Business and personal brands go hand in hand in today’s society. Many of you will have seen high-profile experts using their Personal Brand to grow their Business Profile – especially via Instagram.

Below are my top tips to help build your own Personal Profile:

• Establish yourself as an expert on Social Media.
• Ensure your bio showcases your expertise in a short succinct manner, and is easily interpreted.
• Position yourself as a specialised expert.
• Throughout your Social Media updates, provide information which regularly exceeds expectations and is professionally presented.
• Include images of Events and Workshops you have hosted and attended.
• Keep your updates 75% business focused and drive traffic to your website for further information on the shared topic.
• Reach out and connect with others via Social Media to extend your contacts. Aim to meet existing or new Industry Professionals regularly. There are far more benefits to this beyond building your authority within your niche.
• Avoid too much self-promotion and interact with your audience as much as possible.
• Become 3D.
• Provide useful thought-provoking information in as many places as possible (e.g.: Social Media, Blog Articles, 3rd party websites, Podcasts, You Tube, Events, Workshops, Conferences, Pop-Ups…..).

When people start contacting you and mentioning they seem to be hearing and seeing you in a variety of places – you know that you’re successfully building your visibility.

Credibility always goes further when it’s others who are talking about you or sharing your information.

Aim to be heard from all angles.

Engage in speaking opportunities

Pinpoint which audience you need to get yourself in front of that aligns with your message/proposition. Then pitch yourself to the relevant business to let them know you’re available for speaking opportunities.

Rather than pitching yourself to a handful of businesses, target a singular business and be very specific with the way you pitch yourself.

You may also want to include a ‘Speaking Page’ on your website where you can showcase past speaking gigs, credentials, topics you’re proficient in and perhaps a video.

When building your visibility as an expert, be prepared for potential unpaid speaking gigs at first. Many businesses don’t have budget for speakers, however these relationships and experiences can be extremely valuable.

Once you become what I refer to as a ‘rising star’, paid opportunities will certainly come your way.

Branding

It pays to invest in high quality photography. In the first years of business, set aside a budget of approximately $450 for your profile and lifestyle shots.

As your business becomes more established, this budget is likely to increase to around the $3,000 mark.

This may sound like a huge amount of cash, however consider it a worthwhile investment in your business. It will come back to you in spades if executed and used wisely.

Do you have any other tips to add to the list? Please SHARE in the comments below.

Image courtesy of Shutterstock.com