Personal Branding and Why It Matters!

In a world where our social media presence is bigger than ever, it's important to understand the impact of that and how our social media persona can impact our in-person life. We all have a brand even if we don't realize it. Your personal brand is your online image. It's more than likely that someone is going to search you on the internet one day. Whether it be a potential partner, roommate, or employer, they will want to see what you're all about. What social platforms are you on? What content are you posting? How are you presenting yourself? Do these align with your values and are they an accurate representation of who you are and how you want to present yourself to others?

Social media is the #1 tool to help us create and manage our personal brand. Platforms like LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter are a great insight for who you are and what you're about. Blogging is also a great way express yourself and create your online image and brand. When using these platforms, it's important to make them all cohesive. Use the same username, post content that aligns with your interests and passions, and make sure you're keeping it clean! More than likely, a future employer or client will want to look into you before actually meeting you. Make sure you're choosing what they see! If your online presence is lacking, more than likely they will not look into your product or service.

Personal branding is important for a multitude of reasons. It's important to manage the perception of yourself and choose what people are seeing. People work with and for people and they enjoy working with people who are confident in who they are and what they are about and can show that online! Being in PR, I have seen the importance of personal branding and how it influences relationships (career and personal)!

What is your personal brand?

"All of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You." -Tom Peters