by Randall on October 12, 2011
Filed in: Blog, Blogging, Branding, Make It Happen Tipsheet, Professional Development, Promotion, Social Media, Time management
Tagged as: Blogging, Personal Branding, Productivity, Twitter
How often have you struggled to show up on time for a meeting, only to be kept waiting as others stumbled in 5-10-15 minutes later? Or have you ever tuned in to your favorite TV show, only to find that it was “rescheduled” for some other time? Or travelled to a faraway store, but finding it had closed an hour early and you couldn’t get in.
Research (Berry & Parasuraman) shows that by far, the two most important determinants of service quality are responsiveness and reliability. If you are not reliable nor responsive, your “brand” quickly reflects this. And you agitate those around you.
While most of us understand this implicitly in the real world, our behavior in the Social Media world is often completely different. Several ways to be more reliable and responsive when being “Social” online:
- Choose a consistent date and time to post your blog and status updates. If people come to expect a weekly post from you, skipping a week hurts your credibility. As does posting at a variable date and time. If they expect an update by 9am, then you need to deliver it at 9am, consistently. Don’t show up late.
- Set your topic focus. People will come to expect your posts… to be what you post. If you’re always posting on random topics, then those who are looking for your deep expertise (or unique perspective), will become disinterested and leave. If they expect certain content, then you need to deliver it, consistently. Your favorite TV show is your favorite because all of the characters are consistent from episode to episode.
- Set expectations for how often you respond. Do you respond or comment on all posts, some, or none? Whatever your frequency, you also need to deliver it consistently.
This week’s action plan: Your reputation is defined more by what you actually do – your behavior – than anything else. If you are using any Social tools (status updates on Facebook, Twitter updates, Blog posts, etc), calendarize your interaction. Not only will you become more productive, but you’ll also directly affect your reputation.
Note: The Make It Happen Tipsheet is also available by email. Go to www.RandallCraig.com to register.
Randall Craig
www.RandallCraig.com
www.ptadvisors.com
www.ProfessionallySpeakingTV.com
“You only have one chance to make a good first impression.” This is the siren song of personal branding, and is what causes millions of people to think carefully about what they wear each day. Too bad though, that in today’s too-fast social media world, the first impression does not come from your clothing, but via LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and your blog. After reviewing thousands of profiles, I have seen a number of personal branding faux-pas that people routinely make. Do any of these sound familiar?
- Unprofessional photo: This might mean a photo with other people in it besides you, or a photo that is blurry, too dark, or one that doesn’t represent your desired professional image. (A photographer for a head-shot is surprisingly inexpensive.)
- Dated photo. No one really is impressed by that “great” photo from 20 years ago. Or that one from 5 years ago. It’s better to look authentically like your today-self, so when the
inevitable in-person meeting takes place, your guest can actually find you.
- Bad copywriting: Most people spend days working on their paper resume, straining for precisely the right word. Yet when it comes to written profiles, the writing is terrible – which leaves an unfortunate impression.
- “Status” problems: Many people don’t show judgement regarding the content or the frequency of their updates. Personal brands have been destroyed by TMI (Too Much Information), the wrong information, non-obvious abbreviations, or careless grammatical errors.
- Different voice: There’s only one of you; if you write a blog post in a different “voice” than what people are used to, then people will wonder “which” is the real you: the live
person or the blog writer. This is a sure way to reduce perceived trust.
- Public conversations: It’s too easy to unwittingly have a private conversation in a public place, forgetting that others will see what you write, impacting their opinions of you. At the same time, your brand is affected by others’ comments on your page.
This week’s action plan: Read through the list, and compare it with each of your major profiles. These problems are easy to fix, but it is easier to avoid them in the first place. (You do, after all, only have one chance to make a good first impression.)
Note: The Make It Happen Tipsheet is also available by email. Go to www.RandallCraig.com to register.
Randall Craig
www.RandallCraig.com
www.ptadvisors.com
