As a business owner, you are likely the public face of your company. Your actions, especially online, reflect your business’s identity, and any inconsistencies can send the wrong message to your potential clients and customers.
This being the case, you should aim to craft a personal brand that serves as an extension of your company’s values and mission. Below, a panel of Forbes Coaches Council members offered advice for business owners looking to align their personal and company brands. Follow their tips to take your image to the next level.
1. Read And Approve Your Social Content
It can be embarrassing for business leaders to delegate their social media engagements. Business owners will work with their marketing teams to disseminate content and comments on social media as an extension of their brand. It becomes a problem when those posts and that content sound nothing like the leader. At least overview, scan and approve your social posts and articles. Stay close. - John M. O'Connor, Career Pro Inc.
2. Keep Private Platforms Private
Make sure your social media appearance and messaging are aligned across different platforms. If you choose to keep some of the platforms private (Facebook, Instagram), that is OK, but keep them private. Make sure the public is not able to see your activity and posts. A business owner's open Instagram profile is essentially a company profile. - Marina Cvetkovic, The Peak Alliance
3. Heed Your Miranda Rights
With the explosion of communication opportunities afforded by social media, organizations are under greater scrutiny than ever before. Therefore, when thinking about the organizational brand, leaders have to accept that they are a critical ambassador of it in all situations, and so they would be wise to remember part of the Miranda rights: "Anything you say can and will be used against you." - Jeff Ikler, Quetico Career Coaching and Consulting
4. Ask For Feedback
Ask trusted colleagues or customers how they would describe you. When you have this list, map it to the brand ideals for the company. Are they aligned? If so, then keep doing what you're doing. If they're not, or not showing up loud and clear, think about the action you can take that demonstrates your values. Find opportunities to speak and embed your personal and company values in the messaging. - Kathleen Woodhouse, Nova Leadership
5. Capitalize On The Commonalities
The most important element of your personal brand is you. Just as you are a combination of many facets, so is your brand. To be aligned with the company brand, find the commonalities. Next, add these to your values, opinions, motivations, credentials, background and aspirations. Telling your unique story to your determined audience will build a real connection and ignite your own personal brand. - Lisa K McDonald, Career Polish, Inc.
6. Identify And Avoid Your Opposite Values
Founders and leaders know their values and those of their company. As the "face," consider identifying the opposite of your values and then identifying where you could act that way. Let's say your values include "treating people well." Are there situations or specific places you should avoid because they lend themselves to people being treated poorly? Go where you can only treat people well. - John Hittler, Evoking Genius
7. Think Before You Post
You need to be keenly aware that what you are doing and saying are so critical to your brand. Think before you speak, tweet and text. Always think about your clients and customers' needs and think about what you post or advertise about yourself. It's OK to be authentic and honest, but make sure it's building your brand and not tearing it down. - Joyel Crawford, Crawford Leadership Strategies, LLC.
8. Focus On Foundations
Be authentic! This is an interesting question that highlights a common challenge for business owners who spend an inordinate amount of time projecting a carefully crafted image that is not authentic. This counterproductive approach alienates their audience and future customers, so my simple advice to business owners is to be focused on foundational issues, especially why they started the business. - Dr. Flo Falayi, Hybrid Leaders, Inc
9. Stay Consistent
Your personal brand can help you better connect with your clients, but only as long as you are consistent with your message and authentic about your values. Make sure you stay consistent with what you say and do whether you are at work or not. For instance, you can't be one way at work but then post values inconsistent with your business on your personal social media. You represent your business. - Tameika Devine, The Possibilities Institute
10. Create Video Content
Many times the “face” of the company isn’t directly involved with the employees under their employ. The best way to grow the brand, on message with the company’s values and mission, is to use internal and external videos for communication. Video can connect in a lot of great ways and will allow the leader to build a face-to-face connection with employees and keep messaging on brand. - Jon Dwoskin, The Jon Dwoskin Experience
11. Model Your Company Values
When people buy from a business, the emotional connection they feel is just as important as any rational reasons. Business owners and their senior team can enhance this emotional connection by role-modeling the company values. So share posts of them speaking at conferences, visiting customers, interacting with staff and being out in the field via social media, newsletters and blog posts. - Gabriella Goddard, Brainsparker Leadership Academy
12. Let Your Actions Speak For You
Our actions say it all. Alignment to the mission, vision, core values, culture statements and overall brand come from our actions. It is not enough to say it or have it on the wall or in the handbook—you must show up daily. Let your actions do the talking. How you interact with the team, the community, the board, your clients and your prospects must align with your branding. - Shelley Smith, Premier Rapport
13. Show Up And Be Yourself
My advice is to show up consistently. Share your message and your journey without fear. Deliver value and let that be your marketing. You do not need to worry excessively about staying "on brand." Be you. People buy people. Your personal brand will boost your company brand. - Caterina Kostoula, The Leaderpath
