Building a Personal Brand Platform: Podcasting, Publishing, and Presenting

If you're a service-based entrepreneur, coach, or consultant trying to grow your business, here’s the cold truth: You’re not just selling your offer—you’re selling you. Your story. Your voice. Your perspective. That’s your edge in a crowded market.

Which is why building a personal brand platform isn’t optional anymore. It’s the engine that fuels your visibility, credibility, and ultimately, your sales.

But how do you actually build one—especially if you're short on time, don't have a huge audience, and are allergic to influencer culture?

Dr. Christiana Schroeter is proof that it’s possible—and powerful—to build a top-performing platform from scratch by leaning into what makes you unique, repurposing content strategically, and showing up in small, consistent ways.

Today, we’re breaking down how she used podcasting, publishing, and what she calls Petite Practices to build a personal brand platform that’s not only top 1% ranked globally—but totally sustainable.

Let’s dive into how you can do the same.

What Is a Personal Brand Platform—and Why Do You Need One?

What are we actually talking about here?

Your personal brand platform is the ecosystem where your ideas live and grow. It’s where people hear your voice, learn your philosophy, and decide whether they trust you enough to buy, refer, or collaborate.

Think of it like this:

• Your website is your storefront

• Your podcast (or YouTube/blog) is your thought leadership

• Your email list is your inner circle

• Your social content is your billboard

• And your offers are the products on the shelf

When your platform is working, all of these parts talk to each other. Your podcast brings people to your website. Your blog grows your SEO. Your book turns casual readers into buyers. Your social content points them to all of the above.

It creates trust at scale.

The best part? You don’t need 50,000 followers to make it work. You just need a clear message, a smart strategy, and the willingness to show up.

Start Here: Get Clear on Your Superpower

Before you pick a platform or build a funnel, you need to figure out what makes you worth listening to.

According to Dr. Christiana, the first step to building a personal brand platform is discovering your superpower—what you’re uniquely qualified to speak on and known for.

💡 Ask yourself:

• What do people always come to me for advice about?

• What could I talk about for hours without running out of things to say?

• What transformation do I help people create?

Once you know that, you can reverse engineer your content around it.

Phase 1: Launching a Podcast (Without a Giant Following)

Let’s bust a myth right now: You don’t need a massive audience to launch a successful podcast.

Dr. Christiana launched the Happy Healthy Hustle in March 2023 without paid ads or a huge social media push. By June—just 3 months later—it had already cracked the top 5%. Within six months, she was in the top 1% globally.

Here’s how she did it—and how you can too.

1. Make It About the How, Not Just the Hype

People don’t need another feel-good, surface-level podcast. What they crave is specific, actionable content.

Christiana’s episodes often start with “how to” and focus on bite-sized solutions to real business and wellness challenges. It’s not vague inspiration—it’s real-world application.

Try this: Look at the last five questions your audience asked you. Can you turn any of them into a podcast episode?

2. Create Multi-Format Content

Instead of stopping at audio, repurpose each podcast episode as:

• A written blog post (not just a transcript, but a standalone resource)

• A YouTube video

• A story for your emails

• A reference point in client conversations

  
  

It’s not about creating more content—it’s about meeting your audience where they are.

Pro tip: Use each episode as a foundation. Then build 3–5 content pieces around it (reels, emails, carousel posts, blog posts).

3. Keep It Human

Skip the AI script and focus on sharing your voice, your experience, and your audience’s real questions.

This human-first approach is what builds loyalty. When a podcast listener recognizes your voice like an old friend, that’s when you’ve built something real.

Phase 2: Publishing Books That Become Your Best Business Card

The second leg of Christiana’s platform? Publishing. She’s a best-selling author of multiple books that have gotten rave reviews. And she got these out into the world quickly by choosing to self-publish because she wanted full creative control and she didn’t want to wait around for gatekeepers to tell her she was worthy.

Here’s what worked for her:

1. Use Your Coaching Framework

No one needs another 300-page lecture. So no, your book doesn’t have to be long to be valuable. If you’ve created a method, system, or approach that gets people results—it belongs in a book.

Her tip: Write with the reader’s transformation in mind. What do they do after reading?

2. Design Matters

Christiana invested time into making her books beautiful. Think color-coded worksheets, visually appealing covers, and page layouts that feel easy to digest. It’s all about elevating the user experience.

Why it works: People are more likely to use (and rave about) a resource that’s easy on the eyes and delivers value.

3. Let the Book Market Itself

She uses her books the same way she uses her podcast: to answer repeat questions, onboard new clients, or deepen existing relationships.

And since it’s self-published, she can update, expand, or bundle her books anytime.

Phase 3: Speaking and Showing Up as a Thought Leader

At some point, building a personal brand platform stops being about the what (podcast, blog, book) and starts being about the who—as in, who you're becoming as a thought leader.

For Christiana, this meant stepping beyond her private practice and putting her voice into rooms she previously only dreamed about—like her TEDx Talk.

But she didn’t get there by shouting louder or following some “visibility hack.” She got there by showing up consistently, serving her audience well, and using her platform to speak about things that matter.

Here’s how you can do the same.

1. Use Your Platform as Practice

Your podcast, blog, or social feed isn’t just content—it’s reps. It’s where you refine your message, try new ideas, and figure out how to make complex concepts land with real humans.

Pro tip: Don’t wait until you have the “big moment” to speak like a thought leader. Use the platform you already have to show you’re ready for more.

2. Share the Ideas You Wish More People Were Talking About

Thought leadership isn’t about being louder—it’s about being braver.

What are you saying that others are avoiding? What ideas do you believe in, even if they’re not trendy or popular?

Try this: Ask yourself, “If I wasn’t afraid of what people would think, what would I say?”

3. Let Your Message Grow with You

Your personal brand isn’t fixed. It evolves as you do.

What Christiana started with—a focus on health and hustle—has grown to include visibility, authorship, public speaking, and beyond. She didn’t pivot away from what she was known for—she built on it.

Thought leadership is a long game. You’re building trust, not just traffic.

You Don’t Have to Start with Everything—Just Start

When building your personal brand platform, you don’t have to start with a podcast and a blog and a book and a TED Talk.

Start with one. Pick the platform that feels the most natural for your style:

• Like to talk? Start a podcast.

• Prefer writing? Blog or book.

• Love visuals? YouTube or Instagram might be your move.

  
  

Then, use that platform to serve your people consistently. Not perfectly. Not everywhere.

Just consistently.

Thrive in 5: Your Next Steps to Build Your Personal Brand Platform

Want to take action in the next five minutes? Here’s your Thrive in 5:

1. Define your superpower. What do you want to be known for?

2. Pick your starting platform. Blog, podcast, YouTube, book, or email. Just one.

3. Map your first three content ideas. What does your audience need to hear?

4. Create one Petite Practice. What’s one 10-minute action you can take weekly to build your platform?

5. Commit to consistency—your way. Whether that’s every Monday or “sometime this week,” define your rhythm.

Final Thoughts: You’re the Platform

A podcast is not your platform. A book is not your platform.

YOU are the platform.

The point isn’t to go viral—it’s to show up so consistently and clearly that when someone finally needs what you offer, they think of you first.

Build that. One small practice at a time.

Ready to Start Building Your Personal Brand Platform?

If you’re ready to stop hiding behind your to-do list and start showing up with purpose, clarity, and confidence—The Shortcut is your done-for-you systems setup that helps you build a business that runs without you. Check it out here.