

So let’s go directly to the intersection. In your experience, working with, clients, how do you see the intersection between personal brand story and expression in sales? I think it’s a huge part of it because most of us as business owners, we also have, like, a personal brand. And there is a story behind it. There’s also the big why of what we do what we do.

And if you don’t use your story in your content in the and you don’t tell it when you show up, you’re not going to stand out from anybody else doing the same thing. So that’s actually the first step for standing out, but also building more trust. Yeah. I agree on that. It’s like, I feel like using your personal brand stories can help a lot in, like, expressing who you are as a person, as a the authority, as a leader, and then also sharing your voice, sharing your values, and sharing that part of your personality.

So I feel that that can help a lot in the idea of how you express yourself so you get to sales and build that trust. And the other way around, I feel like your personal brand story can be an incredible asset Mhmm. For your business and and also in the sales processes. So 100%. Do you know, in your approach to to work, what is, like, the main advice that you provide to to people, in the sense of how they find their voice?

There are different ways that we can do that, but we need to find what makes them different. And, also, the potential blocks or fears that are keeping them from showing that side of them. Most of the time, they might think that they need to show up in a certain way or they need to speak in a certain way, or maybe there are parts that they shouldn’t show, and that’s not true. So we need to uncover all of that. Like, I I don’t know how you do it with your clients.

I’m actually quite interested to know how you untangle all of that. Yeah. So the way that they approach this is like first of all, instead of looking for one big epic story, I happen to identify 10 meaningful moments. So instead of looking for this big thing, let’s split it into smaller parts. And usually that’s part of reducing the overwhelm about how to use your your story and which kind of stories you need to share.

And then the second thing that I do to have then is, like, each of those stories is connected to one specific factor of their offer, and there is connected to their audience. So for them, they have the certainty that, okay. I am using this story because I know what is the element that I want to highlight. So having a reason why I am, sharing that specific story, that’s also helpful to these mindset blocks that you mentioned. Because the most of the people that I work with, they they are not sure how their personal stories are relevant for their audience.

So that’s idea of, okay, why I’m sharing my story and why this is important. So that’s, one of the ways that I also for myself. I feel like when I know why I’m sharing something, I feel more confident sharing it, and it’s they I have more clarity. Yeah. Yeah.

So and I love that you bring the differentiation because I feel like there could be more people offering similar services or fairing similar product, but no one else has your life path. So bringing that to the conversation, to the communication, I feel like that’s a really huge point to, yeah, to gain the attention and to to build that trust on genuine connection with aligned clients. So I I feel that’s, in your experience, what has been, like, the would you what would you say is the main mindset block that people has related to when it comes to sales? Normally, they think they are being pushy or they are bothering people. They are annoying, and I find that that’s a reflection of they are actually afraid of being sold to and not being able to say no.

So that’s one thing. Like, because I’m afraid to say no to someone, I don’t wanna be sold. I don’t wanna sell to someone and put them in the position that they have to say no to me. That’s one thing. The other thing is that, obviously, if you attach a meaning to that no, you’re gonna make it mean something about you, and you’re gonna feel rejected.

And it has nothing to do with you. Maybe it’s not the right offer. Maybe it’s not the right time. Maybe you’re not the right person, and it’s fine. So those two things are I mean, I’m not gonna say a 100% of the people have it, but a really high percent have one or both of those issues.

Yeah. I I feel really interesting that approach of, I haven’t, hear, before this idea of how is, like, this being afraid of of, saying no. That’s why you feel like that way as a projection. And I feel it makes a lot of sense, when when I think about this. And it’s I feel it’s connected to this idea of how we need to perform in a certain way when we are selling, when we are the face of our businesses.

And this idea that how a business owner should look like, a business business owner should sound like. So Yeah. We feel that we need to create this persona that is the perfect business owners, whatever that is for us, for each of us. Right? And one of the things that I am passionate about is how when you share your personal stories, you don’t need to pretend.

You are just talking from your your experiences, your point of view, and creating a way for people to understand the context of what you do, the context of who you are, and the context of why this is important to you. And I feel that’s, like, connecting to what are your values, what are what Mhmm. Good how are you as a person, in yeah. Versus this build up persona of what I think I need to be talking about and how I need to be talking about. So I feel that’s, like, also a lot of, giving back control when you are Yeah.

