This week I had the honor of interviewing someone, who in my eyes, is an expert in Social Media and someone I go to frequently when I have questions on this topic. I first met Katie Colihan a little over a year ago, after being connected through Twenty-Something Bloggers. We talked about the importance of social media and how to organize your online presence. Here’s a sampling of what we discussed:
Tell me about your personal brand.
If you would have asked me this question six months ago, I would have said something like “Um. Pepsi? McDonalds? Nike?” I was late on the personal brand bus, but now that I’m on it, I realize how important it is to have one. At the moment, my brand is in a transitional phase. I’m going from a humorous and sometimes risqué blogger to a more solid, dependable source of freelance career knowledge. I’m going for the “Katie Colihan is hilarious, and can crack one heck of a joke, but if you have a question about anything freelance work, blogging, communicating effectively, or overcoming the quarter-life crisis, she’s your girl.”
What is a “social media presence” and why is it so important to build one?
Social media presence is this generation’s playground reputation. There were kids in the playground who you could go to, to beat up the kid who stole your lunch. There were other kids who you could go to who would help you with your art project. There were kids who always had a bunch of people around them, but they never really said anything exciting, they were just pretty enough to be gazed at all day. There were other kids who knew all of the latest gossip. There was a kid on the playground who picked his nose… you probably didn’t go to him for much, but it was always good to know he existed, just for the very least, as a reminder to wash your hands often, and never take snacks from people you don’t know.
Social Media is a collective term for Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, Message Boards, LinkedIn–anywhere you can be social and interact with others. There are a boat load of different people out there who are in various areas of expertise (or niches, as the experts call them), with a variety of viewpoints and advice to offer. It’s important that you make your imprint. You need people to know who you are, what your strong points are, what you can offer, where you’re located, etc. The worst thing that you can be in the social media realm is silent. Even the kid who picked his nose was known for something.
How can a recent college graduate, or anyone new to Facebook or Twitter, build a social media presence?
A lot of business consultants and social media experts write books and 10 page articles on this. I think that scares a lot of beginners away. If it’s so complicated, then why even try? The awesome thing is that it doesn’t have to be complicated.
An important question to ask yourself is “What’s my specialty? What can I offer the social media world?” Are you going to be the person that they go to for awesome fashion advice? Are you going to be the technical support question go-to person? What will you be using Twitter for? What do you want out of it? All of these questions determine what your Social Media Presence is going to be.
Be specific: I’m an outstanding chef. I have great recipes that are targeted toward healthy eating. I’m going to use social media to exchange recipes, share my healthy eating solutions, and to meet other aspiring restaurant owners in the Los Angeles area.
I’m a recent college graduate who has no idea what to do with life. I think I want to be a writer, but I don’t know what to write. I want to connect with other college grads who are facing the same issues that I am, and maybe start a blog of my writing samples.
Figuring it out can be challenging, and may require some thought, but once you get it nailed down, making it happen is relatively easy.
Do you feel like certain social media outlets are more important than another when someone creates or continues to build their personal brand? Furthermore, what social media outlets do you recommend that everyone take advantage of?
We’ll all agree that the primary branding mediums for Gen-Y are Twitter and Facebook. I’ll probably get lots of hate mail for this, but I consider Twitter the “more intelligent Facebook.”
To me, Facebook is more of a yearbook / plan maker / family tree / constant reminder of what that person you dated is doing / fuel for drama. I’m not saying that Facebook doesn’t have the potential to be an amazing personal brand medium, I’m just saying that the way in which Facebook is generally used isn’t a way that’s beneficial to building a dependable personal brand.
Facebook has become such a personal place. There are two types of people: People who add anyone on Facebook (one of my friends has Pee Wee Herman and Fred Flinstone as friends), and those who don’t add anyone at all unless they pass a battery of tests and jump through hoops. It’s rare to find a common ground making it difficult to find quality, reliable connections. After all, one of the things that people look at is who you’re friends with.
Call me crazy, snotty, or pretentious, but the majority of my Facebook “friends” are blocked from my news feed. I do want to know what my friends are up to. I do want to know that my networking connections are humans and eat dinner out at casual restaurants. I do not want to know that you’re laying in bed snuggling with your ‘boo’. One might argue that this is because I’m “friends” with the wrong people. Facebook comes with a certain expectation; If you know the person in real life, you have to be friends on Facebook, unless you have an argument, then you remove each other from Facebook, and stop farming their crops. Then, when you resolve your conflict, you’re friends again and your farm is booming with crops. Too much work.
