Earlier this week I gave my third speech at my local Toastmasters club. My speech discussed the use of social media for personal branding. I started the speech by asking two questions: Who uses social media daily and who has no idea how to use it at all. I was surprised by the response I received, the majority of raised hands were from those with no social expertise, and a few raised their hand for both. Having years of professional experience in social media, I often forget that there are people who are still learning to use these mediums and was reminded that as a millennial I am privileged with expertise my colleagues may not have.
Social media is much more than a place to stalk an ex-best friend or enemy, it's a place to prove your expertise and knowledge, to bring value to others in the network, and to learn from the knowledge of those who share your interests and aspirations.
Here are five tips for personal branding via social media:
- Share what you like. Discuss topics that interest you, it's very likely that there are other on the network having the same discussions and this allows you to make those connections and start new conversations.
- Share what you know. Your social media profile can say that you're an expert at something, but your posts are the proof points. Your expertise may be just what someone is looking for and this is your opportunity to make an impact and prove your knowledge.
- Be consistent. We're all busy, but that's no excuse. Your post cadence matters, posting inconsistently looks bad, it makes it look like you don't care about your network enough (or don't know enough) to post on a regular basis. There are a lot of great scheduling tools out there, that with just one hour, you can plan out the next week of social content. And to be honest, I struggle here too, but I'm always looking for ways to improve.
- Be professional. Yes, we all have opinions we want to share about politics and personal issues, but a professional profile is not the place to do it. Always put your best face on for any professional network, Twitter included. No hiring manager wants to see your political arguments on social media, it tells them that you can't separate your personal opinions from your professional life.
- ADD VALUE. This is the most important tip I can give. Add value. Don't just share content to say you did it, share content to bring value to those in your network. If you wouldn't read it, don't share it. People follow you for a reason, it's because you have information they want, but if you're only sharing crap, they will unfollow you.
Have any other tips for creating a strong personal brand? Share them in the comments.
This post was originally posted on LinkedIn.
Follow Shelby on Twitter, @swhitzel.