#TotallyTrendyTuesday One of the Smartest Decisions I've Ever Made.
My Experience on Personal Branding and Where to Get Started.
Just like a house that is built without a solid foundation can not be expected to last, the same rule applies to creating a digital presence and your personal brand’s voice.
When thinking about how I wanted to follow up from my last post “Building a Personal Brand while Kicking Ass at your day job,” (check it out if you did not get the chance to!) it dawned on me that before we can talk about the “what” we must first discuss the “how.” When I spoke about my experience on personal branding being the best decision I had ever made, I made a crucial first step, I created a foundation. Most people nowadays have at least a profile on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, so the basic profiles are there to begin building upon.
In an effort to create a launching pad, here are three things you must do in order to begin establishing yourself as an authority in your space while become an asset to your organization and your future.
Soul Searching
My experience was that I became a writer as I wrote more, but in the beginning I needed to have a little bit of knowledge to start. Do some soul searching to find out how you plan to represent yourself online. Give it some thought as to what part of who you are you would like to put in the spotlight. Whatever you do, make sure you pick a topic or way of being that is TRULY who you are and honestly what you care about. You will quickly run out of things to talk about if you try to be something you are not.
Photo Shoot
I am not suggesting you run out and spend a couple thousand dollars on a professional photoshoot. What I am suggesting is for you to get a nice photo taken of yourself to use across platforms professionally. This could be taken in your backyard and with your friends phone. The point is to have a photo that you like, that others can start to know you by so that when they meet you in person they already feel more connected to you.
Platform Continuity
It is absolutely critical that when someone does google you, they come upon the same look and feel across platforms. This is not meant to remove your personality from your instagram or twitter accounts, but to generate a sense of familiarity for your audience. This also enhances your professionalism and online presence as being consistent. If you do consider yourself a professional, I would highly suggest adding a community page on facebook as opposed to a friend page to separate your work a bit.
The most important point to glean is to really start with the basics. When you are ready to begin branding yourself online and create a social presence, you might feel you are totally ready to get going with the content creation! You might be, but I would suggest going through your online presence and objectively looking at it through the lens of someone that does not know you first. Once you establish your message, look, and continuity, then progress towards creating meaningful content. Stay tuned, I will be progressing this topic over the coming weeks and sharing more about how I was able to create my voice!
Lindsey Rainwater is a consultant and coach to the fitness and wellness industry. She specializes in business development and leadership. Currently she is working with the Fitmarc Team helping Health Club owners all over the south central region of the united states propel their business forward via group exercise solutions. For more information about Lindsey, follow her @lindseyrainh2o, all content posted at www.lindseyrainh2o.com