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Building Your Personal Brand Online

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Each of us has products and services that we prefer. I probably could not pass the Coke versus Pepsi test blindfolded.  However, I am a firm Diet Coke drinker.  I hate it when I have to settle for a Pepsi. Companies pay a considerable amount of money to create a distinction between their product and similar products.  They go beyond just product differences to embrace other qualities that they believe will help connect you to the brand.  Qualities like youth or health or environmental awareness can humanize a brand, increasing your likeliness to respond to it emotionally.  With the help of the internet, we do not need the financial and technical resources of big companies to build our personal brands.

I remember the first (and maybe the only) time I Googled myself.  Apparently another Nancy Tobler, PhD, passed away a few years back.  Whether you are aware or not, almost all of us have an online presence. Your online presence reveals details about your personality, credibility, and lifestyle (even if that online presence is not really yours).  Developing your personal brand is more than manipulating the impressions others have of you.  In personal branding, you set out to emulate an image of yourself as someone with assets which set you apart from your peers. This image helps you connect with others.  While you cannot control what others say about you online–many companies have tried– you can make a conscious effort to cultivate your digital presence.  Let’s talk about some of the basic methods people use to create and connect with personal brands.

When developing your personal brand online, you have the option of using existing platforms such as Facebook and Pinterest or you can create a website or blog.  In 2014, Facebook had 1.35 billion active users every month.  Having a profile and commenting on popular sites is one of the most common ways people build their brand (intentionally or unintentionally). Each comment and picture you place on Facebook feeds into your personal brand.  Research suggests that some future employers seek you out on social media to see the “real” you. An article on Careerbuilder identified many reasons employers stated for passing on a candidate based on the person’s social media content.  The number one reason was inappropriate photographs or information. As a direct seller, your prospects can check on you by simply looking you up online.

Building your brand does not have to be limited to posting and conversing on the most popular sites. Wikipedia lists hundreds of social networking sites which allow users to connect to people with similar interests. For example, there is a site called Care2 for those interested in green living and social activism.

Within any online presence, there are written words, pictures, videos, and other presentation aspects such as color and typography. When you start your own website or blog, you take an active and direct method to strategically building a brand that sets you apart from others (differentiation) and extends you to make connections on a more personal level. On mlm.com, you may notice that each of the writers has a brand.  I try to bring you the research on a topic—the academic perspective.  That is my brand.

Another key aspect of creating your online brand also comes from who responds to your posts, and how many. Gaining a following takes time and a concerted effort.  Given the sheer volume of attention grabbing content online, you need to put in the hours and provide real value if you want to build a following.  However, getting responses to your comments from readers can provide a powerful way to get more followers.

You do not need to be controversial in order to get attention, although sometimes that is one way to accomplish just that. Make sure that you choose carefully which controversial opinions you voice. You may lend your voice to a feeling that others share, which can earn you followers, but make sure that when you do, you’re “on message” with your brand.  Often providing content that helps others and relates to your brand is a great way to get comments and followers.  If you sell beauty products, providing information on how to use a new product can be one way to build your brand and get comments.  You can find opportunities to provide value whether you’re lending your voice to controversy, or offering free information and education.

If you want to sell product in today’s world, the online environment and your brand are vital to your success.  You may not want to see social media as a public space where people can judge you.  However, unless you are careful with your settings and selective of those you connect with online, your online brand exists and may not be helping you. As you grow your business, you will want to pay attention to aspects about you that make you different from your competition and extend your brand to other areas that support your message and ideals.

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