Personal Branding Mistake #1: NOT HAVING A BRAND PROMISE

Believe it or not, most senior professionals don’t have a brand promise. Big opportunity lost.

A personal brand is not a portrait or a tagline (although it may include these). A brand is not a biography or a website (although it may be expressed in these). A brand is a promise you can keep… a benefit to your audience that is understandable, believable, delivers superior value and differentiates you from your peers. Whatever your current branding efforts are intending to do, they are perceived by your audience as making a promise. And if that promise is not what you want to communicate, then you’re in trouble. So consider doing research with your audience to find out what they think: what your brand really is, what people perceive of you as promising. And discover if you’re standing out in the way you want.

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Personal Branding Mistake #2: SOCIAL MEDIA PICTURE MISSING

People are 16X more likely to look at your LinkedIn profile when you post a picture. Post a good picture that supports your brand promise. 

Many people do not understand the importance of a good portrait on social media professional profiles. In a study conducted by The Ladders, an eye tracking heat map shows that recruiters spend 19% of the total time looking at your picture then your current job position and education. Not as much time is spent on your skills, specialties or older work experiences. Social media profiles are today’s first impressions. Complementing personal branding with a strong photo gives your audience a picture (both literally and physically) of who you are that goes beyond words. A recent study published in Psychological Science discovered that we draw conclusions about people based on a photo in less than a second. Not having a photo causes your audience to question why not. Leaving your audience questioning is not a good move. 

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Personal Branding Mistake #3: LACK OF FOCUS

Listing too many skills and posting content on your social pages that have no connection to your personal brand may be confusing. Be clear about your brand promise and support it with consistent messaging. 

Social media pages are checked by recruiters 63% of the time. Having irrelevant and unnecessary content on your profile places you at a disadvantage. Your profile should focus on content that compliments and supports your brand promise. Include only relevant information that supports your brand story. Make sure your profiles have clear information and imagery that presents you in a favorable light. Consistency is important with personal branding. While it’s perfectly fine to adapt content to a specific platform, one cannot assume that your audience will only be looking at LinkedIn. Keeping your content consistent and focused delivers a strong message to your audience.

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Personal Branding Mistake #5: YOU'RE NOT PROACTIVE

Updating and tweaking your branding is not an annual event. It is a continuous process that accounts for shifts in your business and prospect targets. Don’t fall behind competition! 

Social media should never be passive. Updating your profile with captivating content keeps your audience engaged and maintains your brand’s relevance. Regularly posting about current events, news and original content strengthens your brand presence. Posts and shares with your network inspires and facilitates dialogue and engagement. It’s not enough to have a profile and news feed. There are a lot of lurkers out there – people who have an online profile but don’t do anything or engage in any meaningful way. 81% of LinkedIn users belong to at least one group and there are more than 200 conversations happening each minute across LinkedIn groups, so get involved! You have to work it. A proactive approach helps you stay ahead of the curve and your peers. 

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Personal Branding Mistake #7: YOU'RE NOT A PURPLE COW

Are you standing out in the crowd? Do you know where you rank in LinkedIn searches? Do you have a personal brand that sets you apart from competitors?

Cows are boring. They are all look alike and do the same things. Be a purple cow, have a distinctive brand promise and stand out from the crowd. A personal brand that says why you are different and better is key to your success. Capitalize on your brand’s uniqueness by posting interesting, relevant and innovative content that will capture your audience and set your brand apart. Be exceptional - be a purple cow. Don’t be like the rest of your peers. It’s boring, and do you really want to be boring? 

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Personal Branding Mistake #8: YOU'RE NOT ELEVATOR PITCH READY

When opportunities arise, will you and your personal brand be ready? Knowing what your brand stands for and presenting it effectively is key for the perfect elevator pitch.

You never know when you may meet someone who has the potential to become a client or a meaningful asset to your business. Given this, it is absolutely essential that you’re ready to communicate your brand promise quickly and effectively at any given time. The average attention span of a person is 8.25 seconds, so the first few seconds of your pitch are crucial in capturing their attention. Some of the most meaningful professional interactions occur outside of the office when you least expect it. Know your brand promise inside out and deliver a consistent pitch to friends, family and business people. If you don’t have a clear brand message, then why would you expect anyone to get it? 

