Personal Brand Story and Market differentiation,
with Reme Mancera and Marj Martirez

Welcome to intersection chats. Today, we are going to talk about the connection between personal brand story and market differentiation. I am Reme Mancera, a personal brand story strategist. I am here today with Marj. Thank you, Marj, for accepting this invitation.

Welcome. Yes. Thank you. Thank you as well. I’m so glad to be here.

So please share briefly what you do and what, like, how you help people. Yes. Of course. I am a brand strategist and a website designer for women in business primarily. And what I do is to help them, create a brand strategy that is aligned with their brand story, which is very underutilized today.

And from that, we create their brand identity, which are the visuals, and then down to the path where and if they want to create a website as well, I will help them with that. Awesome. So let’s start by, talking about in your experience, how is that connection between personal brand store story and market differentiation? Yeah. Yeah.

So as I mentioned earlier, brand stories or origin stories of your business is actually an underutilized aspect of one’s business. So they often would start something only to, like, have, like, profits mostly about profits. Of course, we are down for that. But, really, the core of the business is something that you should also be mindful of. And one of that aspects of that core is your brand story.

So knowing that fact, your brand story is one of the unique aspects that you have. And that term of itself, unique, only you have that. And why not use that as an edge or as a unique take and angle to separate yourself from the rest of the crowd, from the noise. So I help, my clients do that. And I think that, leveraging your personal brand story, your origin story is how you really differentiate yourself from the market.

Love that. Of course, because I focus on personal brand story, I I see how valuable is, to share, your personal brand story, especially connecting that back to what you do and back to who is your audience, who is the people that you are trying to help. So how some specific stories are relevant for highlighting the differentiation. So I I really, are aligned with that. And the way that I do instead of having one origin story, I have created a framework, which is called the 10 story connectors.

And there, instead of looking for one story, I have them identify the meaningful moments. But each of them is connecting back to their offering. So, again, this idea of not just sharing a story because it’s interesting or because it’s like something nice to share or something dramatic or something surprising is about, okay, how is strategically connected to what you saw. So I’m feeling that way that that’s like going back to this idea of what makes this different is so important. And I I I don’t know about you, but, for me, like, when you focus at the beginning working with any clients, it’s like, first understanding what is their audience, what is their offering, and understanding what makes them different.

Because, of course, there are more people offering I work a lot with service providers. So it’s like and coaches. So both of them, they really need to to highlight what makes their approach unique because there are more people offering similar services. So it’s like when you are highlighting what makes you unique, you are helping people identify if you are the right fit for or not for your offer is the right fit for them. And so I feel that’s, like, really aligned as well.

Yeah. Yeah. I do agree with that. And, I wanna go back to what you mentioned that, a lot of people want to, have, like, the story that one big story that, would really set them apart. And I like the approach that you have.

Like, you don’t really necessarily need to have that one big story alone because you are composed of different things. You are composed of different moments. And so, you focusing in with that one big thing will technically not really help you, like, make sure that you pinpoint different aspects. You you that diversity part, that is what makes your brand actually unique because it’s composed of different colors, different, you know, different elements in it. And containing yourself inside that one big thing is doing is not serving justice to your, you know, to your own brand, to your own business.

So instead of you focusing on the uniqueness of that one big story, you should focus on how specific you can be on those moments, on those different smaller things that comprises your bigger story. Yeah. And I totally agree on this idea of how we are as a human being. It’s like all these different, side of us. It’s like we are multifaceted people.

So it’s like, why don’t show that in your personal brand story as well? How not use it in your storytelling? And I believe that this idea of how you’ve been diversity in the way that you are showing the context of who you are is something really interesting because it’s like it’s also a way to create different points of connection with different people. Because, of course, maybe we are focusing on one group of people. They have a similar problem or similar need.

But inside that group, there are different type of people. So it’s like using your different stories as a way to connect with how each peep because it’s, you know, for example, with the learning styles, we all have different learning styles. So, for example, some people will be more attracted for a story that is more related to the lesson that they got from there, or another will be more connected to the emotions. So different people will react different ways, but then you are helping to have different touch points with you and your brand. Yes.

