Branding yourself through social media

- So you've probably heard the term branding, and you may think of it as a conscious process that a business uses to establish their identity. Well, the fact is we're all branding ourselves all the time. Everything you post online and every conversation you have contributes to your overall image, or your brand. Does your social media create an image you want future employers and professional connections to see? Even if you aren't posting anything negative online, chances are your social media presence isn't giving you as strong of a brand as you wish it would. Lacking a brand may not be quite as bad as having a negative brand, but it's a close second. The good news is that personal branding is something you can start right away. When it comes to your career, your goal is to brand yourself as an expert in your field, the go-to person your friends and connections turn to when they have a question about your industry and a person who is full of valuable information and eager to share it. The first step is to start posting content on a regular basis. Because LinkedIn is a central place people go in order to build professional connections, that's the first place you should post. You can post the same content on your personal social media pages, like your Facebook page, too. Some of your posts could be sharing content that you created yourself, like a helpful tip about your area of expertise or an article you've written and posted online. It's just as helpful to share other people's content too. As an added bonus, that gives you an opportunity to thank the writer for their insights and to get acquainted with them. Either way, to everyone who sees your post, you become the person who always has something interesting to share. As you create your posts, you can also take more control over who sees your posts, especially on Facebook. Facebook has a feature called Lists, which allows you to group your friends and followers in a different list based on who they are and how you know them. For example, you could have one list for family members, one list for close friends, and a separate list for professional connections. Every time you create a post, you can decide which list to show your post to. With professional development, sharing the post with family and friends can help you grow your network just as much as sharing your post with work-related contacts. If you're posting something more personal, though, you can exclude your professional contacts to keep your brand consistent. Speaking of building your professional network through your family and friends, have you ever thought of asking them for help with the next step in your career? I'm not saying you should call every number in your phone and beg them for a referral, but why not post in your social media that you're looking for new opportunities? Let everyone know what you're looking for and what credentials you have and ask them to message you if they know anyone who can help. You never know who has a great lead or a powerful connection in your industry until you ask. If you do happen to know that certain people are more likely to help than others, put them in a separate list and share your job search and your career ambitions with that list. As you're spreading the word and building your network, you also need to prepare for the next step. What will you do if someone contacts you asking for more information? Would you even know what to tell them? I suggest creating a quick one-pager for networking purposes. That one page could include a quick summary of your qualifications, notes about the types of roles and companies you're interested in, and how new connections can get in touch with you. If someone asks what you're looking for in your job search, you'll already have that information on hand and ready to go. Now, there are indeed countless ways to use social media to control your personal brand and further your career. All it takes is consistency, keeping your mind focused on your goals, and continuing to grow your understanding of the brand that you're trying to build.