Personal Branding for Small Business Success

There’s a lot of marketing buzz about branding...


In one of my previous blog posts I talked about building your business through branding.


But in today’s social world, one of the best things you can do for your small business and for your career is to build the brand called “you”! 

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Lorrie Thomas Ross, of Web Marketing Therapy is a Personal Branding expert who also authors content for American online learning giant Lynda.com. Here I have summarized Lorrie’s take on Personal Branding and added my own thoughts too.

Having a clear personal brand can improve your credibility, which will have a positive impact on they way you are perceived in person and online. There are three main (and interconnected) components to personal branding:
1. Authority
2. Online Identity
3. Personal Style

Authority

What’s the difference between being an expert versus an authority?  An expert has expertise in a certain field, while an authority has more personal brand power and is therefore seen as more credible. “But how do I become an authority?” I hear you ask! You become an authority by sharing relevant information through social media. Look closely…within the word “Authority” is the word “Author”! Authoring content includes posting interesting facts and links to relevant sources, answering FAQs and offering your opinion about other people’s content; sharing great content and adding your valuable opinion can help boost your online visibility, all while sharing your credibility as an authority in your field.

Online Identity

“Your online identity gives visibility to your credibility” (great line Lorrie, love it!). Having a professional web presence helps you to build, over time, your online identity. Updating and optimizing your social media presence helps others to know you and to trust your expertise. Updating content on your social media platforms or maintaining a personal domain are easy and fun steps that optimize your online identity. Lorrie recommends that you start by optimizing your LinkedIn profile.  LinkedIn is the largest professional network, it’s search visible and it’s very credible. Have you ever Googled yourself? It’s interesting to see what comes up. Google “Jody Sharpe” and you’ll see my LinkedIn profile is top of the list so I must concur with Lorrie. Get your LinkedIn profile up to date. I would also recommend you use a professional headshot and use the same picture on all your social media outlets. Consistency is important. Which leads us to Lorrie’s final area of Personal Branding….

Personal Style

“Finally you need to define your personal style. This includes your physical appearance, as well as your online presence. Your personal style is your tone, the way you communicate and the way you conduct yourself online. Having a clear personality online defines who you are and helps your followers to put a face to your work. A good way to improve your personal style online is to have a clear and consistent tone over all your outlets and to optimize your appearance in published photographs.” – Lorrie Thomas Ross.

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If you’re interested in building your personal brand to enhance your career or the success of your small business, give Sharpe Design Solutions a call. I can help you with the next steps; critically assessing your brand, moving forward by optimizing your brand and looking at other marketing opportunities.

Author: Jody Sharpe, Branding & Online Marketing Specialist at Sharpe Design Solutions

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