How a Consultant’s Perfect Image Actually Made Her Invisible

FOCUS: Voice Discovery | AUDIENCE: Experts with Ignored Brands

I helped a leadership consultant transform her personal brand—by revealing more of her inner voice, not less.

The Brand Challenge

She was an accomplished leadership consultant with credentials that impressed. Her brand had polish: a professionally shot website, crisp quotes, clean copy, and a signature dressing style. And yet—something was amiss. Prospective clients hesitated. Industry peers rarely referred her. On LinkedIn, her posts received polite likes, but no conversations.

When she came to me, she described the odd sensation of being “respected but unreachable.” Her inbox was full of newsletters from less experienced peers getting speaking invites she hadn’t. She wasn’t lacking content, credibility, or commitment. She was lacking connection.

The Brand Insight

It wasn’t what she was saying—it was what she wasn’t showing. In building a brand that felt “safe” and “in control,” she’d stripped away all trace of vulnerability. The real breakthrough came when I explained the “Unearned Aura Problem”: when a personal brand appears too perfect, audiences subconsciously assume it’s too far removed from their own messy lives to be relatable.

She wasn’t losing out because of inauthenticity. Ironically, she was losing out because she hid how hard-won her authenticity actually was. In trying to project success, she’d forgotten to reflect her evolution. That’s what made her voice blend in instead of stand out.

The Big Brand Idea

I rebuilt her narrative around the idea of “Earned Moments of Humanity.” I guided her to identify instances in her journey where vulnerability didn’t equal weakness—but wisdom. The key shift wasn’t from polished to messy, but from untouchable to touched by experience.

Her About Page was rewritten to include a personal turning point. Her newsletter now opened with journal-style reflections on growth, struggle, and quiet wins. Her photos shifted from studio poses to intimate settings: journaling on a park bench, whiteboarding in socks, mentoring over tea. It wasn’t about being raw. It was about being real.

The Brand New Strategy

Instead of leading with her methodologies, we led with her mindset. I helped her define content themes not just around what she “teaches,” but what she questions, discovers, and unlearns. This gave her audience room to relate, respond, and reflect.

We structured her online presence to make her voice more visible than her veneer. Instagram moved from clean quote cards to handwritten notes. LinkedIn posts became open letters. Her new homepage included a short audio clip of her speaking unscripted. Trust deepened not through more polish, but more presence.

10 New Content Directions

Here are 10 strategic ideas developed (and several executed) to support the new brand direction:

Audio Reflections Series: Weekly 2-minute voice memos sharing one lesson or mindset shift from her week.
From the Journal Posts: Screenshots of actual handwritten pages with short captions explaining the context.
“My Clients Taught Me” Series: Honest takes on what she’s learned from client interactions, reframing the “expert” dynamic.
Before & After Narratives: Stories of her own evolution—how she thought vs. how she now sees the same issue.
LinkedIn Open Letters: Monthly reflections written in the form of a note to her younger self.
Workshop Behind-the-Scenes: Short reels from actual sessions, with audio snippets and messy flipcharts.
“What I’m Unlearning” Threads: A social series on professional ideas she’s reconsidering—and why.
Client Q&A Reposts: With permission, sharing anonymised versions of actual DM questions and her responses.
Micro-moment Reels: Everyday real-life visuals (e.g., burnt toast, missed train) paired with professional metaphors.
Collaborator Spotlights: Shoutouts to peers and collaborators who shaped her growth, with shared insights.

Results Within 6 Months

Engagement on LinkedIn increased 4x, with DMs turning into discovery calls.
She was invited to keynote at two leadership summits based on her new content voice.
One major coaching firm added her to their preferred partner list after noticing her rebrand.
Her newsletter subscriber base grew by 35% purely through word-of-mouth shares.

CAVEAT : This case study represents a confidential engagement. For privacy, specific brand identifiers, campaign names, and project phases have been withheld. It has been shared with permission while preserving client discretion.

Extra Tip for Broader Perspective

If you’re brand owner or manager seeking stronger brand performance, here’s a case study that could interest you: “How a Heritage Toy Brand Lost and Regained Its Playfulness.“

If you’re an investor seeking momentum for your portfolio brands, this case study I worked on may resonate: “Why a Charter Flight Brand Never Took Off—Until Its Strategy Did.”

Take your brand from stuck to full throttle − with one bold strategic shift

"As a Breakthrough Strategist, I work with brands that feel adrift, need urgent traction, and are ready to dominate the market. Whether you’re seeking renewed relevance, accelerated movement, or strategic distinction—one BIG IDEA breakthrough can change everything. Let’s unlock what’s next."

Shobha Ponnappa