I agree. I agree. And that that having said that, you also, like, spread your net when you do that. You are not, like, just streamline to a specific although, that, practice is also good because you know who you are going to serve, but you are also limiting your capabilities of helping others. And in which case, that’s also again, good doing the service to your actual brand, to your business.

So that so having said that, focusing or giving value as well to those different touch points, to those different smaller parts, smaller bits of that larger story, will help you, as you mentioned, connect, with the people that are not necessarily, like, inside that bigger story, but would can can relate to those smaller touch points. Yeah. 100%. And I always like to highlight how, again, this idea of two people, offering similar services, but using your story as a way to highlight what makes them different. And that combination of different stories can help you to high to provide that context about who you are in that different aspect.

And for a lot of, my clients, there are, like, several several stories that they can use, and then the focus is a bit different. So it’s like bringing as a puzzle the different pieces. So at the end, you see the bigger picture. So the people that you talk to, I really agree on the idea of having clarity on which is the who is the people that you are talking to because that’s I feel that’s really important. So it’s like, they will have the opportunity to to learn about the different sides of you and then the different benefits of your of your offer as well because that’s one of the things.

It’s like, you are being in different stories, and then you are thinking of what is the connection with your offer, with what you what your differentiation is. And that’s like bringing the different aspects as well of the from your offer. Yeah. Yeah. I don’t know about you and your experience with clients.

One of the things that, for a lot of people is a bit challenging is this idea of repeating themselves. They feel that they are sharing the story again and it’s like, yeah. But I have shared already my story, and they feel this idea that they they are, like, just repeating themselves. They they kind of struggle with this idea of sharing again the same story. That’s all the reason why I like the approach of having me different stories because then you have a diversity of them and you have some variety.

What has been your experience with clients on the repetition? Yeah. Yeah. That has been a personal problem for me as well because, before I started diving into brands and helping other brands, I have struggled to find my own story. Like, what makes me, like, unique?

What makes me, like, interesting? But the point is you don’t need to be interesting. You just need to be yourself. And, back to the point, yes, repetition may be necessary. And, actually, I do, want to encourage repetition because people in different people will meet you in different touch points, and they will meet you in different, you know, stages of the their journey before they become your client or before they even, you know, recognize you as, you know, as your brand.

So you have to put it out there, put it in different angles so that they meet you whenever on those different touch points. They will perceive you. They will know you better, because that’s just how it is. The algorithm does that as well because, if you will notice, when you go through reels or, through YouTube shorts, you will get the same of the thing. Like, for example, I started, craving for cookies for, like, sometime, like, November, December, and then all of my reels, all of my YouTube shorts became all about cookies.

Right? So that’s how the algorithm helps you. And if you put content out there or you if you put or if you post things out there that are related to your story, no matter how many times you would repeat it, people will eventually recognize you the next time they get to know they get to, you know, pass through your content. And by that time, they are nourished enough. So they would know, like, what your service are, how you can help them, and why are you aligned, why are you the right fit.

So that repetition actually helps. Yeah. Yeah. I I agree that the repetition is is, fundamental. I always say that this is one of the mistakes that I see, the lack of repetition, related to storytelling and personal brand storytelling specifically is because, yeah, there is, like, how many opportunities for you to share the story.

And that doesn’t mean that, for example, if you are using social media, you are sharing it several times, doesn’t mean that people will see all of those times. And then, of course, it’s like we don’t remember things, so we need several touch points as you were explaining. So, yeah, I I agree on that how important it is. And for that, I feel like when you have clarity on the strategy, like, when someone works with you and have the clarity on the strategy, then it’s easier for them to go back to those, like, important pillar for factors. And that’s what I see with my clients as well.

It’s like, they have the clarity and then it’s like, they have this set of stories and they know when they were are going to use which one and why it’s connected to what they offer. So why it’s important. I wanted to bring back, another idea, and I would love to know your thoughts as well. When I explain about the differentiation, I like to, say that there are two levels of differentiation. Like, the first level is there are specific problem, and there are other type of solutions out there.

