Creating Your Personal Brand Online
Branding used to be a corporate marketing term that is valued by marketing professionals. However, the internet has paved way for individuals to create their own brands, both knowingly and unknowingly.
Every post you make on social media builds your online footprint, which is an extension of your real life identity. Without intentionally doing so, you are creating your own personal brand. Look back on your online activities. Have you been cultivating a good brand? Does it reflect your actual personality and does it show you in your best light? When I meet someone for the first time, I tend to make a quick search on the internet about them, and I know the people I meet do the same. These are things that we should now be very conscious of.
Here are some tips on building your personal brand online.
Authenticity is key
Setting up an account online is an easy one minute task, but this does not mean that you should fabricate your life and identity online. Impressions have gone beyond a handshake and a smile these days, so there is more reason to be wary of how you present yourself both offline and online. Now more than ever, with the ease of providing information about people, the importance of authenticity and consistency to your actual persona is very vital. People will cross reference your online posts to the things they see in person, and if it does not check out, you will lose credibility in future opportunities. Be authentic and sincere. People can sniff out a fake.
Connect With Other Brands
Interaction and partnerships can help boost your online identity. Follow relevant and related sites, comment on their posts, and take the opportunity for partnerships or post exchanges. This will allow you to build an audience by joining a network of like-minded websites and online identities. When you can, connect with them in person. Networking can start online, but when done in person, it strengthens your relationships and can give you bigger opportunities in the future.
My biggest tip of all is to bring your online brand to life. Whatever you put online should be a reflection of reality. Just in actual brand development, everything that is created to capture public attention must be dealt with according follow through. Remember that YOU created your brand, and not vice versa.
