So you want to be a VTuber with a cool personal brand! That’s great, so happy to have you here! But… You’re unsure how to build a community and a brand around yourself, right? It happens to everyone. Building a personal brand is, in my opinion, even harder than building a corporate business identity. Because we are complex human beings, it’s difficult to simplify who we are in a way that is easily digestible to the general public. But fear not! There are some steps you can take to make the process easier! It’s all about choosing one area to focus on first, and expanding from there!

Craft a compelling Concept and Story

So, as VTubers, we create characters that represent us. This means that this ‘persona’, whether it’s entirely fictional or closer to reality, needs to show off who we are.

• Make a list of the things that make you unique: Are you an artist? Are you really good at solving puzzles? Can you beat games in super hard mode difficulty? What makes you different? It’s important to understand what sets you apart so you know which direction your brand will go in. A handy list of these things makes it easier to understand what type of content you should focus on.
• Define the kind of story you want to tell: While you don’t need 50 pages of lore to be interesting, making sure that the story you’re telling through your journey of content creation is a compelling one is key. Make it fun. Make it long, or super short. Make it silly, or heartbreaking. Doesn’t matter what genre it is, make your community feel something. While your lore gives context to who you are as a person and character, it should also include your community and the role they play in your journey. Yes, you might be the main character of your lore, but you still need a strong supporting cast to achieve your goals and dreams. And people are more willing to support you if you include them wholeheartedly. Crafting lore that is inclusive in this way can help you solidify your personal brand even more.

Define your unique value proposition

What the heck is a ‘value proposition’? It’s a fancy way of asking: ‘What do you bring to the table?’ Content creation, at the end of the day, is about providing a service: entertainment. Now, this question might be too broad and confusing, so let me give you some tips for finding that special sauce.

First, you want to choose what is it that you want to do as a content creator. You need to decide if you want to…

• Educate: If you’re very knowledgeable about a certain topic, share that knowledge! Helping people learn more about something is a good way to help them grow and build trust. Learning can be fun, it doesn’t need to be a chore!
• Inspire: You can inspire people to care more about specific causes that are close to your heart, or even be the catalyst for a social/cultural movement! We need more people who care now more than ever, so having creators that inspire us to be better and do more is always great!
• Entertain: You want to make people feel something! Whether it’s making them laugh or surprising them with some insane gameplay or an interesting story, you provide others with a sense of relief from emotional/worldly burdens.
• Engage: Give people an outlet to share their opinions and start interesting, productive conversations. Making it easier for others to connect with you and your experiences is a great way to build a community.

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Now, you don’t need to choose just one option! But make sure you know which one will be the primary value you will deliver, so you know exactly what type of content you’ll create to fulfill that purpose.

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Show off your personality!

If you’re having a hard time knowing what kind of personality your VTuber persona should have, make a list! List at least 3-5 personality traits that define you/your VTuber persona.

Are you outspoken, chaotic and funny? Or maybe you’re more calm and collected? Whatever traits you choose will help you craft messaging that is consistent across all your platforms. It’d be confusing if you were loud and outspoken in one platform, and then acted completely different in another, right? The one thing you don’t want to do is confuse your community or give them mixed messages! Make sure you’re honest in the way you present yourself and be consistent!

Don’t forget the visuals!

What are the visual essentials you should have when it comes to personal branding?

1. A defined color palette. Ideally 2-5 colors MAX. You want to have colors that people associate with you and your brand. If you want to keep it simple, think of it in terms of a base color, an accent color and a neutral color. A simple three color palette can help you keep your visuals streamlined.