If you want to build a reliable personal brand easily, use Twitter or LinkedIn. If you want to be part of the Facebook society and build farms and share bumper stickers, then do so. I’m not going to lie, I play some Family Feud and was really big into the SIMS game that they had a while back. If you choose to do this, do it on a separate account. Have an account that’s your first name and middle name. Do whatever you please on that account. Then, have your more “professional” one being your first and last name. Do not allow yourself to be tagged in photos. Google Images does not forget photos that have been tagged of you.
Unless you want your personal brand to be “person who can do a keg stand for 3 minutes,” then I’m sure you may need to rethink your approach. If how you see yourself is how others are seeing you, then you have a successful personal brand (whether positive or negative). If how you see yourself differs from how others see you, then that’s what we like to say Brand FAIL!
Okay, so I’m on Twitter, and to be honest, I kind of hate it. But I think it’s more so because I don’t understand it. How can I organize my social media presence by using Twitter effectively? What tips can you provide? And also, how important is it to use hashtags when you tweet?
I don’t even know that I like Twitter, honestly. Regardless, it’s essential to having a successful brand, and its benefits far outweigh its downfalls. The only reason that I really hate Twitter is because it’s so easy. I find myself wanting to Tweet everything.
To me, Twitter is where personal meets professional. As I mentioned, Facebook is a personal site, used to organize friends, family, and old connections. LinkedIn is more of a professional network geared toward building a great career name for yourself. Twitter is kind of a common ground. You can follow your friends and they’re bound to a 140 character limit. You can follow your networking affiliates without knowing their entire life story and seeing them in awkward family photos.
You can also organize your followers and people that you follow into designated lists. Personally, I have my list divided into about 10 different subcatergories. This way, if someone finds me via Brazen Careerist, and they want to connect with other people that I connect with, they can just click on my “Brazen Carrerist” group, and follow a bunch of folks from that site. If people want to follow other bloggers that I follow, they can click on the “Bloggers” section.
I also find it interesting to check and see which lists that I’m listed on. The majority of the lists I’m included on are Blogging-related. At this point in my Branding, I’m trying to reach out of that box and be involved in other lists as well. Twitter lists are an awesome way to put your personal brand in check. Are the lists that you’re included on conducive to the way you want to be seen? If so, you’re building a successful personal brand. If not, you might want to rethink your approach.
And my personal favorite feature: Just because someone ‘follows’ you, doesn’t mean you have to ‘follow’ them. So, if someone you really don’t get along with, or aren’t on the same page as decides to follow you, you don’t have to be subjected to following them back “just to be civil”. Selective following is like icing on an already delicious social media cake.
With any social media medium, you’ll only get what you put in. If you’re putting in minimal time, and minimal effort, then you’re not going to get any of the perks of having a social media presence. Pssst, it’s called SOCIAL media presence, not INTROVERT, SILENT media presence.
Can you take us through the steps of using LinkedIn? It seems like it’s geared more towards networking and finding a job, rather than just connecting with old friends and family. How can you build a strong social media presence with LinkedIn?
The very first thing that you should do on LinkedIn is to create a complete profile. List all of your previous positions whether they were volunteer or paid and upload your resume. LinkedIn also has groups and message boards. Join the ones that are of interest to you. Make connecting with people fun and enjoyable.
LinkedIn seems like it’s more geared to career because it is. It’s trying to become more social (it has a Twitter and Facebook integration tool), but it’s really a playground for career oriented folks. I believe the success you’ll find on LinkedIn is directly proportionate to how many business contacts you have. I absolutely recommend connecting with everyone that you’ve ever worked with. Reach out and ask for recommendations. Again, it’s all about your reputation with others. If you’re claiming to be a top-notch marketing genius, but all you have is your childhood babysitter saying “Oh! She was such a good baby!”, then chances are, your potential jobs will be slim to none. You have to prove you are who you say you are. People have to back up your claims.
Employers run searches on social media sites to see if they can “dig up” inappropriate content that would give grounds for not hiring a prospective candidate. Are people are being irresponsible with their social media presence? If so, how do you suggest they “tame” it?
People are absolutely being irresponsible with their social media presences. Know that night out with the girls that you really don’t remember? No? Google does. Do yourself a huge favor and Google your first and last name. Not just for the content on the web, but take it a step further and view the images. If there’s something that’s inappropriate, there’s honestly nothing you can do short of contacting an agency who charges you to remove it from Google (they basically just use SEO practices, which you can do for free).
