Personal branding is a deliberate and thought-out process of managing one’s own personal and professional image and brand. Its purpose may be to build business recognition and identity as well as to find employment. In this day and age, polishing and cultivating the right image online is a must, regardless of your professional role. How to do it well?

 

It’s often been said that once something is posted online, it stays there for years. The worldwide web is an omnipresent source of information, that allows everyone to seek out information about anyone. Employers often jump at the opportunity that is offered to them by the Internet and review employee or job seeker profiles on platforms like LinkedIn, GoldenLine, Instagram or Facebook. Just one careless post or an unfortunate photo may compel the manager to hire someone else. Of course you can cut yourself off from all social media channels yet by doing so, lose your chance of making new business contacts. The absence of self-promotion activity will also adversely affect recognition and awareness of your personal brand and so reduce your potential business growth. Instead, it’s best if you learn how to safely, professionally and effectively use social media to advance your professional career. However, please remember that building personal branding is not about projecting a false image of yourself or transforming your personality. You need authenticity to build personal branding. Your personal brand needs to be seen as useful and relevant to others and evoke interest. It’s recommended that your personal brand is emotionally engaging, and so able to make a difference to other people’s lives and drive engagement and identification with your activities.

 

Photos, or how people judge the book by its cover

Since nothing is ever truly deleted from the Internet, try and avoid posting controversial photographs in social media, whether your own or your friends’ photographs that is. Surely, you must have seen pictures of people sitting at tables and getting wasted on more than one occasion. While they may be entertaining to look at at first, over time these kinds of photos may pose a problem, and a potential employer might find them in poor taste. Hence, we definitely recommend against sharing your social life with the world. Remember that your social media profile is also being examined agencies like ZUS. So, if you’re an employee who’s currently on sick leave, don’t publish pictures of yourself enjoying a get-away to the mountainside, because they might cause you problems. We guarantee your boss won’t be happy to see those pictures either, and may subsequently find it difficult to trust you.

 

Say “no” to controversial posts

Sure, on more than one occasion, you must have felt the urge to grab the phone or post your point of view online about some emotionally engaging topic. Don’t do it. Sometimes it’s better not to express your opinions in the public domain, especially if they’ve got to do with politics or controversial topics, like religion or nationality. Stick to mainstream subjects on your page. However, if you want to demonstrate your thoughts to the world, like, say, about the current political climate, use the language of diplomacy and tolerance and make sure you engage in constructive dialogue under your post. Rude and offensive language is just poor manners and may affect how your colleagues, managers and future employers will see you.

 

Professional online image

Social media platforms should be a place where you make your presence known and comment about industry-related topics. Register with business groups on GoldenLine, LinkedIn and find the right groups to join on Facebook to expand what you know. Look after your brand – have a professional take your picture, and make sure you provide a complete overview of your employment history. Post your CV online. The Internet is full of limitless possibilities to sell yourself and stay active. Be sure you’re conscious of what and how you publish online. Put your best foot forward to inspire confidence and become a desirable employee, and remember – stay real and authentic.

 

Networking

Building a network of contacts can certainly make many aspects of your worklife easier. A network of contacts helps share expertise and know-how and enables participants to use the help of professionals and other contacts. Remember to exercise caution as to who you invite to join your network. It’s quality, not quantity, that matters.

 

Personal branding has multiple advantages and applications that drive competitive advantage, but don’t forget that image-building should be based on some solid foundations. It’s a slow process that requires work, but if done right, ultimately leads to success.