So for example, you are offering done for you services and someone has offer a call a course. Someone else has a podcast on the topic. So someone with that problem could go to different solutions. So that’s one level of differentiation. And then the second level of differentiation is, like, for me, when they’re the same type of solution, but each person, each brand, each personal brand has a different angle.

So maybe they both of them offer them for your services, but one of them is focus on more like the out of the box solutions. And some of the is more about the simplicity. And some other is maybe more focus on the profit first and other is more into the values first. So, again, the service could be similar, but the approach is slightly different. So I like to to have these two levels of differentiation and then asking my clients to think about that.

Okay. How your offer is different from other solutions, and then how your offer is different from similar solutions that other people of have in place. So I don’t know if that’s something that this level of differentiation is something aligned with how you work or you have a different angle on this. I would love to know your approach. Yeah.

Yeah. So it’s more of, like, the second, second differentiation that you mentioned. It’s because, creating a course really is not for me. And, like, having a group program is not for me. I really like to tailor a program specifically for that person, for that brand, or for that company business.

Mainly because each company I treat them uniquely as they are, and they have a different set of stories. They have different set of values. They, value different, types of things. Like, for example, the founder values her time more than anything else. But they want their business to grow, but they also value their time.

So I would cater to that, making sure that she gets to have her time while her her path to building her brand is also there. So there is that type of approach. We can also have like, they want to really be visually, you know, impactful, and they want to be ready up there. They have no struggles with time because they have a team. They have people to do the implementation.

They just wanna have something that to implement it with. So, it really depends for me to that person or that, that entity that I work with because, I enjoy the fact that I every single interaction or every single client that I have is a new experience for me as well. And, I don’t know about other, you know, brand strategies, but I enjoy that part. That, you know, going to into the unknown, that part of, you know, that that excitement of you are into something new again. So that really, like, fuels me to, you know, help more people because I know that’s another experience for me.

That’s another learning for me. And, that learning whether it be okay. And that’s not for me or okay. That’s the industry for me. So so yeah.

That’s my approach. I love how you bring the idea of curiosity because I feel that’s something that I also enjoy a lot with my clients because it’s like, I feel so lucky to be just working around stories and then, exploring with vendor journeys and identifying those those moments that are going to help them to create a bigger impact. So for me, I I always like to use the idea of the how the book when you have a book, the book cover, you can see, like, the title and some images and so, but you don’t really know all the stories from the from the main characters there and how all the experiences that they will have and all that. So it’s like, for me, when I start working with someone, it’s like, I only see the cover of the book. Now I am going to really, explore their journey and understand why they do what they do, why it’s important to them, and what moves them to actually work with that group of people with that, problem with that needs.

So for me, it’s like, I really connect with this idea of genuine curiosity because I am just excited to learn more about how has been their journey and what has been, like, the common thread into their lives. So that’s really something that also, like, fill me up. And I work a lot with people that they have being in a transition in their business. They are somehow pivoting. And for some of them, they feel that they need to stir, like, separating totally the new thing from what they have been doing in the past.

So for them using their story sometime can be challenging because of that, because they feel like this something new, they are not talking about the previous thing. And somehow through this work that we do do together, it’s like they it’s like making peace with their own journey and how they have been evolving and all that. So I I really feel so lucky to be around those topics, and to help people to, like, really this own recognition of their own journey and how their evolution is as help them to move to where they are now. So I really connect with this idea that you share about be, like, really excited about working with different people, new projects, and how every time that you start working with someone, it’s like a learning experience, and I love that part as well. Yeah.

Yeah. I totally agree. And I you mentioned the evolution. That is one thing that a lot of brands are kind of afraid to step into, that evolution part. And the thing is, with that, their stories through time are evolving because a lot of things are happening whilst their story are happening.

And so that evolution part is something actually that you shouldn’t be afraid of because that’s just how life, you know, grows. It evolves. So is your brand. Because you grow as the founder of it, so should your brand. The the I appreciate that you’ve mentioned that because there’s this craft, wherein they, specialize in, you know, in brand transitions or rebranding and then brand strategies to our focusing on, you know, new brands.

