What would you like to come up when someone searches for your name on the internet? In today’s socially active media, each one of us will most probably have a digital footprint, and social media platforms become our record keepers.
In such a situation, let us see how you can build a strong and positive online personal brand to boost your professional journey.
manage your social networks with mindfulness.
Do not mix your personal and professional online presence. Keep your personal social media accounts private. Where your professional social profile is concerned, create a separate one for each site where you want to be active. Check your privacy settings regularly to be sure about what pieces of information you are sharing with the public.
Truth be told, on the internet, there is very little place to hide. So, be mindful of how you behave on the internet. An impulsive and thoughtless post today can come back to bite you tomorrow. Pause to
get the right thoughts and words before you publish all that sweeps across your mind. You want to be seen as someone with substance, grace, and wisdom.
a LinkedIn profile — a must have.
As the key social media platform for professional networking, LinkedIn is a ‘must have’ social account. If you have not yet done so, create a profile on LinkedIn – define yourself the way you want to be seen as a professional. Highlight your qualifications, skills and capabilities (especially the niche ones). Talk about your experience and the value you bring to the professional table. And yes, customize your headline with the right keywords that will enable organizations and recruiters to discover you with ease.
You can also use LinkedIn to purposefully network and engage in conversations and have discussions in relevant groups and communities. This will help you expand your knowledge and sphere of opportunities.
create an effective online portfolio.
If your line of work requires you to showcase a portfolio of skills and case studies, create a website to do so. In fact, this may be a good idea even if you really didn’t to. Presenting your capabilities and
value you can bring through an online portfolio is a pretty impressive way to demonstrate the quality of your work.
Be truthful, and neither understate or overstate. Present your achievements in terms of outcomes rather than hyperboles.
stay consistent across your online channels.
From the professional photo to the content you post, be consistent about your identity. How much of information you share is your call, but ensure that there is no contradictions in what you share. The same goes for the perspectives you post. This is important for credibility that has a great bearing on the positive brand you will want to create for yourself.
The most important professional network is LinkedIn, which boasts more than 830 million users globally.
online etiquette matters.
It starts from the attention you pay in posting error-free content in terms of accuracy, spelling, grammar, tone, language, etc.
Be mindful of what you say online — the nature of content you post and share, and your reactions to others’ posts. All of this significantly contribute to your online personal brand. Also, monitor the comments on your posts, and take care to moderate or delete inappropriate responses.
Develop your writing skills and differentiate between writing a brief post, a blog, a point of view, a review, and more. Make your content positive, and refrain unnecessarily criticizing people or perspectives. Be courteous when engaging with others in online forums.
monitor your profiles closely.
It’s a good idea to periodically ‘google’ yourself — sometimes, it can throw a few surprises. Make sure the information is appropriate. Many recruiters and employers use search engines to know details of potential candidates. Check for information that in inaccurate, or which you do not want to be displayed, and take steps to delete it from the original source (use Google’s support resources to do so).
Call it by any name — digital footprint, personal brand, web presence, online profile — it is a great tool to add success to your career. A word of caution, though. Don’t create one because you are supposed to do so. Have a powerful purpose and be strategic about it.
At the end of the day, it is your signature — make it one of distinction.
