In today’s competitive landscape, personal branding has become increasingly important for professionals across various industries. It is a way of using your story, values, and strengths to create a unique identity that stands out in the crowd and communicates who you are, what you do, and why people should trust and follow you.
Creating a Personal Connection
Building a personal brand can create a more personalized connection with your audience, showcasing thought leadership and expertise within specific domain areas. It can make a statement about your core values, character, and attitude, which can help you move roles, whether from an operational CIO position to a more forward-looking innovative one or even a CEO role.
Benefits to Company Brand
A strong personal brand can also benefit the company brand. The Thinkers360 2023 B2B Thought Leadership Outlook study found that over 86% of thought leadership creators rate their content as adding over 25% to the brand premium they command in the marketplace. Over 48% stated it added over 75%. This demonstrates the value of personal branding in the business world.
Authenticity and Strategy
Authenticity is key to sustainable personal branding. Leaders should have a clear content, channel, and format strategy that aligns with their personalities and interests. For example, Claire Rutkowski, CIO of infrastructure engineering software company Bentley Systems, shares actionable insights from her experience with ProSci’s ADKAR model, which can be useful for change enablement.
Embracing Digital Platforms
Utilizing social media networks such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram to establish a strong online presence is crucial in personal branding. Providing material that is optimized for search engine exposure, such as blogs and articles, will be critical in personal branding. Having a solid website with well-crafted content, as well as optimizing for local search with local SEO tactics, will be crucial in personal branding. Emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning can be utilized to improve personal branding further.
Personal Branding for Career Growth
Developing a personal brand on social media can benefit your career marketing plan. Many executives are hesitant to engage with social media due to the pressure to perform and post constantly. It’s important to approach social media on your own terms and not treat it like an obligation. Prioritizing activities that you enjoy can lead to more consistent and genuine content. Building a personal brand on social media can help with career growth and visibility, making it an essential long-term asset for leaders.