How do you brand yourself online? A better question might actually be this one: do you brand yourself online in the first place?
Aside from your business, you should also be branding yourself on the Internet. The difference is obvious: when you brand your business, you market it and what it can do for others. When you brand yourself, you market your own person and what you can do for others. This includes showcasing yourself as a thought leader, an influencer or just someone that needs an audience.
Why You Need to Brand Yourself
As you can see above, it’s pretty obvious on the surface why building a personal brand for yourself online is enticing. Who doesn’t want to be thought of as someone influential with something to share with the world?
Being an influencer, though, does more for you than just boost your ego. The long and short of it is building a brand for yourself improves your credibility. This helps you out in more ways than one.
- Any personal projects you start or endorse will immediately be thought of as credible based on your improved personal brand.
- Your business will be seen as more credible based on your own credibility.
- Your social media, publications and any content with your name attached will be seen as credible and insightful based on your personal brand.
This can certainly be a great asset for your other businesses. When you work on building your brand, you also work on building your image and credibility across the board in the world of business.
How to Start Building Your Brand
Building a personal brand is in no way an exact science, but there are some basic steps and tips to follow that can get you on the right track. In general, building your brand is composed of two parts: activity and image.
How active you are online greatly affects your credibility and brand. When you post on social media often, keep your website updated and actively engage with others online, you give off an image that you are committed to maintaining your brand and being active within the business community.
Your image is greatly based on the kind of content that you post and how you engage in the above activity. Sharing insightful tips and content is one way to boost your image online.
Here are some quick and simple ways to start working on building your personal brand:
- Post on social media every day on a schedule.
- Post to your website’s blog and business blog(s).
- Always stay committed to sticking with trends.
- Read thought leader blogs and websites.
- Offer your content services to outlets.
- Look to attending and/or speaking at events, conferences and seminars.
These are just some of the more basic ways you can build your brand online, and you’ll quickly find that the effort involved is minimal compared to the great results you get at the end of it all. If you stick with these small tips and grow from there, you’ll have a great personal brand in no time.