I really, I really admire those who are laser focused on brand transitions or brand re rebrandings because that’s a different animal. You should make sure that your current, you know, your current audience will not be alienated once you get to that point b from point a. And, having said that, I had a recent, I had a recent experience with the rebrand and, oh, boy. It was difficult. It was difficult, but it was fun because you get to know a lot about how to, you know, delicately do that, how to not alienate the people that are already, you know, in tune with the current brand so that you can get them to join you on the next journey of that brand.

So so yeah. That I’m sorry for the tangent. I just No. No. No.

No. About evolution, and I really like that word. Yeah. Yeah. I I I connect a lot with that.

I remember one of my clients, she was in that evolution process, and she felt so stuck that she was not creating content or talking to her community. Because for her, she wanted to focus on the new theme, but she didn’t knew how to approach the communication. And whenever someone would wanted to talk to her and bring her to places to talk, they were talking about the old topic, but she was just interested in the new thing. But because she was not open about it publicly, she was having a lot of trouble and being stuck. It’s like, I am not offering the new offer.

I am not talking about the new topic. And then kind of feel resent when people are asking me about the old topic. And the thing is that she was not talking about that because she feel that way. It’s like, okay. I have this community that have built slowly with all my effort, and now I don’t want to for them to feel that I am leaving them behind or I am not taking care of them and things like that.

So I there is a lot of, thought behind. It’s not just randomly decided to change your topics and and is, again, this idea of the evolution and how using your story to share that could help bring the people to the new phase. And even for those who might not be interested in the new phase, they understand your your path. They understand that you are progressing into something new. And then it’s like for them, it’s like, okay.

Maybe this new thing is not for me, but I wish you the best. And and you don’t feel like there is this friction there. It’s just everything is shared in the way that makes sense for both of the sides. So I I really like the working in that moment because I know how the idea of this lack of clarity and how helpful is getting this external perspective. Because as you say, like, when you are working around your own story, the same for me, it’s, like, difficult because you are inside.

It’s not when you are having this external perspective or someone that can help you when you overlook things, or maybe something so natural for you that you don’t pay attention to it. So having someone from outside helping you is, like, really helpful in the sense of understanding the bigger picture and having an external point of view for that. So yeah. Absolutely. Yeah.

Yeah. Totally agree with that. My client once told me that she used to do DIYs. Like, she used to do it all by herself because she believes that she she believes that she’s creative enough to do it. But, you know, no no no pressure on those who wants to, you know, DIY themselves Yeah.

Their brand and all that. If you can, go for it. But the thing is when she, worked with me and then she experienced how seamless it is because I have the questions asked, because, someone is out there searching or and researching for you about how you can, you know, how how you can leverage things that you have right now so that you can compete in your market. So she she realized that those aspects, she don’t have. She just thought that creativity alone can create a brand whereas, oh, it’s it’s a lot deeper than that.

You should have market research, competitor analysis, and all that. So so yeah. Yeah. Having a third person review it for you is is a different, you know, it’s a different thing. It’s a different experience because, you will have someone, an expert eye, to really assess what is working and what is not.

And then they can provide their expert view on how to change this, how to tweak this. So it’s for you, and it’s for your brand as well. Absolutely. And something even for people that they maybe are starting and they don’t have the capacity now for investing in in someone else, even asking to someone else to, hey. I put this together.

Give me your feedback. That’s something that you can ask to a business, bestie or or someone else. So even in that situation, I I will invite people to look for some external point of view for the feedback. Again, if you are going to be in a podcast, maybe you want to practice, go to tell someone about your story and share it in a way and ask them, hey. How this learn?

And do you think I can articulate this in a different way? So even if you don’t have the capacity to invest, try to put yourself in a situation where you can practice and where you can get the feedback from someone else because I feel that could be helpful no matter what. Yeah. Yeah. Totally agree with that.