Be working around your your stories. It’s like, okay. I am in charge or I am responsible of minorities, not just for the people, but also for ourselves. So I feel that’s even for doing the process with clients, I see how it’s like, okay. My story makes sense with where I am in in my career and what why I do this even if I have done a a big pivot because I work a lot with people that are transitioning some kind of, business pivoting.

And he’s like, oh, it makes sense. And and there is this common thread of why I am doing this now and how is these values are showing up or these natural skills that they have is showing up in different moments of their lives. Yeah. For me, it’s also obviously, it it gives an explanation of why you are where you are, but also for me, it’s kind of like freeing because I come from a corporate background. And for the most part, I always try to be myself, but you have to perform.

You have to speak a certain way. You have to, maybe hold on your opinions a certain way. So when I think about my business, I don’t wanna create the same structure that I already had incorporate because if that’s what I wanted, I would be incorporate. So this is my business. It’s like, this is my house.

It’s my rules, and I want to be free of them. Kind of. It’s contradictory, but it’s I want to be free of rules and so much structure because that’s where I am more creative, and I’m able to really thrive and evolve. So if we are all caged in the same, like, professional idea of what a business should look like, there is no innovation, there is no creativity, and we are still going to be okay in, like, another version of corporate. And I don’t think anyone starts a business for that.

I can relate a lot with the people that feel like, okay. I left corporate. Now I feel that I am running my business in a way that is reflecting again the same kind of dynamics of of things. And I feel like, when we start a business, there is a lot of unlearning to do. Yes.

At least that has been my experience. It’s like, there are things that you feel like you need to do in a certain way, and then it’s like, okay. Wait a minute. I I am the one here creating my rules or breaking my rules. I am the one deciding, making the decisions for bad and for good.

You are the one taking the decisions. It’s like, yeah. I can do things in a different way, in a in a way that makes sense for me. And that’s why for me, it’s really, really important, this concept of how there are not just one way of success. It’s like, what is your definition of success, And what are the goals that you want for your business depending on your lifestyle, depending on what is what are your goals as a person?

And not thinking that there are just one way of doing things, but it’s like, okay. You are in charge. You are able to try to experiment and to find what is the way that you want to do in this season because it’s also seasonal. It’s not that it’s going to be, super static. So, yeah, I I really resonate with this idea of unlearning and getting the freedom for from corporate to business.

Yeah. And, also, I don’t know what you think about this, but I think it there is something very beautiful when you have the courage of being yourself and owning your story and owning the bad parts and the good parts. And that shows someone else and inspires someone else to change, to be able to evolve. It’s it’s like the permission slip and the ripple effect. It’s, like, so big.

That’s that’s the real impact. And I think that’s the most beautiful thing when you really share from that vulnerable personal place. Yeah. A 100% with the ripple effect, I feel like that’s, like, really powerful to see when you you and I work a lot with service providers. So it’s like the work that I do with them directly is impacting other people as well because they are helping more people, and they are helping people that are aligned with them.

So it’s going to be the transformation is going to be smoothly and easier and more powerful. So that’s one of the things I I feel I see that in in action. Other thing that I feel like is important for me, that’s one of the the main topics that I talk a lot is, like, how our story is relevant and it’s worth telling because I feel like a lot of, especially women in business is like they feel a bit shy about their stories. It’s not big enough. It’s not dramatic enough.

It’s not and the point of inspiring others, I feel that’s so key Because no matter if, there are a 100 people there that they don’t care about your story, but there are this one person that the you sharing your story is making them relate, making them feel that they can take the next step, and they can help them to to take action to to the next step that they need, whatever it it this is. And I feel that is so empowering for the person when you share your story and you somehow get the the reaction of, oh, yeah. Thanks to your story. I am doing this thing. I am allowing myself to try this other thing.

So Yeah. This is something tangible in the sense of you can feel that it’s impacting others. And it’s not just about how that will impact your business account and your business numbers. It’s also about, okay, the impact that they’re making in other people that how sharing my story is valuable for them because it’s somehow making them change in a way that is getting them closer to what they want to be, where they want to be. Yeah.

Of course. And you said something that sometimes people think their stories are not dramatic enough. And at some point in time, when I started my business, I thought my story wasn’t dramatic enough, so it wasn’t worth telling. And that’s, like, so far from the truth because you don’t need to be, like, almost close to dying to inspire someone. And seeing that ripple effect that you said, like, seeing that impact, it also, I think, very subtly changes how you see yourself and how you feel about yourself and how proud you feel about everything that you have overcome no matter how big or how small.

