I follow about 30 different social media blogs and have noticed over time that everyone gives their opinion on personal branding – i.e. what to share, what not to share, the big sharing No No’s! I thought it was time I share my opinion. Here goes . . .
Personal Branding -My Opinion
Frankly, I am tired of reading others blog posts, articles etc. . . .saying don’t tweet or update your status with what you are eating, how you are feeling, etc. . . I guess the authors of those posts where tired of reading these type of updates and decided to send their network an indirect heads up.
I think we all have common sense and know what we want to share with our network of friends, followers, connections.
If I decide to share the fact I am eating my favorite meal (Spaghetti or Cheese Enchiladas, double rice no beans) on Twitter or Facebook then I will do so. And I bet someone would comment on the update. It’s not so much what you share, but how you share it! See examples below:
I am sitting down to eat spaghetti that my sister @jimibratt prepared. She makes the world’s best in my opinion!
My purpose here would be to make my sister feel good and also let all of my followers know her Twitter id in case they want to connect with her.
Excited! Just met with a new client @careerdesign. They are working on revamping their website http://career-design.com!
My purpose here would be to let everyone know I was excited and why (i.e. new client), my client’s Twitter id in case they would like to follow and also about their website. Someone in my network may know a great connection or have some advice or words of wisdom for my client.
My point with all this rambling is:
It’s not so much what you share! It’s how you share it! In other words, Write it creatively! Make it interesting! Have a purpose! The little pieces of information you share about yourself is how you connect to your network and how they connect to you. Personal Branding after all is in essence who you are and what you want your network to know about you! Just be yourself, share great information and you will grow personally and professionally.
Personal Branding is a strategy you use to share information and your knowledge! Don’t let it intimidate you and by all means don’t let some other blog author tell you what you can and cannot share on Twitter, Facebook, or whatever social networking sites you like to use.
Please share your comments with me and the readers of this post! Everyone has a great perspective and advice to add to make us all better at Personal Branding!
Great take on Personal Branding, Lissa. I have tweeted about munching on Halloween chocolate, and got a few nice comments back right afterwords. The vast majority of my tweets and posts among my social accounts are business related, and as long as I keep it that way I think my followers will understand an occasional “what am I eating” comment. Especially if it is written cleverly like yours above. Being generous by introducing others to your stream by crediting them or Retweeting them shows that you are a real person, not a newsbot. I’m sure you considered this in your spaghetti post, but I think it’s also important to carefully consider your specific audience, and how much of a “personal” brand you want to have, versus coming across as a company. By mixing in new client accomplishments like you did above you create a nice balance.
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Absolutely agree with you! It’s not what you say, but how you say it. Information without purpose has no value.
Great blog post! I agree that it is ok to microblog about your daily life if it is done in a creative matter. Part of social media is developing an engaging online community with your connections and the importance is building a trusting relationship much like an online tribe. In a sense, you may be able to obtain career opportunities because they know you enough online that they may ask you for a project request or a interview for a job position at his or her company. You can also obtain links to great resources as well. For example, you may obtain links from Italian restaurants, recipes and how to cooking sites or you may get a request for your sister’s spaghetti recipe, it’s all about social collaboration and openess!
Agreed! On your point about not letting personal branding intimidate you, Lissa, it is important to just jump in and go for it. The fears will subside!
The crucial point that you make in this post is “Have a Purpose!” You can write anything you want if it serves a purpose. There has to be a reason. If you are just updating your status because you feel obligated, then people are going to get annoyed.
Thanks,
Ryan H., http://www.ryanhanley.com
Absolutely agree with you! It’s not what you say, but how you say it. Information without purpose has no value.
[…] Go here to read the rest: Personal Branding – My opinion! :: Lissa Duty […]
The crucial point that you make in this post is “Have a Purpose!” You can write anything you want if it serves a purpose. There has to be a reason. If you are just updating your status because you feel obligated, then people are going to get annoyed.
Thanks,
Ryan H., http://www.ryanhanley.com
Great blog post! I agree that it is ok to microblog about your daily life if it is done in a creative matter. Part of social media is developing an engaging online community with your connections and the importance is building a trusting relationship much like an online tribe. In a sense, you may be able to obtain career opportunities because they know you enough online that they may ask you for a project request or a interview for a job position at his or her company. You can also obtain links to great resources as well. For example, you may obtain links from Italian restaurants, recipes and how to cooking sites or you may get a request for your sister’s spaghetti recipe, it’s all about social collaboration and openess!
The crucial point that you make in this post is “Have a Purpose!” You can write anything you want if it serves a purpose. There has to be a reason. If you are just updating your status because you feel obligated, then people are going to get annoyed.
Thanks,
Ryan H., http://www.ryanhanley.com
Great take on Personal Branding, Lissa. I have tweeted about munching on Halloween chocolate, and got a few nice comments back right afterwords. The vast majority of my tweets and posts among my social accounts are business related, and as long as I keep it that way I think my followers will understand an occasional “what am I eating” comment. Especially if it is written cleverly like yours above. Being generous by introducing others to your stream by crediting them or Retweeting them shows that you are a real person, not a newsbot. I’m sure you considered this in your spaghetti post, but I think it’s also important to carefully consider your specific audience, and how much of a “personal” brand you want to have, versus coming across as a company. By mixing in new client accomplishments like you did above you create a nice balance.
Absolutely agree with you! It’s not what you say, but how you say it. Information without purpose has no value.
Great blog post! I agree that it is ok to microblog about your daily life if it is done in a creative matter. Part of social media is developing an engaging online community with your connections and the importance is building a trusting relationship much like an online tribe. In a sense, you may be able to obtain career opportunities because they know you enough online that they may ask you for a project request or a interview for a job position at his or her company. You can also obtain links to great resources as well. For example, you may obtain links from Italian restaurants, recipes and how to cooking sites or you may get a request for your sister’s spaghetti recipe, it’s all about social collaboration and openess!