You probably have personal tales of brand recognition in your own life, whether it is from your own childhood or watching your kids. Companies work hard to gain that status, and you can too! While sprouting arches from your head is an unlikely idea, you can determine whether personal branding is for you.
Do You Need To Brand Yourself?
Practically everyone today has a digital reputation, thanks largely to social media. When someone runs a search for you, what will they discover? You can utilize strategies to control that information.
Your professional reputation is in your hands. Proper management will give you greater recognition within your industry. This can increase your job performance, putting you in line for the fast track.
Promotions, raises and better positions are all waiting for those who know how to use branding for success. You can join them!
Determine Your End Goal
First of all, you need to determine your goal. What is your ideal personal brand image? Of course, you want to appear as an industry leader but, what does that mean to you? What are your short, mid and long-term goals?
Are you interested in spreading your wings to the global market or do you want to rule a local niche? Do you want to retire at a particular age? How does family fit into your plans?
Obviously, if you plan to sell luxury cars to privileged clientele in an exclusive neighborhood you will have a different strategy than the owner of a daycare chain in suburbia.
Define Your Target Audience
Defining your target audience is the next step. Just as you need to clearly record your intended image, you need to define your clients. Although you likely have a mental image, that is insufficient for this task.
When you take the time to break down the demographic information regarding your intended customers, you might discover that you are not as clear as you thought. Either way, knowing who they are will help your branding efforts.
Create A Website
Secure a personal website and use it. Hire an expert in web design to ensure that your site reflects the correct message. Utilize SEO services for good content. Update the site on a regular schedule with meaningful messages that enrich the visitor.
Your communications might include humor, local stories, personal anecdotes related to your niche or anything else that will build your brand image. Use the same messaging techniques on your social media accounts.
Maintain A Social Presence
Yes, your social media accounts are relevant to your business reputation. Today, folks can easily find information about competitors, colleagues and other associates via Facebook, Twitter and other popular sites.
So, rather than closing your accounts or making your posts private, use these resources to your advantage. Sure, you can share some cute cat videos along with your positive branding messages. Just skip the drunken selfies at 2 AM with your new friends at the bar!
Become An Authority
So how do you become an authority? You don't need to know everything about your market. But one thing that helps is sharing great content that other people have written. Even if you don't write a lot of content, just by pointing people in the right direction to relevant and helpful information, you can be a go-to person in that niche.
Many people don't have time to go searching. If you do that for them, they will keep coming back to you because they know that you only share the best and most helpful content available.
You can develop a positive image once you understand personal branding is and using it to implement appropriate strategies into your online communications. Doing so will boost your career and give you a competitive edge!