And that I think that’s something very important because often we dismissed our own stories like, oh, that’s not important. No. That’s that that’s nothing. And that might be the key that changes someone’s life. So so I think that’s also very, like, amazing.

Yeah. And one of the things, this idea of overlooking our own stories, I feel that’s, general. Like, when you are inside your own stories, you are so close to them that you cannot see that stagnant perspective. And that’s why I need help when I need to look for my own stories. Having that external point of view is always useful.

And the thing about what you just mentioned, I love that this idea of how the narratives when we are working around, how we tell the stories to other is also changing how we tell our story to ourself. Yeah. Inner authority that I feel is so valuable when we are selling others or when we are inviting others to to try or or to work with us. I feel that that inner authority is something that you somehow convey in your messaging, in your when you show up in the visibility opportunities and so on because you trust yourself. You you know that what you are doing is impactful.

It’s it’s changing things. It’s it’s making a transformation for the people that you want to help. So that’s that’s why it’s like you show up with more confidence. Yeah. Because you have you have clarity on how impactful it is and you want to do that for more people.

And at the same time, it’s also, like, you are somehow betting in yourself and trusting yourself. So I feel that’s even as a way to lead by example with the people that you work with. So I feel that there are a lot of benefits within this idea of how we tell others our stories, but also how we tell the story to ourselves as well. Yeah. Of course.

And it is very relevant right now because everyone is saying, oh, consumer behavior has changed. People are not buying. People are claiming more depth. People are buying. They just have more information, and they know better what they want and what they don’t.

And there is a lot of free information and a lot of free access nowadays. So what is going to make you make me buy is connecting with you. So it it’s actually great that consumer behavior has changed because it makes you step up your game. It makes you show up better, more of yourself, and also be a better coach or a better service provider and try to bring something different to the market. So I think that’s also very interesting how the industry as a whole is changing and it’s going to change.

And we are going to see a lot more of, like, personal brand stories leading the industry. Thank you. Yeah. I feel that this is the, yeah, powerful asset for a business in the sense of how you can use it to show what makes your approach unique. And I feel that’s one of the keys.

Is, like, there are, like, for me, two levels of differentiation. One level where where is, like, your solution is the person that is thinking about their problem and how to solve it. There are different solutions, And your solution is one of them. But this competing competing in the in quote unquote is like there are other, solution in the play. Let’s say you have, one on one intensive service and then someone else is offering a book, someone else is offering a podcast, someone else has a course.

So there are other solutions. So you need to talk about how your solution is different from other solution. But then there are second level of, differentiation where it’s about your approach in how you apply that same solution because there are more people, let’s say, offering the one on one intensive, but their angle might be different. So how you share what makes your angle different is something important to differentiate your solution from other people with a similar solution but with a different angle. And I feel they’re using your story to highlight that unique angle is something really powerful because it’s helping to explain how your angle is different.

And for some people might be innovation. For some people might be being outspoken for or be involved. And how you can share a part of your story where that was the case, not just in this work that you do now for your clients, but before maybe in a past work experience, maybe in your academic background, in your hobbies, with your family when you were a child. And bringing that is like really giving a lot of nuances to your narrative, making it really, really personal. And I feel that’s really key in a sense of we see a lot of more generic content Mhmm.

Or more generic ways of talking about what we offer. I feel like bringing them once is of unique examples from your past experience, from who where do you as a person since you were such a you were a child. I feel that’s really, really an interesting, element that I feel we must not overlook because it’s so powerful to use it. Creating unique examples, creating unique analogies. So I invite everyone to think about, okay, what is my angle that is something different from how others do this and how I can illustrate that with a personal story.

So it’s not just about the work that I do now. This is about how I am in the world. This is about my values. This is about my combination of expertise, personality, and background. Yeah.

No. Of course. Like, I always tell my clients, I must say like, you can say, okay. You’re a sales coach. Yes.

I have experience in sales, but I have a science background that shapes how my brain works. I also have a lot of knowledge on, like, personal development. I’m a natural listener, for example. I always coach family and friends. So there are a few things in my story that at first, I didn’t think they were relevant, but it’s exactly what makes me different.

And it shows how I’m able to lead my clients and maybe how my spaces are held. So it’s very important to share all all all those parts of you because it’s how the person makes sense of everything and says, okay. I want to work with her. Yeah. And I feel it’s a great way to, like, provide context, and depth to you as a persona in the sense of this human connection.

