Why Your Personal Brand Online Matters
Your first impression matters. Period.
It can either lead you to a path of opportunities or down the road of endless self-redemption. Without a doubt, you need to make sure you create an impressive first impression and in today’s world, this starts online.
Whether personal or business related, the internet is the go-to resource if one wants to know more about a person. Thus, it is imperative that you represent the best version of who you are online and clearly showcase what you do, what you stand for and what you believe in. What I mean by personal branding online can also be described as online reputation management. Ultimately, it’s about the type of search results that come up when somebody types your name into Google. What search results come up can build your credibility, make you more trustworthy and encourage others to work with you. This is likely your first touchpoint with people who want to know more about you. So make this count.
Why does your personal brand online matter?
Online job search is on the rise.
If you’re a jobseeker, you will notice that job openings are no longer limited to the classified ads you see on papers. You can visit job market sites like Monster, London Jobs, and Jobsite, among others. In November 2016, it was announced that even Facebook is “looking to add a new ‘Jobs’ tab to Pages” (Hutchinson 2016). This move, analysts say, can be a threat to LinkedIn, which is another good source of career opportunities.
Related: How To Search Your Name On Google Using Private or Incognito Mode
Employers WILL look at your online profiles.
The increasing number of job market sites only means that there is already a shift of not only finding jobs but employers seeking potential candidates. Recruiters are now actively searching for qualified applicants and reaching out to them. In an article published by Forbes, it explained that your online profile is viewed by employers and this is a way for them to know more about you and see if you will fit to their company’s culture. In fact, it was revealed in a survey released by Microsoft that “70% of recruiters said they rejected applicants based on information they found online” (Schawbel 2011).
Image Credit: Forbes 2016
Think about how much time you spend to make sure your CV and cover letter is perfect, yet many people fail to neglect the third place recruiters check, which is your online presence. Hence, if you’re a person looking for a job or would want to open yourself to breaks for career advancement, make sure your personal brand online can “sell” you, what you can do, and what you can offer future employers.
Image Credit: Gardasevic 2016
Staying invisible online is costing you money.
In marketing, they say “out of sight is out of mind.” Thinking about how the internet affects your personal branding, it can be assumed that if you’re nonexistent online. Either nobody has worked with you or nobody has given you reviews or your work does not merit a review or you simply do not exist. All these scenarios hurt your personal branding and people’s perception of you. Imagine if you were the recruiter, would you hire the person who has a great profile photo and has been consistently blogging and tweeting about your industry or someone who is simply invisible? In today’s competitor job market, staying invisible is simply not an option and the bottom line is that it is costing you opportunities, and thus costing you money.
Related: Are you falling for these top five myths about personal branding?
A great personal brand online increases your value to your current company.
For those who are already employed, do you know that you can actually increase your value to your company by maintaining a great personal brand online? Why? It is because you are an extension of the company you work for. The employees are the company’s best brand ambassador. “On average, employees have 10 times more followers than their company’s social media accounts.” (Erskine 2016). And employers all love employees that promote the company’s brand message.
In addition, consumers now are more sensible, proactive and selective. They put more value on what others say about the brand. According to the article on Entrepreneur titled ’22 Statistics that Prove the Value of Personal Branding,’ it noted that “we trust people more than we trust brands, and we engage with people more than we engage with brands” (Erskine 2016). In a Nielsen Consumer Survey, it was revealed buyers trust messages that come from those they know. Therefore, if you promote your company’s products or services through your own endorsement publicly online, your company will thank you for it.
So let’s get started…
Your personal brand is what others say about you when you are not in the room. And in today’s world, it’s what the internet says about you when you are not in the room. The first impression somebody gets from Googling your name can persuade other people’s decision to hire you, promote you, or even date you. So let’s started with working on actively manage your online reputation and let the best version of yourself shine online.
Recommend Reading:
5 Ways to Make Your Online Personal Brand Work for You
Sources:
Erskine, Ryan. “22 Statistics That Prove the Value of Personal Branding.” Entrepreneur. N.p., 13 Sept. 2016. https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/280371. 27 Dec. 2016.
Gardasevic, Sanja . “Are You Aware of The Dangers of Not Actively Managing Your Personal Brand?” Domain .ME blog. N.p., 04 Nov. 2014. http://domain.me/dangers-of-not-managing-personal-brand/. 27 Dec. 2016.
“Gary Vaynerchuk Quote.” A-Z Quotes. N.p., n.d. http://www.azquotes.com/quote/614786 . 27 Dec. 2016.
Hill, Kashmir. “What Prospective Employers Hope To See In Your Facebook Account: Creativity, Well-Roundedness, & ‘Chastity’” Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 3 Oct. 2011. http://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2011/10/03/what-prospective-employers-hope-to-see-in-your-facebook-account-creativity-well-roundedness-chastity/#1e9b5cd61791. 27 Dec. 2016.
Hutchinson, Andrew. “Facebook Introduces Job Listings, a Potential Threat to LinkedIn.” Social Media Today. N.p., 09 Nov. 2016. http://www.socialmediatoday.com/social-networks/facebook-introduces-job-listings-potential-threat-linkedin. 27 Dec. 2016.
Lake, Laura. “What is Personal Branding and What You Need to Know About It?” The Balance. N.p., 5 Aug. 2016. https://www.thebalance.com/what-is-personal-branding-4056073. 27 Dec. 2016.
Schawbel, Dan. “5 Reasons Why Your Online Presence Will Replace Your Resume in 10 years.” Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 21 Feb. 2011. http://www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2011/02/21/5-reasons-why-your-online-presence-will-replace-your-resume-in-10-years/#467ec1582c65. 27 Dec. 2016.
Smale, Thomas. “5 Steps to Build Your Personal Brand.” Entrepreneur. N.p., https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/250924. 22 Sept. 2015. Web. 27 Dec. 2016.
Originally published at kaitlinzhang.com on March 13, 2017.
Kaitlin Zhang is an award-winning personal branding consultant, helping entrepreneurs, executives and celebrities manage their online reputation. Kaitlin founded Kaitlin Zhang Branding in 2016 serving corporate and personal clients in the USA, UK, Canada and China. Follow her blog to learn more about personal branding, corporate branding, digital marketing and reputation management.
