In my formal post I tried to explain what personal branding is all about but today, I want to share the personal branding processes, which includes how to discover and create personal branding. So you can start to think about what face you want to show to the world and how you want to position yourself for success! Let's dig it together...
1. Discover your brand
The single biggest mistake people make is that they either brand themselves just for the sake of doing it or that they fail to invest time in learning about what's in their best interests. The key to success, and this isn't revolutionary, is to be compensated based on your passion. In order to find your passion, you need a lot of time to think, some luck and you need to do some research online to figure out what's out there.
Brand discovery is about figuring out what you want to do for the rest of your life, setting goals, writing down a mission, vision and personal brand statement (what you do and who you serve), as well as creating a development plan. Have you ever been called intelligent or humorous by your peers or coworkers?
That description is part of your brand, especially if you feel those attributed pertain to you. To know if you've discovered your brand, you need to make this equation equal:
Your self-impression = How people perceive you
Before you enter the next step in the personal branding process, you'll want to select a niche, whereby you can be the master of your domain.
For example, Abiola Fortune has mastered the Google Adsense niche and brands himself using his name, and Jude Ogunsanya owns the social media PR niche with his PR 2.0 blog (under his name).
When I say domain, I mean an area where there aren't many competitors and literally, your online domain name. Once
you sort this all out, now it's time to create your brand.
2. Create your brand
Now that you know what you want to do and have claimed a niche, at least in your mind, it's time to get it on paper and online.
The sum of all the marketing material you should develop for your brand is called a Personal Branding Toolkit . This kit consists of the following elements that you can use to highlight your brand and allow people to easily view what you're about:
I. Business card: It doesn't matter if you're a college student, CEO, or a consultant, everyone should have their own business
card. The card should contain your picture, your personal brand statement (such as Boston Financial Expert), as well as your *preferred* contact information and corporate logo if necessary.
You can create your own business card using Microsoft Publisher and share it through your mobile phone using mydropcard.com or rmbrme.com . On the web, BusinessCard2.com is a great social network for creating and
distributing your person business card.
II. Resume/cover letter/references document: These are typical documents that you need for applying for jobs and when you go on interviews (something over 2 million job seekers will be doing
as we speak). Be sure to prioritize each document with information custom to the target position.
Take your resume online and add social features to it to make the ultimate social
media resume , promoting your personal brand to the world and making it shareable.
III. Portfolio: Whether you use a CD, web or print portfolio, it's a great way to showcase the work you've done in the past, which can convince someone of your ability to accomplish the same
results for the future. Figdig.com and carbonmade.com are social networks for people who want to show off their creative skills to the world.
IV. Blog/website: You need to own yourname.com or a website that aligns with your name in some fashion Depending on who you are, how much time you have on your hands and if you can accept criticism, you should either start a blog or stick with a static homepage. Those who blog will have a stronger asset than those who don’t because blogs rank higher in search engines and lend more to your expertise and interest areas over time.
V. LinkedIn profile: A LinkedIn profile is a combination of a resume, cover letter, references document and a moving and living database of your network. Use it to create your own personal advertising, to search for jobs or meet new people.
VI. Facebook profile: Over 160 million people have profiles, but almost none of them have branded themselves properly using this medium. Be sure to include a Facebook picture of just you, without any obscene gestures or unnecessary vodka bottles. Also, input your work experience and fill out your profile, while turning
on the privacy options that disable the ability for people to tag you in pictures and videos (allowing people to see the ones tagged of you).
VII. Twitter profile: Your Twitter profile should have an avatar that is carved out of your Facebook picture and used in your LinkedIn profile. You need to use a distinct background, fill out your profile
and include a link to either your blog or LinkedIn profile.
Twitterbacks.com , developed by internet mogul Jim Kukral , has templates you can use to sculpt your very own Twitter
background (Photoshop skills not included). Twitbacks.com is another solution that also lets you promote your Twitter profile.
VIII. Video resume: A video resume is a short video of you talking
about why you are the best for a specific job opportunity. You get about a minute or so to communicate your brand and are able to send the link, once you upload it to YouTube, to hiring managers.
IX. Wardrobe: Your personal style is tangible and is extremely important for standing out from the crowd. Select clothing that best represents you because it will be viewable through your pictures/avatars online, as well as when you meet people in reality.
X. Email address: Don’t overlook your email address as not being a significant part of your toolkit. Most people use email over all social networks and when you connect with someone on a social network, you are notified via email, so get used to it. Your email address poses a great opportunity for your brand. I recommend using gmail because of the acceptance of Google and since GTalk allows you to form tighter relationships with others.
For your address, use “firstname.lastname@gmail.com.” or "first name.lastname.outlook.com etc.
What's next?
After you spend the time on these parts of your personal branding toolkit, it’s time to showcase it to the world, especially your
target audience. Don’t be fooled by the myth that if you build it, they will come.
Unless you’re the luckiest person on earth, you’ll have to actually communicate everything you’ve created to others.
Just like I'm doing with my blogs
1. Kokoloaded
2. Young Engineer
3. Global Trending
Hope its useful!!! Share it
Facebook, Twitter, Linkedln, Blog, MySpace
0 comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Use other Browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, etc. except Opera to make comment