New to Personal Branding? 10 Tips You Have To Know
Success in the professional world isn’t always about where you’ve worked or what school you went to. There are millions of people out there with experience, education and skills. The way to truly succeed is to set yourself apart from the rest of the crowd. You can do this through personal branding.
Create a name for yourself and reserve your spot in your industry by creating your brand now. Here are 10 tips you need to know to be successful in personal branding.
- Know Who You Are
Knowing who you are is about more than your name and your background. Who you are is the identity you want to build for yourself. It’s the idea you want people to have in their heads when they hear your name. Are you a witty fashion expert or a stern business owner? You need to know what you want people to see you as so you can maintain a clear voice to your audience.
- Have an End in Mind
Don’t go into this blindly. When you begin building your brand, you need to know what you want to get out of it. Do you want your brand to attract potential buyers of your product? Do you want to create a name for yourself in your field and be a trusted source for information? Do you want to be well known in your city, your state or do you want international fame? No matter how big or small your goal, you need to know what you’re working towards.
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— Shane Jones (@ShaneJones15) November 27, 2012
- Be a Creator
You can get by with posting interesting content you discover, sure. But to really get your name out there, you need to be the person behind the content. Write articles, write guest blog posts or even start your own blog! Get your ideas out there and show you have fresh knowledge about the trends surrounding your industry. This is what will make your brand a reputable source for information.
Love this. Skyfall + Sony Marketing Stunt creativeguerrillamarketing.com/guerrilla-mark… via @cguerrillamblog
— Shane Jones (@ShaneJones15) November 26, 2012
- Be Consistent
When you figure out who you are, stick to it. Remember, everything you do should reflect what you want your brand to be. You need consistent helpful content your audience can count on time and time again. You need to be consistently you and consistently active. Don’t go a month or even a week without activity or you may lose your audience’s interest and trust.
- Get Personal
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Part of creating your brand is tying your personality and your life into it. Provide people with a story about how you got into the business. People will feel more connected with you and be more likely to remember who you are. Never underestimate humor! People want to see a human being, not a robot.
- Have a Schedule
You need a day-to-day schedule to keep you completely on top of your game. You need to know how many blog posts you want to post in a month, how many tweets need to be posted a week, how many Facebook posts a day, etc. You need to create a plan and stick to it. If you go in without any organization, you’re likely to slack off and not be effective.
- Be Supportive
Building your brand is about more than just you. You need to network yourself with other players in your industry. Your support for them links you to them. Having a network of established experts in your field helps your credibility and exposure. If you’re a medical office specialist, build your network with nurses, doctors, and other medical staff. Linking up with others in the game is a win-win situation for everyone involved.
- Get Social
Social networking is an absolute must in today’s world. If you’re not already a social butterfly, you need to get it together ASAP. Facebook and Twitter are necessities. You should also consider LinkedIn and any other social sites relating to your industry. Activity on forums in your industry can be beneficial as well. Set up your own blog and get social!
- Adjust Your Voice
When your brand goes social, different platforms require different tones. Your tweets will obviously differ from your Facebook posts. Decide what you want each platform to be used for and then go for it. Maybe you want your Twitter feed to be used for interesting facts about your industry, while your Facebook page could tie in your professional life with a personal touch. Maybe you want to follow news and trends with your blog. Whatever it is, assign each platform a use and stick with it.
- Watch What you Say
Remember, when you take personal branding online, everything you say and do can be saved online forever. It’s really important you always portray the positive image of your brand you want others to remember. Any tacky posts can ruin your reputation and brand you in the wrong way.
Shane Jones
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