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Personal Branding Mistake #11: YOU'RE NOT ENGAGING YOUR STRENGTHS

Identifying and engaging your strengths is key to your brand promise, and your brand promise is key to your success. Have you considered an executive coach as a first step?

Many people struggle with the identification of their biggest strengths. It’s not easy to determine what makes you different and better than your peers. Without knowing your personal strengths you cannot develop a strong brand promise. It takes a high degree of introspection and honesty to arrive at your strengths. Many professionals need an executive coach to help. One of the biggest benefits of a coach is to provide you with unbiased advice that enables your success. The perspectives they provide and the alternatives they discuss are designed to help you reach your goals. Engaging with an executive coach is a commitment but well worth it. 

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Personal Branding Mistake #13: BRANDING MEANS GETTING YOUR NAME OUT THERE

Your personal brand is not just about getting your name out there. It’s about controlling and attaching a brand promise to your name.

Getting your name out is key to personal branding success. However, your name alone means nothing if not clearly attached to your brand promise. What is the point of having professionals know your name if they don’t recognize your value? Get in the habit of attaching your name to your brand promise to win meaningful recognition from your network. Think about the relationship with Nike and “Just Do It” - it's been that way for years with a value in the billions.

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Personal Branding Mistake #14: YOUR BRANDING ISN'T CLEAR

If your brand promise isn’t clear and consistent on your social pages, how can you expect your audience to know what you stand for? 

If your brand promise is not consistently presented to your audience, then your brand runs the risk of becoming confusing. It takes 5-7 brand impressions before someone remembers your brand. To build real value, stay on message in all your social platforms. If one social media page does not align with your brand promise then your brand strength will suffer. Your brand made a promise and it is up to you to deliver on that commitment. 

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Personal Branding Mistake #16: NOT KEEPING IN TOUCH

A good social network with lots of dialogue can set you apart from the competition. Reach out to professionals around you and make your personal branding message louder.

Developing and maintaining a strong relationship with your network is good for you and good for your connections. Engaging with your audience is essential to building a sustainable brand. 71% of your viewers who interact with you are likely to recommend you to others. Communicating with your network on a consistent basis strengthens your brand. The most effective form of communication is brand promise driven dialogue. Share your content and provide feedback to others. Make it personal as often as you can. Get ahead of your peers by regularly keeping in touch with your network. 

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Personal Branding Mistake #18: YOU'RE A LITTLE STIFF

Professional profiles are important, but your social pages shouldn’t read like resumes. You want to communicate with your audience not confuse them by being overly academic. Be clear and creative. 

Social media profiles are not resumes. Don’t make them look like one or read like one. It’s about your brand promise and your brand story. Experience counts as support for your branding, use it that way and stay away from the resume. Social media is effective because it’s social and interesting. If you do it right and it’s a job you’re looking for, you’ll have plenty of time to show your resume. Having a profile filled with experience, academic accomplishments and recommendations is good if it points to your branding. If not, your connections will not see it as relevant and may not be engaged. Showcase your creativity by presenting your brand in a manner that is socially appropriate and innovative. Spice up your social media platforms with visuals, as 65% of social media audiences are visual learners. Think about it as a party conversation. Would you read someone your resume or would you tell them a story? Bet they would rather hear a story!

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Personal Branding Mistake #19: YOU DON'T HAVE A CLEAR BRAND PROMISE

It can be difficult to assess your brand, but it's an important step in building your brand. Once you assess your brand with an outside professional, you can move towards a better brand promise.

Before creating your brand promise you must evaluate your brand. Obtaining an unbiased opinion is key to getting an accurate assessment of your brand. Working with a professional branding expert provides you with the knowledge and feedback needed to create a strong promise that communicates your brand’s value to your audience. If you don’t take control of branding by making a great promise, your audience will continue to brand you in ways you may not want – and to that extent your future will be out of your hands and in the control of others. 

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Personal Branding Mistake #20: YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE YOU WANT YOUR BRAND TO GO

Once you've defined your brand you’re ready for outreach marketing. But if you don’t know where you want your brand to go, navigating towards your audience may be a bumpy ride. 

