12/08/2011

By Alexia Leachman, Personal Branding Coach at Blossoming Brands

Have you Googled yourself lately? Don’t worry. This isn’t something that just the vane people do. It’s important to check out how you appear on Google because believe it or not, other people are Googling you all the time. You meet someone at a networking event; you’ll be Googled. You go to an interview, as interviewer or interviewee; and you’ll be Googled. You want more funding for your business: you’ll be Googled. What are they going to find? Does what they find, support what you’re trying to achieve?

Tim Ferriss hits the nail on the head when he says this:

“Personal branding is about managing your name — even if you don’t own a business — in a world of misinformation, disinformation, and semi-permanent Google records. Going on a date? Chances are that your “blind” date has Googled your name. Going to a job interview? Ditto.”

If you were going to an important business meeting, maybe you’re pitching for new business, you’d probably make an effort in your appearance. So, what effort are you making with your digital presence? It’s just as important. A lot of people make decisions as to whether they’ll meet you based on what they find online. We’re too busy these days to waste our time meeting people that don’t stack up.

Many people make a lot of effort developing grand reputations in the real world, and yet, you Google them and they are invisible. Any mentions might be as a result of content that someone else controls. Would you go to a meeting and take someone you didn’t know with you to do all your talking? No, thought not. So you shouldn’t do it online either. Taking control means protecting your reputation and ensuring that you’re telling people what you want them to know. So now what’s stopping you?

Alexia Leachman is a Personal Brand Coach and Head Trash Liberator at Blossoming Brands. She helps entrepreneurs find their mojo by helping them to tell their story, raise their profile, build their digital presence and manage their reputation. You can find out more at www.blossomingbrands.com and www.headtrash.co.uk. And you can follow her on Twitter at @AlexiaL and @BBrands


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