I used to be in a lot of networking, groups, back in 2025. And it’s like, every day there’s at least two networking calls, and then that’s for a week. So about 10 a week. That’s how many network calls I’m in. And that does not count the coffee chats and all that.

So, those, months really helped me hone out, you know, my language. How do I really, you know, explain them what I do? Because Mhmm. No matter how good your explanation is, like, you really, understand your explanation of what you do. If the people you’re explaining it to do not really it it’s not landing.

It’s not connecting. It’s it does not make sense to them. No matter how beautiful that is, it it will not, you know, serve you. So by doing that, by practicing that, you get to know, like, what kind of language should I be using to make myself a little bit unique, but also still understandable for those who do not know what I’m doing. But also, you know, unique enough that, oh, hey.

I heard that word from her specifically. So you get to be on top of mind. So, yeah, I agree that, you know, having those practices, having someone really, you know, assess how you’re doing things so that you can tweak it based on those feedback. I love feedback, by the way. It’s a gift.

Always treat them as a gift. So yeah. Yeah. Overall, really, feedback is a gift. Absolutely.

And this idea of, me memorable, I I love that you bring that idea because I feel like using your story for that is so key in my opinion because it’s like it’s an asset that you have for your business no matter what, and it’s going to help differentiate you from others. And I like to use this example, of, let’s say, someone, there are two money mindset coaches, and one of them grow up in a family that they have some financial problems. So they always need to, not being able to save and, like, really paying attention of everything. They they don’t, have a lot of money to invest in different things and so on. And then there are this other person that is also money mindset coach, but they were growing up in a wealthy family.

But they wanted to do things in a different way, and they learn about investing, about financial and education for different reasons that this other person. So they can be both of them in the same program learning about monthly mindset coaching. But for each of them, the motivation is different. Their own story is different where they are coming, from that, and they interest to talk to work around those topics. So I feel that it’s not that this is going to tell which is your type of clients, but this can help you to share why you do this work, why you got involved into, let’s say, for them, money mindset.

The same for each of us. There are reasons why we are connected to certain topics. And use using our stories for that is a great way to be memorable because you will bring examples. You will bring details and nuances that just by sharing what you do is not giving all that context. So using your personal stories can be a great way to bring the nuances and to make yourself memorable.

So I feel that’s, an opportunity that I’ll invite everyone to not miss out. Yeah. Yeah. And on top of, you know, making yourself memorable, you’re also actually attracting the people that are potentially your, you know, become brand advocates, become your actual clients. Because those stories, that’s what people remember.

Not really, you know, not really the services, not really the specificity of what you’re about to help them with. It’s about the stories, actually. That’s that’s why a lot of, a lot of fundamental things happens, like, inside, you know, kindergarten or grade schoolers. A lot of things are being conveyed to them through stories, bedtime stories, either either that or, you know, stories that are ingrained with history and that sort because that’s what they remember. And as they grow, the stories will retain even though they do not really remember why that story happened in the first place.

But they even remember the story. So that’s how the brain is wired. And I think that a lot of people do not really utilize that part. A lot of brands do not utilize that part, which, you know, is a very strong angle. It’s a very strong asset that you have already in your hands.

You just have to creatively present it to the world. Yeah. I feel that this can be, more utilized. I agree on that. It’s like, I see more and more people talking about storytelling and including storytelling.

And I remember myself when I started my business, feeling overwhelmed by the idea of storytelling. I started as a VA for course creators. And at that moment, everyone was telling, yeah, you should, use storytelling, be vulnerable, and all that. And it was like, I don’t have an epic story. I don’t know what I’m going to say.

So I that’s one of the things I relate so much with the, group of my clients because they feel that way, that overwhelmed. And through the work with my clients, when I I become a personal brand strategist, eventually, because I was really interested in looking for how to show up, how to make highlight what makes you different and back to the differentiation. Because I feel like, generally, in personal brand, there is it’s so much connected to the idea of differentiation. It’s basically highlighting what makes you different so people can decide if you are the right fit. And I agree.