Having outreach marketing objectives for your brand is extremely important. Optimize your outreach with goals and a plan designed to connect with the hearts and minds of those you aim to influence. You need to know where your brand is going in order to get there. Define your brand’s target and plan the best route to reach them. It will help expand your reach, your relationships and your opportunities on the web, and beyond.

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Personal Branding Mistake #21: YOU'RE NOT PROVIDING THE "SAILS" FOR YOUR PERSONAL BRAND

So you’ve developed your brand promise… But is this promise backed up by your brand story? Does it support your brand as different and better than the competition? 

A great brand is supported be a great story. Don’t make a promise without a solid rationale behind it. Having relevant content with important keywords reinforces your brand promise and increases the number of viewers of your profile. Those views are important to your professional success. A recent survey showed 93% of professionals use social media for business. And 34% say they have generated leads using LinkedIn and Twitter. So make sure that the story you’re sending to your professional audience reinforces your brand. 

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Personal Branding Mistake #22: YOU'RE LEADING A DOUBLE LIFE

How can your audience get an accurate view of you if your brand appears differently on your social media platforms? Be consistent and make your LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook professional pages communicate a synchronized message.

Research shows that personal brands with well-managed and harmonious social media platforms are 40% more effective than brands with inconsistent platforms. Your audience offers huge new business opportunities if you manage social media platforms correctly. There are more 350 million LinkedIn users, 645 million Twitter users and 1.39 billion Facebook users. Make sure all of your platforms are consistent and reinforce your brand promise. 

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Personal Branding Mistake #23: YOU'RE ANOTHER BLUR ON THE SCREEN

Don’t underestimate the importance of a good headshot. A profile picture that's clear and professional can give you character and credibility  – not to mention 11x more engagement.

Happy faces come off as more trustworthy and likeable. Chemistry is everything in business so why not start with a friendly portrait on your social platforms. Keep in mind that people remember only 20 percent of what they read and 10 percent of what they hear, but retain 80 percent of what they see. Visuals matter when it comes to social media so keep your content interesting to keep it working hard for you.

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Personal Branding Mistake #34: FIRST THINGS FIRST: YOUR HEADLINE

Your professional headline is a critical piece of your profile. A proper headline determines how you’ll be categorized in a search and how you’ll be perceived by other users.

A strong LinkedIn headline and summary is important. A headline’s optimal number of words is 6 and a summary of 40+ words makes you more likely to turn up in search. Your headline should deliver your brand promise in a compelling way and use strong keywords for search engine recognition. Your picture and brand story work together to support your headline to further engage your profile viewers. Headlines matter on LinkedIn in the same way they matter in a successful advertising campaign.

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Personal Branding Mistake #36: YOU'RE UNREACHABLE

If you don’t leave an email or a phone number in your contact information how can connections reach you? LinkedIn users are more inclined to reach out to an accessible email address rather than use LinkedIn messaging. It's more personable and direct – so make sure yours is listed!

LinkedIn reaches a total of 200 countries and 350 million plus users so make sure you are reachable! Listing your email, contact information and websites in the contact section near the top of your LinkedIn profile is critical. 93% of recruiters use LinkedIn and usually need to get in touch fast. Make it easy for them.

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Personal Branding Mistake #37: YOU'RE HIDING YOUR BEST QUALITIES

Although you never want to be too personal on LinkedIn, listing organizations and causes you’re affiliated with can definitely give you an edge over the competition. Employers want to hire real people with interests and passions, not just a picture and a resume.

58% of employers hire people because they got a good feel for the candidate’s personality on social media. 42% of LinkedIn users update their profile regularly to keep it fresh and showcase their brand’s value. Visuals, organizations and causes are great places to get your visitor interested in your brand personality. 

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Personal Branding Mistake #38: YOU'RE TOO HUMBLE

Get out of your employee mentality! Although it’s great to promote the company you work for you need to promote yourself too. Don’t be so modest; at the end of the day YOU are the bigger brand. 

Get out there and promote your brand! 44% of hiring managers look at your social media pages to determine your level of creativity and to learn about your qualifications. LinkedIn members that include skills get 13X more profile views than those who don’t. So if you’ve got the goods it’s ok to brag. It will support your brand promise, separate you from the herd and get the phone to ring. 

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