Your own personal brand is just as important as your business, especially today when consumers are responsive to it. In an article by business writer Haley Hoffman Smith, it’s revealed that consumers are 82% more likely to trust a company whose CEO is active on social media. Building a proper online presence as an entrepreneur builds your relationship with your followers, which could only bode well for your business.

Plus, audiences find personalities more intriguing than businesses themselves. Stories framed around your experiences as a founder would resonate more with your audience. Now is the time for you to start building your personal brand as an entrepreneur online, starting with these tips:

Know who you are

Social media platforms are some of the best avenues for you to establish your brand. The trouble is that they can get very saturated, and you could get swept up in all the curated content. When you post something, is it because it’s what feels honest to you, or are you simply emulating what others are doing? If it’s the latter then you might have to take a step back and evaluate who you are as a person.

In a previous post on ‘Why is Imposter Syndrome So Common and What to Do About It’, we emphasise the importance of being truthful to yourself. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t change at all – change is good, progress is admirable. But shift the focus from trying to compensate for the qualities you lack into highlighting the amazing ones you already have instead, and be confident about them. You’ll find that staying consistent and coming up with ideas on what to post will become a breeze once you are firmly rooted in who you are.

Learn about your audience

A key difference between traditional and online branding is the amount of interaction you get. Traditional branding is mostly one-sided, you put things out and hope that your consumers respond. With online branding, you need people to engage with you— an indication that your branding is effective. That’s how you know that people are relating to you and are keeping up with what you have to offer, but you first need to know how to connect with them.

A good place to start is simply finding different ways to interact with your audience. Later's suggested strategies for becoming a successful Instagram influencer include sparking conversations in your posts and including poll stickers on your Stories. Take full advantage of social media features: ensure that your captions have prompts for people to reply on the comments section, for example, or run polls that are relevant to your business. This lets them know that you’re an entrepreneur that takes their opinions into account. Another strategy is changing your personal account to a business profile on social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook. Business accounts provide more in-depth analytics and information about your followers and interactions, giving you better insight. This gives you a more personal understanding of your target market, too. You can then apply what you know about your audience’s interests and needs to your business.

Develop your unique voice

What sets great founders apart from the competition is their ability to communicate their thought leadership. You’re not just an influencer, you’re an opinion leader within your field, so make sure it comes through with the type of language you use and the visuals you share.

One of the important branding techniques for CEOs by Inc. is being able to determine a specific area of expertise – whether that’s on beeswax makeup or the health benefits of tea, just as long as it aligns with your business – and establish public expertise around that. This shapes you up to become a go-to source not just for consumers, but even for media and bloggers.

You’re not just building a personal brand online, you’re also aiming to become a thought leader, on which your business can leverage success.

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