Like, when you are sharing your story, it’s a it’s a powerful way to build trust and to attract, align clients. So I I don’t like that much the the when people say, like, the right people or the wrong people. But it’s like it’s not that the right people or wrong people. It’s just that you are you have different interest. You are, like, not aligning in the sense, and it’s okay.

And you want to be clear on that because that’s going to help both of the sides to work, yeah, more nicely, and and everything will, be easier. So you are going to enjoy more the process. So who doesn’t want that? Right? So so yeah.

And something that you mentioned and I would like to pinpoint as well is this idea of how emotions are so important, how through stories we can touch on emotions. I don’t remember who was who said this, but this there is a a a quote about how I don’t remember what you said, but I remember how you make me feel or something like that. Because it’s like, okay. For me, I love, reading books and watching movies. I’m terrible to remember the stories, like, the inside things, but I remember the feeling of, oh, I know that I felt like this when I finished this book or this movie.

Yeah. So the emotions and how what is the feeling that you want to have in your clients? So thinking about that and maybe how you can use your stories as a way to convey that emotion to them. Yeah. Yeah.

As Christo, he’s also a personal brand strategist, and I believe in my group. He would, define personal brand as the gut feeling that other people have with you. So that gut feeling is actually accumulation of different touch points, different interactions, and different experiences that that particular person had with you and your brand. And that’s what really is retained when, you know, when people, go by their day, they would remember only the field. They may not remember the name of the brand per se, but they would remember that, oh, that particular pastry made me feel like home again.

Mhmm. Or that coffee, that coffee that cafe, it made me feel like I was back in high school. Mhmm. So those types of of brand defining emotions or, you know, or that feelings that lingers. Those are the things that you want to really double down.

And it’s not really contained in, you know, it’s not really contained with the visuals. It’s not contained with that. It’s contained with the experience with, as you mentioned, emotions. And you actually can embed your brand story on those. Like, how did it make you feel back when you were experiencing that?

For example, you have your own cafe. Do you wanna build your cafe based on how what’s trending right now? Or do you wanna build it because you wanna see again that cafe that you had during your, you know, your, your younger days and you wanna rebuild the experience because that really made you feel safe and at home. That kind of, you know, that kind of little bit of storytelling in those kinds of experiences, that’s what real people should be doubling down. Yeah.

So if, people listening just get one specific, idea from here. It’s like, okay. Use storytelling. Use your personal stories and try to bring emotions there. Right?

Yes. I agree. I agree. That’s how you make people remember you, and that’s how you make people advocate for you. Mhmm.

Absolutely. Okay. This has been really nice. Before we wrap up, I always like to ask about as a way to summarize the connection between personal brand story, in this case, my market differentiation. How would you summarize that with a few words?

It has to be straight from, like, story first. Mhmm. It has genuine, and it has to be, it has been overused by a lot of, you know, context, but it has to be authentic. Authentic, I mean, is, something that is really from you because you cannot really build a story, like, from imagination down to, you know I mean, you can build that, but it it will not have the same effect as it had in you. So you want to, really transfer that feeling that you had with your brand or with what inspired you to create your brand down to the people that you wanna serve.

Love that. For me, I would say unique approach in the sense of how using your personal brand story is a great way to highlight your unique approach and how highlighting your unique approach is a great way to have this market differentiation. So I I feel that can be a bridge between both of them. So thank you so much for this. This has been so delightful.

How people can go and connect with you? What can be the best way for, go and and connect with you? Yeah. So I am really active in LinkedIn right now. No posting much, but more of, like, interacting with comments and all that because, I just love learning more about, you know, how other people’s perspective can change mine or how, you know, it can nourish me.

Yeah. LinkedIn mostly. Nice. Thank you so much. I invite everyone, listening.

So first of all, the links are in the description so they can go there and check it out. And then second, I would love for the people listening to connect with us, or comment there and highlight what is their market differentiation. And if they have a story connected to that, please share with us. I I would love to to hear from the people listening and see what kind of stories are going, to have and highlight that differentiation. That’s wonderful.

That’s wonderful. So excited for that. Nice. Okay. So until next time, and see you soon.

Bye.