You when you are sharing different parts of your story, it’s like you are having a three d volume for that person. It’s not just someone that is like, okay. Yeah. They are offering this, but I don’t know anything more about you or and apart from your services specifically. So how you bring a bit more of your personality so people can feel.

And I feel this 100% connected to the sales experience, in my opinion. It’s like how you want to make them feel, how using your stories can help you to create that that’s a, that’s, environment where you are helping them in a certain emotion. Yeah, providing a certain way how you want to make them feel. Yeah. No.

Of course. And now I I was just thinking about it how it also helps you because sometimes you think like, okay. How can I call myself, for example, a coach if I don’t have, like, a coach certificate certification, whatever? And it’s like, okay. But maybe you’ve been coaching your family, your friends, or maybe you were coaching, like, young girls at a group when you were in a university.

So it gives you authority without the need of putting titles because it’s full on lift experience. And I think that’s also something really great that sometimes we don’t take in account. Mhmm. Yeah. It’s like building up in the idea of the inner authority on how we understand in the world.

Yeah. And I know this, about the coaching because I don’t use the word coach. Mhmm. And I I understand that feeling of, yeah, I haven’t had this certification. And for me, I at the end, it was like, yeah.

I am presenting myself as strategies because I feel that strategy is one of my main, asset in the sense of I have this analytic thinking and I am bringing strategies no matter what. So I wanted to bring that score into my chat sale and how I introduce myself because that’s a big part of what I do and how I work people. So I feel that’s also something to think about, like, the this idea of, yeah, you are coaching others in this. Mhmm. You you are helping them to train into this and and getting that, integrating that.

So I feel that’s there is also that that point. Bringing back to the idea of, finding your own voice, unique voice, I feel that’s, like, something really valuable and it’s going to impact not just your content or your sales, but how you show up in your business in different ways and having the clarity of, okay, what is the tone that they want to set here? So how how do you recommend people to start exploring their their unique voices? Well, there is no shortcut to anything. So if you wanna get better at something, you need to start doing it.

And it’s going to feel very awkward at first, and you probably will make mistakes, but you will get better at showing up or sharing your story the more that you show up and share your story. So, obviously, there are few things that we can do. Like, we can share in safe spaces. We can try to have, like, sales conversations in safe safe spaces. Of course, I encourage post that spicy idea that you had or record the talking head video and do, like, barely any editing.

Like, for example, now I’m doing a challenge in which I post every day just I I don’t even plan it. I just take up my phone, and I record a messy video or whatever I want to say. I just stream it a little bit so it’s under three minutes, and that’s it. And I post it, forget about it. So that’s the only way you’re actually going to get more comfortable sharing your story, and it’s just doing it.

And, of course, we can work on being very connected and grounded in who you are. Because if you are sharing something that makes you feel, like, really uncomfortable and is not going to work, maybe you are not ready to share it yet, or maybe that’s something that it’s better to stay, like, for yourself. But, you need to be very grounded in who you are and then just start rolling. And for me, has been really game changing, having the mindset of this is an experiment. I’m trying to see trying something new and just see what the what are the results on and let’s analyze how I feel, what what is the reaction people and so on.

And that has been really eye opening in the sense of, okay. I am looking for the takeaways for the lessons. It’s not 100% focused on this was a failure or I didn’t get to my expectations, which is a huge other thing, expectations. So 100% idea of practice, practice, practice. I feel that, for some of us, which storytelling is not natural, it’s something that we practice and we get better at it.

It’s like, okay. I might see someone else that they are sharing their story confidently, and I think, oh, this because it’s not worth doing. We don’t know. Maybe they have been practicing. And now they sounds laughter, but at the beginning, what they were feeling awkward.

And I’m sure you are the one that see more in the awkward nets than others. That’s for sure. So this idea of practice and and even this is something that I try to do in my in my services as well is, like, we have a a part of the last session where we are kind of role playing because it’s like how you are going to articulate this story connect or this, I call it story connect or the combination of one moment in your journey and a factor of your offering. So in my framework, there are 10 of them. So we are practicing how to articulate that.

So they have different angles to share it. They they can feel it like, okay. I am going to start here and then telling the story and then going to the benefit or the other way around because I feel like in certain cases, I will start the other way. So they practice and they have a reference to okay. I know that I can share this story and then let’s practice on going extra in a detail, going extra in another detail, how I feel, how the people react, and then keep iterating and making the adjustment that you need.

