Menu
Personal Branding

Personal Branding

Brands are distinctive and unmistakable. So are you. After all, you have your own personality and individual skill set. Make sure that other people recognize these qualities. Active personal branding on social networks can help boost your career.

The purpose of personal branding on Xing, LinkedIn, Twitter et al. is to publicize your personality and expertise. Show everyone what you can do! Raise your profile as an expert on certain topics, or as a specialist for a particular role. Unfortunately, personal branding does not happen by itself; if you want to build a good reputation on the Net, you need to work for it. It’s not a question of window dressing. If you want to network and encourage other people to follow you, you must offer good content. This is the only way to refine your profile and transform yourself and your interests into a “brand product”. Only then will your dedication pay off.

Five personal branding tips

Before making a start in the various channels, you need to ask yourself the following questions: 
Who am I? What do I have to offer? What do I want to achieve with personal branding, and who is my target audience?

No-one wants to read about how great you are. Your posts should not be all about you – unless you’re Rihanna or Kanye West. For the rest of us, the key is  to position yourself through your chosen topics. Offer genuinely new content or real food for thought. It’s vital that you respond to feedback.

You cannot play them all. Consider which target group you want to build your personal brand on, then research which social network is most relevant to that group and head straight there. If you are active on multiple channels, you should position yourself similarly on all of them.

You want HR people to notice you. Do this by laying the appropriate bait in your posts. Using search terms such as expert, specialist etc. can be helpful.

There are bound to be some social network forums or groups on your particular topic. Get involved in them. Pass information on. Comment on the relevant blogs. Draw your readers’ attention to interesting websites. Share your knowledge. Take every opportunity to network. But remember to cultivate the contacts you have made.

No-one wants to read about how great you are. Your posts should not be all about you – unless you’re Rihanna or Kanye West. For the rest of us, the key is to position yourself through your chosen topics. Offer genuinely new content or real food for thought. It’s vital that you respond to feedback.

FAQShare