Being Good To Be Referred
Split your business brand (clients) from personal brand (peers). Build referral relationships through authentic content, not polished marketing.
I had a lightbulb moment last week about my personal brand versus my business brand. The kind of clarity that makes you wonder why it took so long to see something obvious.
Varstatt is the business. Right now it's a service business offering weekly development retainers. Later it becomes a holding company for whatever ventures I build. The audience? Clients who need software built.
JT.COM is my personal brand. This Substack, the newsletter, the behind-the-scenes content. The audience? Fellow self-employed professionals, indie hackers, service providers building their own path.
Two completely different audiences. Two different value propositions. And mixing them up was making both weaker.
Why This Split Makes Sense
When I write for clients, I'm demonstrating competence. Case studies, technical solutions, business value delivered. Professional credibility that converts prospects into customers.
When I write for fellow service providers, I'm building relationships. How I manage five clients simultaneously. Why I chose weekly retainers over project pricing. The messy reality of going independent.
Different audiences, different content, different goals.
The Referral Strategy
Here's what clicked: I'm not trying to be "good to be hired" anymore. I'm trying to be "good to be referred."
My service is high-trust, high-value, highly personal. Competing on portfolio or pricing puts me in a red ocean. But referrals? That's blue ocean territory with built-in trust.
The personal brand becomes the referral engine. Fellow developers, consultants, agency owners — they're the ones with overflow work or complementary projects. They're the ones who understand my approach well enough to recommend me confidently.
Content Strategy That Actually Works (?)
For Varstatt: Client-focused content that demonstrates value. Case studies that speak to business outcomes. Professional credibility that closes deals.
For this Substack: Service provider insights that build peer relationships. "How I manage multiple clients" hits different than polished case studies. It's useful, authentic, and shows my actual capabilities.
The personal content doesn't need to sell my services. It needs to build relationships with people who might refer those services.
Platform Strategy
This clarity also solved my platform confusion. I was feeling pressure to be everywhere — Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram — but hating the forced posting game.
New approach:
Substack: Main content hub for authentic insights
LinkedIn: Business announcements, professional updates, occasional cross-posts
Twitter/Substack Notes: Behind-the-scenes thoughts, real-time updates
Quality over omnipresence. Authentic content beats forced posting every time.
The Long Game
Building in public creates compound benefits. Current referral network for Varstatt. Future audience for new ventures. Documentation of the journey. Thought leadership that pays dividends across multiple projects.
The personal brand becomes an asset that appreciates over time, not just marketing expense for current services.
What I'm Not Doing
I'm not trying to educate clients through personal content anymore. That's Varstatt's job through case studies and professional materials.
I'm not forcing myself onto platforms I dislike. Better to own one platform authentically than half-ass multiple platforms.
I'm not mixing messages. Business brand stays professional. Personal brand stays real.
For Fellow Service Providers
If you're struggling with brand clarity, ask yourself: Are you building relationships with referrers or competing for direct clients?
The strategies are completely different. Referral-based businesses need peer relationships more than client education.
Your personal brand becomes your competitive moat — much harder to replicate than portfolio or pricing.