Developing your professional brand online

Developing Your Professional Brand Online

Prepared for Arizona WildcatsMay 27, 2015

CONFIDENTIAL (c) 2015 Bay Leaf Digital

About Us

• Abhi Jadhav– MBA, Class of 2001– Worked 10 years in the corporate world– Specializes in digital marketing– Manages Bay Leaf Digital

• Tory Smith– University of Texas at Arlington– Class of 2002– 10 Year Online Marketing Veteran– Bay Leaf Digital Partner– DFWSEM Board Member

Web Analytics ConsultingContent MarketingMarketing Automation

We help companies become better Marketers

@torygsmith @AbhiJadhavNow

We also do a lot of…

@torygsmith @AbhiJadhavNow

…Personal Brand Building

Why? It brings in new businessWhen? Every day (but not every hour)Where? LinkedIn, Twitter, Bay Leaf Digital Blog

Why We Do It

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Social media does NOT directly result in any business for us. But it:

1. Enables conversations2. Fosters introductions3. Triggers personal brand recall4. Influences SEO ranking5. Softens cold calling

Our Participation Level

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LinkedIn Snapshot

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Why Care About Twitter or LinkedIn?

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Should You Use Social Media to Build Your Personal Brand?

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Yes, if you are:New to the corporate world

Considering changing jobs

Wanting to get ahead

Wanting to land new business

3 Key Things about Social Media

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1. It is one link in the chain – – It works best with a complementary activity – It will rarely get you all the way to your goal– You still need to close the deal

2. There is a lot of noise – Need to be crafty about where, how, when to put in effort

3. It lives on forever!

Our Philosophy on Brand Building (and many other things!)

@torygsmith @AbhiJadhavNow

1. Know what your goal is: Write it down on paper – I participate on Twitter because…

2. Be persistent: This is a marathon, not a sprint. You will see results in six months, not six days.

3. Be mindful: Know what is working, and adjust what is not.

TWITTERLet’s Talk

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A Few Facts About Twitter

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A Few Facts About Twitter

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Power users make up less than 4% of all Twitter users.

How to Succeed On Twitter

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• Grow your reach• Engage with strangers• Be interesting (and genuine)

How to Grow Your Reach on Twitter

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People will FOLLOW YOU if:1. You follow them2. You mention them in a tweet3. You are active on Twitter

True Story…

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What Works

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• Following relevant people

• Following those within reach

• Working within our plan– Dedicate a limited time per day for this– Follow a limited number of people per day

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• Don’t toot your own horn• Be generous with your

(re)tweets• Promote others more than

you promote yourself

Why? Because they will reciprocate & follow you

DO Talk To Strangers…

How To Talk To Strangers…

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Twitter Lists

+

Buffer

What Works

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• Spread tweets throughout the day

• Don’t worry about timing tweets just right

• Stick to 4:1 ratio

Use Buffer to Schedule Tweets

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Be Interesting

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• Images help • Don’t just re-tweet: genuinely add a comment

that’ll trigger a response• Share your perspective - don’t just tweet news

Be Interesting

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Growing Reach…

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Set Aside Time Each Day

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One More Thing…

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More impressions, 0 conversations

Fewer impressions, 1 invitation to blog, 1 social media interview, 1 partnership conversation

… Social Media metrics can be deceptive

Let’s Talk

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A Few Facts…

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• 332 million members• 50,000 long form posts are published each week• 2.1 million groups• 13% of US members use it daily

Source: http://expandedramblings.com

How to Succeed on LinkedIn

@torygsmith @AbhiJadhavNow

• Optimized Profile• Active Participation• Relentless Networking

Is Your Profile Optimized?

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• Recent Photo with nice, clean background• If you have a designation, show you’re qualified by adding

“CFP”, “PMP”, “Realtor”, etc.• Fill headline with highlights

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• WHO do you help?• HOW do you help them?• WHERE do you help them?

Headline Should Answer 3 Key Questions

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EndorsementsEasiest way to get endorsements?

Endorse others.

Ask.

Power Tips

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Know how big current network is AND extended network

Follow companies you’re interested inGet Involved In Groups• Surround yourself with like-minded individuals• Join those you are interested in and feel you can actively

participate in• Start your own!

Use Pulse: a content feed you subscribe to influencer content within a particular industry

Active Participation

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Active Participation

A Few More Tips…

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Participate in non-spammy groups

Avoid being the 230th commenter

Write high quality posts frequently

Leverage your network to drive traffic to the post

Relentless Networking

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Connect with:

Group’s participants

Commenters

People of similar interests

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Use Power of Advanced Search

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Conclusion

Being an elite Twitter and LinkedIn user is not hard

But you have to be persistent

And you have to be mindful

APPENDIX

DRAFT DRAFT | CONFIDENTIAL (c) 2015 Bay Leaf

Digital

@torygsmith @AbhiJadhavNow

Online Training

https://www.bayleafdigital.com/5-linkedin-online-training-courses-reviewed/