So I feel that idea of, again, trying, practice, be kind to yourself. It’s not going to be perfect as anything that we learn in life. It’s like, at the beginning, sometimes we are yeah. I don’t know. For me, one of the things that were more difficult to learn was to drive a car.

And it’s like and then now you can do that thinking of other phase. But at the beginning, it was, like, super focused on how I’m going to to move all the things and and taking care of the minerals and everything around. And now it’s something that you do naturally. So think about what was the harder thing for you to learn and see where are you now, see the progression that’s because of practices. So this can be also the case.

Yeah. No. Of course. And just to add something to that is that I find that sometimes we make it way more complicated than it is to ourselves because we want to use all these, like, industry and big words. And all of a sudden, we don’t even know what we are saying anymore.

So sometimes just using easy language that the one that you would have in a regular conversation with your friends or whatever, or it it’s the best place to start because it sounds more human. Everyone gets what you are saying, and you’re not gonna get stuck in, like, funny words here and there. But sometimes we we try to sound so professional that we just get so stuck in in in the words that we are using. So just make it simple. Yeah.

And something else that I want to point out Yeah. Is, about related to the selling part. Sometimes with the storytelling, most of the people think about using it in content or using it in the about me page. And I want to invite people to go beyond that. And related to sales, I love for people to try to use it in the sales calls, in their proposals, even in the follow-up after having a proposal to to a potential client.

You can incorporate your stories there as a way to address objections because you are highlighting that factor that you know is important to them. I know, for example, a client of mine, she, is a business coach, and her clients are people that are feeling misaligned with their work that they do. So they have this fear of judgment because outside they look like a successful, career position, but inside they feel that there are not much meaningful this is not meaningful to them anymore. So she’s sharing part of the her stories in the sales calls as a way for making others understand. She’s really understand where they are, and she was there before.

And also sharing, like, the context of her as a person, going through that experience. So it’s a nice bridge to talk about address and objection. How you can use that. I invite people to think about, okay. This is something that I know.

Everyone, when I have a conversation, this is a topic that is coming. For sure, it’s coming. How I can use as a personal story to talk about this and to help even the other person to invite them to to share about the topic and being open about this. So I I invite people to think about storytelling in a way where you are incorporating in the sales processes, not just in your content, but even in the conversations about the specific thing that you are offering them. Yeah.

Of course. Because when you think about it, when you are talking with people, you incorporate your stories all the time. Like, yeah. The other day, I went and this happened, and this is how I solve it. And you do it without even thinking about it.

So the more you do it, the more natural it feels. It’s like you’re selling but not selling, and people relate and connect more, they also see that it’s possible for them to also achieve that result. So yeah. Absolutely. Yeah.

Okay. So before we we wrap up, I don’t know if there are, an important message that you want to share with people that maybe we haven’t, mentioned yet, and it’s something that if they need to go with an an idea, this is something important that they want to reinforce. Yeah. Only saying that their story is worth, say, like, sharing it, and someone out there needs to hear their story. And their voice is one of the most powerful assets that they have in business.

So they need just to get courageous and go and use it. Nice. And now a question that I like to to, provide to my guest is, like, how would you summarize the connection between personal brand story and expression in size in a few words? Let’s say maximum of three. It’s like your personal brand story is like the foundation in which you’re going to build your business, and that’s what’s going to build the trust to make more sales.

Nice. Yeah. For me, I will say that this, a tool for expressing your unique voice. So unique voice will be, the the words that they will choose because I feel like your personal brand story can be a tool for that. And then having clarity on your unique voice is going to help you in the selling sales experience and in the sales processes.

So Of course. Thank you so much for for this conversation. And how can people learn more about you and see more about how you can help them? Well, they can find me on Instagram. My name is @itsbealopez and they can also find me on Threads.

I’m not yet on LinkedIn, but who knows? Maybe one day. Amazing. So all the links, will be there in the description and show notes so people can go and see find you. And, yeah, I invite I invite people to, keep the conversation going on.

If these, chats are broad based on ideas and they want to share with us, feel free to share in the comments or send us a DM talking about the topics. Always, looking for conversations around this. And for those curious about the story collectors, specifically, they can go to my website and there they can find resources on even examples, prompts for them to think about their own stories. So, yeah. Thank you so much for this, Bea.

It was a pleasure to have you here, for the rest until next time. Thank you. Thank you. Bye.