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Social Media Tools and Web Strategies for Non-Profits

Personal Branding - It’s All About ME

Posted on Sep 08, 2008 under Branding, General Social Media, Marketing, Networking | 2 Comments

I’m not a narcissist, but I tend to get on my soapbox about personal branding because I think its so darn important. I run into a lot of folks that are literally “scared” to be themselves online and I think its a shame. I recently spoke to a woman that was surprised that I always write under my own name online. And I was surprised that she was surprised.

I understand the notion of the internet being a scary place. There are a lot of unscrupulous people out there doing unspeakable things. But, in terms of having an online presence, I think its important to get ahead of the game.

Just like in Talladega Nights - when the team branded Ricky Bobby’s car “ME” because he had no sponsors? He didn’t need sponsors because he (or at least the people around him) realized that HE was his brand. You are your brand whether you are a freelancer or work for someone else.

A few things to remember (and I apologize in advance if I’ve said this before…):

  • Be yourself. It’s OK.
  • Keep private information private. I probably put more information out there than I should, but I keep a careful eye on what’s being said about me.
  • Set-up a Google alert on your own name or your user name. I have Google alerts for my name, my user name that I tend to use and my company names. Each day I get a little email from Google advising me of what’s being said about me. If I need to address something, I know where to look.
  • Talk about your strengths, loves, dislikes - be a real person. At the end of the day, businesses want to do business with people. Show the world that you are a real person and engage in the online activity that you love. Don’t be afraid to talk about what you’re doing offline - online.
  • Engage, engage, engage. Get a Twitter account and tweet about your interests. Get a Facebook page and talk about the things that are important to you. Check out NING communities that are pertinent to your interests. And remember, most social tools and communities have privacy controls, so if you want to limit who can see your info, use them.

Here are a few good resources to help you better understand personal branding.

Twitter Tuesday tomorrow!!!

Google Gets Lively

Posted on Jul 08, 2008 under General Social Media, Guilty Pleasures, Kool Toolz, Networking | No Comment

Shock of all shocks - Google has decided to jump on the virtual bandwagon with its own virtual world - Lively. I decided to check it out and the overall feedback from others playing around is, that at this point, its a glorified chat room. And maybe that’s all its intended to be. You have a few avatar options to choose from and a few pieces of clothing. The service is web-based, so you just need a Google account and to download the small desktop appliance to use it. Avatars can set up chat “rooms” fully furnished to converse, dance and even puke on their fellow “roommates”. While at some point Lively may compete with Second Life, I don’t think that it will be any time soon. Moving from room-to-room is a little clunky and it seems that every link opens a new browser window. Lively has a lot of room to grow. It will be interesting to see where Google takes it.