The advent of blogs, twitter and social networking has really taken personal branding to a new level. These days we are much more easily found, contacted and spammed due to the internet; let's face it the internet is no longer a safe or private place. Or is it?
Personal branding online needs to be thought through meticulously and its execution flawless otherwise it could be dangerous. Theses are some ways to securely and successfully brand yourself online.
You need a personal website
Buy www.yourname.com its your name, its your legal right to own it, you could use it as a collection of all online info about you or just put your picture there; if you want to start branding online buy your name online.
Expose yourself in limited quantities
Your blog or twitter account should never contain too specific information about you. Instead try to blog about topics of interest relevant to your audience.
Note: If you are a celebrity or wannabe then this does not apply.
Network online
The next time you meet someone and get their business cards look for them on the social networks, Facebook and linked in are excellent platforms to discover if you might have any mutual friends or interests.
Always send them to your website; let information work for you.
Protect sensitive information
Some resumes or documents could contain sensitive information about you or an organization you are affiliated to. Always save theses files as PDFs and put a password to them, you can inform the reader of the password as and when necessary.
Have a separate email account for online inquires
Having a separated email account helps you minimize the amount of spam you get. Use Google's enterprise tools to map your email accounts its the best and more cost effective way.
Google your name
Find out if your alias is being misused in anyway and if you notice it is, contact the offenders or report it.
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Branding yourself online is a good thing, done carefully and interestingly you might become an overnight internet celebrity.
Nicholas Lin is a partner (marketing) at Async Minds a boutique web development and marketing firm.
www.asyncminds.com