In a day where wine compliments every girls night out, and beer goes perfectly with every steak, it’s important to remain responsible. If you wouldn’t drive in the state you find yourself in, don’t update your social media sites. Is it funny? To some. Remember when your boss requested that you be friends on Facebook and you accepted? He won’t find your “Where am I, and where are my pants?” status to be funny at all.
Can you give me specific examples on how you organize your own social media presence? Do you feel your methods are effective?
For quite some time, I was a semi anonymous blogger, meaning I blogged using my real first name, but didn’t disclose my last name. I had a social media presence around my name, and also had a presence around my full name that was more career oriented. Eventually, it all just got too complicated, so I’m in the process of making a gradual merging of the two presences.
I’m constantly asking myself questions: Who do I want to know about me? What do I want them to know? Who is already following me? What do they want to know? A lot of thought goes into each and every status update and blog post that I offer.
I utilize Facebook for general updates. I have one of my good friends’ teenage sisters following me, so I try not to be too risque. I use it to RSVP to parties, though I miss getting invitations in the mail. I use it to post new blog posts that I write.
I use Twitter for quick quips and comments. I ask questions, opinions, and give useful information that I find. I share some random photos of things around the city. I blend my personal and career presences on Twitter by offering a combination of random updates and helpful websites and articles.
I use LinkedIn as a portfolio / resume / referral organizer. I connect with folks that I know through blogging or previous companies. I provide recommendations and ask for them.
My organizational methods work for my area of interest. Right now I’m doing work for a marketing consultant, managing the marketing for an automotive service provider, and working closely with a mental health professional. All of these require a level of professionalism, so I try to maintain my business-like views, while still keeping my sense of humor intact. If I find myself wanting to say something that might be construed as inappropriate, I opt to send an e-mail or text message to a friend, rather than to the Internet that’s filled with millions of people.
How would you suggest entrepreneurs organize their social media presence? Should they create separate profiles for business and personal use?
I’d say this depends on your area of expertise and what your company brand is going to be. Company brands can be completely different than personal brands, even if it’s your company! If your current follower base on Facebook are also leads for selling a product, or people who may be interested in your field, then I’d say integrate the two: don’t make more work for yourself. However, if you have a position in which the majority of your followers wouldn’t be interested in the things you’ll be saying, create a separate account.
For example, I do marketing for an automotive service provider who provides live chat service to car dealers. The majority of my Facebook and Twitter friends wouldn’t know about leads and conversion rates, and automotive jargon, so I created a separate Facebook account dedicated to that position.
Use your own discretion. The ideal situation is to have all of your social media accounts streamlined. This can happen if your business life is organized. If it isn’t, then there’s a good chance you may have to do some career reflection. Maybe a consultant? Maybe me?
Anything else you’d like to include on organizing social media presence that we haven’t already covered?
The most important piece of advice I’ve ever received was “The goal of personal branding is having who you see yourself as match how others see you.” It was in the moment that I heard that I realized I needed to revamp some of my practices. Once I realized that Personal Branding isn’t a mask, it’s a way of making yourself known and respected, it all made sense.
How do you want to be seen? Make sure your attempts at social media exposure reflect that.
Oh, and the only thing worse than falsely representing your personal brand, is not representing yourself at all. At the very least, sign up for Facebook, Twitter, and Brazen Careerist. Join a group or two and make new connections. Or, shoot me an e-mail, let me know what sorts of folks you’re looking for, and I’ll help you get in with the proper people.
Katharine’s Final Thoughts:
Social Media. You either love it or hate it, right? You want to delete your Facebook or Twitter account but then how would you know who’s doing what? It’s a double edged sword sometimes, but it’s one of the most crucial pieces when it comes to building your personal brand. The key though, is how to organize your social media presence effectively so that it helps boost your career. Katie provided some great tips that I think we could all use when re-evaluating (or even starting!) our social media presence. And hey, if you can’t get the hang of things, I’m sure she’d be willing to offer some more advice and tips!
—
Katie Colihan is a Gen-Y Freelance Career Consultant, Professional Blogger, and new Android user living in Philadelphia. From suburban New Jersey, and a family of BlackBerry users, she’s feeling her way through life in a new city with a new “smart phone” that she admits is often smarter than she is. Katie is a self proclaimed “effective conversation expert” and judges people by their use of proper grammar. When she’s not working, Katie is aggressively chasing her dream of being a high school counselor and writing a book about life on the crazy side.
Connect with her:
Blog| Twitter| LinkedIN | Facebook | Brazen Careerist
