This is a contribution from Hover friend and guest-blogger Jessica Muhlbier. Jessica is a genuine chatterbox, social media guru, avid writer and up-and-coming digital celebrity. She lives at www.jessicamuhlbier.com. We’ve asked her to share a bit of her blueprint for becoming famous on the Web.
We all have something to share, as if back in kindergarten feeling excited and curious on show and tell day. We all have a unique voice, both knowledgeable and insightful, which can inform or inspire others. Whether you’re a writer, photographer, musician, gadget geek, shopping expert, or food critic, we all have a special talent or passion that can be shared with the world.
Embracing this notion of show-and-tell is incredibly easy in our googleable age. No longer do we flip through the Yellow Pages to retrieve a name, number or listed business address; we simply browse the web. We browse, bookmark what we love, share links with our friends, post and tag photos, and browse some more. Showing-and-telling is already an instinct, so sharing your voice and brand with the world is both friendly and inviting. To build your online brand – and to one-day become “googleable” – all you need to do is to embrace your innate kindergarten notion and familiarize yourself with the basics, starting with your very own website.
Getting Started
The Web is consistently evolving to become more comprehensible and sociable each and every day; so getting started with your online brand isn’t as tricky as you may think. Aside from a computer and solid Internet connection (obviously), all you really need is your time, patience, and personality!
Getting started with your online brand can be broken down into three main steps: creating a website, listening, and socializing!
1. Create a Website
Since an online presence is so crucial, having your own website or blog is the foremost important factor in building your online brand. There are many free blogging platforms such as Blogger or Wordpress. You can point your own domain to any blog or website, just so it’s a little more “you”. For instance, my website is powered by Wordpress but instead of myname.wordpress.com it’s myname.com. This makes my website a little more memorable and professional looking. Both Blogger and Wordpress are incredibly user-friendly with HTML capabilities for those who are a little more design savvy.
2. Engage & Listen
When building your online brand, it’s important to be aware and “in the know” of what your competitors, customers, or target audience is doing. Unless you’re an A-list celebrity, you need to communicate and engage in conversations in order to build your brands awareness. To engage effectively, listening to others is essential. Downloading a free RSS feed organizational tool, such as Google Reader or News Gator, will allow you to subscribe to news streams, favorite websites, and blogs so you are constantly in the know. RSS feeds are also available for your smart phone, which makes reading ‘on the go’ incredibly convenient.
3. Engage & Socialize
To be a savvy and organized chatterbox, go ahead and get social! Although there are hundreds of social media tools out there, it’s easiest and most effective to only focus on a few. Having a solid presence on just a few social networks, as opposed to 50, allows you to develop strong and genuine connections. I recommend Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook due to the high popularity and brand-building benefits.
Twitter
Twitter is a micro-blogging phenomenon. At 140 characters or less, big brands such as Rogers, Air Canada, MTV, and Starbucks use twitter daily in order to converse with followers, increase customer service, and provide news and brand-related information. But it’s not the big brands that are solely driving Twitter it’s the individuals with a unique voice – just like you and me – that are cultivating the Twitter discourse. Use twitter to your advantage by personalizing your profile with both a picture and background and by engaging in conversations also known as “tweets”
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To further enhance your Twitter experience, explore the array of third party twitter applications that are available for both your computer and smart phone. I use and enjoy Tweetdeck for my Mac computer and Twitterberry for my Blackberry smart phone.
LinkedIn
A LinkedIn profile is a combination of your resume, cover letter, and professional network. LinkedIn allows you to keep in touch with your friends and co-workers, search and post jobs, and join or create groups of interest.
LinkedIn is especially handy for it’s now linked with Twitter. This means if you “tweet” via Twitter with the #in hashtag symbol it will automatically change your LinkedIn status, for all your friends and coworkers to see.
Facebook
Use Facebook to your ultimate advantage by personalizing your profile. A good Facebook profile should include an accurate picture and informative details about yourself; and don’t forget to include a link to your website or blog.
Once you are Facebook-savvy, you can enhance your experience by joining or creating Facebook ads, groups, or fan pages.
Website, check. Listening, check. Socializing, check…Now What?
Once you have established your online presence, ensue to engage on a daily basis. Consistency is key in order to keep your readers coming back for more. Building the perfect online brand takes time and commitment, so be patient and have fun. Remember, your personality is what separates your brand from the rest, so enjoy your online experience and never stop showing-and-telling to the world.