Building a Professional Brand Online
Professional coaches have the incredible opportunity to positively impact the lives of their clients. The relationship between coach and client allows for new and creative ways to tap into potential and increase productivity levels for both parties. A great way for coaches to maximize their own business in this continuously advancing digital world is to build a professional brand online and apply it across all of your accounts and channels.
A professional brand communicates the core of who you are. It distinguishes you from other coaching professionals in your niche. Creating a professional brand can elevate your reputation, expand your coaching network, and provide a space where you can express your expertise and personality in a way that is cohesive, polished and easy to recognize for followers and potential clients.
The idea of establishing a professional brand may seem daunting at first, but there are a few tips to assist you in the process and ensure you are building your brand strategically.
Define What You Want to Be Known For
As a coach, you have a unique role in many people’s lives. Pinpointing what makes you stand out in your own personal and professional life will serve as a foundation for your brand and help potential clients get to know a little about you at first glance. In other words, who you already are can help build and reinforce what you wish to be known for.
You may feel uncertain at first when attempting to create a personal brand, but just as with coaching, it’s best to start with your authentic self. You know yourself better than anyone, as well as the perspectives, strengths and skills you bring to your coaching practice. Help the online world meet that person.
Share Your Message Through Social Media
Creating a professional presence on social media fosters new and existing relationships in the coaching industry. It can also attract new clients. Platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram all have features that assist in building profiles, such as recommended accounts to follow and tips for setting up accounts.
Once you have created a profile in social media, a great way to capitalize on your new communication channel is to participate in conversations with your network as well as creating your own content to share. This can be done through sharing your coaching insights or articles that align with your brand, as well as “liking” and commenting on content in your feed.
Utilize Professional Images
With social media in mind, it is an effective strategy to use the same “profile picture” on each platform. A professional headshot that showcases your personality while staying in line with your desired image as a professional coach can make your brand more recognizable to your network and potential clients, no matter how they find you initially.
Along those lines, choosing a photo that is up to date and reflects how you look on a regular basis—again, reflecting your authentic self—enriches the connections you make online.
In addition to using the same profile picture across all platforms, sharing any other professional images that apply to your coaching career or experiences can bring life to your online presence and pique your network’s interest. Images that align with text can capture attention in a different way than either by itself. This also is an opportunity for some creativity and fun. Don’t forget to link to your website and use a consistent bio across your profiles, too!
Continuously Build Your Brand
You are constantly branding yourself in your coaching career with the choices you make, the expertise you deliver, and the clients you work with. This should be reflected in your online brand. By defining how to present yourself in the online world, sharing key messages and promoting professional images through social media channels, and remembering that your brand is ever evolving, you are already on the road to success.
These tips can serve as a foundation for the journey of building your brand, and a great addition to the many other aspects of your coaching career.
Olivia Melvin
Olivia Melvin is an account coordinator at Stanton Communications, ICF’s public relations agency of record. Olivia is a recent graduate of College of Charleston with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication. She brings experience in social media content development and management, marketing campaigns, influencer marketing, and relationship development to the agency. She was born and raised in Charlotte, North Carolina.
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I think that a lot of people would like to build their professional brand because it is a great opportunity to declare and express yourself. Also, it is a great opportunity to develop in your own kind of activity and I think that building a professional brand online is especially important for coaches because they play a valuable role in people’s life. It is so cool that you shared such effective tips and steps to implement this idea into a reality because building your own brand is a global process which requires a serious approach and awareness of many things. It is connected with many nuances and it is really important to take a lot of them into account. In my opinion, primarily any coach needs to look into the debts of himself and realize his strong sides.
I agree with your thought that professional presence helps to foster the relationship. Professional Presence is essential as it enables you to create trust, assists the Market with precision, gives you credibility, maintains consistency, and helps you gain customer loyalty.