With all of us growing up as technology was making its biggest advances, naturally, it became a huge part of our lives. Most of us had cell phones by the age of 11 and shortly after climbed the social ladder of social sites. Today, we all have iPhones, Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter. With social media being so important to us today, it’s also important to know how to brand yourself and make yourself look good. The whole world is able to see your life, at least make sure it looks good. I’m going to show you seven helpful tips that will get you started on using your social media to build your personal brand.
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Focus on up to three areas of expertise
Pick three interests that you have. Then think, “Am I going to care about this in 6 months? A year?” If the answer is yes, then use that to build a fanbase by using certain hashtags and joining groups.
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Come up with a strong bio
Your bio is the second thing people will look at on your social media after your profile pic. Make sure your bio is catchy, quick and tells enough about you to reel followers in, but not so much that they feel like they know you after they’ve read it.
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Make all your social media profiles consistent
After you make your bio, copy and paste it to all your social media profiles. Then choose a profile picture and do the same. This will create a uniform look for you across your many different social profiles, as well as make it easy for followers to identify you from site to site.
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Reserve your name everywhere
It’s important to reserve your name across various social sites, so it’s easier for people to search for you. If your usual name is taken, try a common variation and stick to that. KnowEm is a good site that helps you research your name on different social sites.
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Build your content around your area of expertise
After you’ve done the “behind the scenes” work, so to speak, it’s time to get posting. Whatever area you choose to focus on should be the muse behind all your posts. If your followers share your core three interests, all your posts should reflect those interests. (For example: A personal trainer would only post about workouts, diet tips, even go so far as to post good workout clothing). Keep everything uniform, so your followers don’t feel like you’re all over the place and end up unfollowing you.
(Instagram screenshotted: @getbodiedbyj)
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Be active!
Post 1-2 times per day on all your social media accounts. If it’s Twitter, shoot for 4 because the posts can be shorter, and it allows more room for follower-to-follower interaction. If someone mentions you, or comments on your post, respond within 24 hours. Make sure your followers feel like they can relate to you and talk to you. That will make them more inclined to like your posts and even retweet or repost them.
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Tag your photos!
Coming up with a hashtag for all your posts makes it easier for people to find you. Also, there are apps that allow you to add your username to videos/photos in case people repost them without mentioning you. (For example: makeup gurus post their username at the bottom of their videos on Instagram because they often get reposted by different makeup enthusiast pages). Make sure people can find the original source of the pictures/videos, and no one is stealing the credit (and followers!) for your hard work.
(Instagram screenshotted: @farahdhukai)