Do you want to grow your name and your business online? If so, you need to build your personal brand first. Start thinking of your name — and yourself — as a brand and everything else will fall into place. Take a look at these five ways of building a personal brand in a week or less.
Building a Personal Brand — Fast
Do Your Research
Before you can begin to build an online personal profile, you need to see what is already out there. Do you have any unpleasant photos out in cyberspace?
Set up Google alerts in your name and delete any negative posts or press that shows up. You can even slightly change your name, such as adding your middle initial, to build a new profile. Make sure your name is as clean as possible before you work on building your brand online.
Get a Website
Like turning to a nutrition guide for football players to become healthier and stronger, it’s vital to have a website if you want to experience growth and build your business. Make sure your site is a place your audience can visit to find out more about your business. Your personal website should have an “About me” page to inform visitors of what you are all about. There are various tools you can utilize and websites you can visit to help you build a website — some are free. Some charge a fee, but it’s a worthwhile investment.
If you want to build a dynamic and professional-looking site, it’s important to devote time and effort to it. Keep your content brief and engaging and use high-resolution images to build a powerful website.
Consider Your Audience
Think about the audience you’re trying to reach. This is your target audience, and you need to determine who this is early on. Do you want to usher people to your website so they can learn things? What can you offer readers?
Once you can answer these questions, you can get a clearer picture of your audience. This will direct you how to best communicate with them on social media and your website and help you create email campaigns that convert.
Meet More People
When you are striving to build a brand, the more people you meet, the better off you are. Every person you know can help you promote your brand. These relationships need to extend beyond online. Online influencers are helpful, but you also need to meet influencers in other ways too. Attend local industry-related events and network anytime, anyplace.
Don’t be afraid to tell people what you do, from your server at a restaurant to the person who sits by you at a Little League game. Make it a point to expand your circles by being present with others.
Be True to Yourself
When you are trying to build your personal brand, you’ll undoubtedly want to put your best foot forward. However, you don’t want to build a false online presence that isn’t an accurate portrayal of who you are. Social users want honesty and have no problem identifying when people aren’t genuine.
Always put forth an honest profile of who you are and you’ll naturally build your reader’s trust.
Starting your personal brand can feel overwhelming, especially when you’re trying to do it quickly. Luckily, it doesn’t take long to implement these tips. Each strategy will help you grow a target audience who wants to listen to you and your advice.
Watering Plant Photo via Shutterstock
This article, “5 Ways to Grow Your Personal Brand in One Week” was first published on Small Business Trends