Personal Branding Online
5 Steps to Personal Branding Success
These notes are from a presentation I did at the Atlantic School’s of Business Conference. You can find the presentation here: http://duncanebata.com/2012/09/atlantic-school-of-business-personal-branding
1. Vet Yourself
Students and professors- Google yourself! Then switch to Google images, you’d be surprised what comes up.
Ask yourself:
- Why do you want to network online?
- How do you want people to perceive you?
Discovery
- Think about your many passions
- Decide on which passion/s you’d like to pursue online and develop a plan
- Find a unique area or stance within that passion that you want to associate yourself with
2. Building a Toolbox
The key to building a good social media presence- START SMALL!
I recommend starting with:
1. Twitter – listening tool- it helps you join conversations related to your niche passion
2. Linkedin – to network, learn, and to brand yourself
3. Blog – express yourself and establish credibility within your niche
3. Get Noticed
Join Linkedin interest groups and engage in the discussion- these groups tend to have experts from all around the world and they are completely free to join – discussions in groups often have lead me to new connections and job opportunities.
Create an account! Then follow 50 individuals or organizations. When you feel comfortable, start to respond to other people’s tweets. Want to work for an organization? Follow them and when they post something that interests you, RESPOND TO IT!
Blog
Easiest to setup, easy to express your opinion, and it could become your greatest asset. Furthermore, it provides credibility in your niche. If you don’t have much of a web presence, this is your place to do it. If it is for business, keep it professional.
4. Get Your Foot in the Door
I wish someone told me these two things when I started university:
- Seek out people who share your passions
- Don’t be afraid to ask a successful business person to coffee- even if you just met them online
In the past week, I met with innovator and author Shaun Whynacht from Blue Cow Creative and entrepreneur/tech innovator Peter Davison, currently at Trendr – both people I had only met on twitter, exchanged Linkedin messages.
Shaun and I are now planning a workshop for FarmWorks Investment Co-operative called ‘Getting Your Food to More Tables- it’s an information and networking session to share ideas and strategies that will enable more effective connections between producers and consumers by leveraging web and social tools.
Peter and I are now good friends. I learned a ton about Trendr- a mobile meeting platform for professionals.
Think outside the box…see how Alec Brownstein used Google ads to get a job
5. Staying for Dinner
What does this mean? Well it depends what your end game is. In my case it has meant getting my first real job, running workshops, consulting, and starting a business. Beyond working, social media has helped me follow my passion for food and travel. My passion for food and travel is what lead me to a once in a life time visit to UCIRI Fair Trade Coffee Co-op in Oaxaca, Mexico last March.
However, it all depends what you want. For many students, their end game is about getting their first career job. We never quite know where our passions will lead us, but social media tools allow us, in small ways, to manage how we are perceived and to reach out to people that we likely would never meet.
In closing, my basic advice regarding social media is to follow your passions wherever they may lead you and use social media tools to connect with people who have similar passions. Sure, it sounds simple, but how people actually do it?
Sources
http://mashable.com/2009/02/05/personal-branding-101
Talent Isn’t Much without Passion Poster
