As A Business Owner, How Well Do You Represent Your Business?
Being a business owner means that you have to wear many hats. You have to be a leader, a manager, a marketer, a strategist, and much more. However, you may also have to be the living embodiment of your business’s brand, especially if you’re running a smaller company or one that’s more innately engaged with its customer base.
As such, how you carry and present yourself can, in turn, reflect on how people see your business, too. So, you need to be in control of your own public perception, and the tips below can help with that.
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Define Your Presence
If you’re a public figure, then you should make sure that you have some say over how you are perceived by the public. How much control you really have over this is limited, to say the least, but working on your personal brand can help you move the needle at least a little. You can start this by optimizing your LinkedIn profile, making sure that you have a high-quality headshot, a compelling headline, and a clear outline of what you do, who you help, and what your motivations are. You may even want to create a simple personal website or portfolio, listing your achievements and media profile. This can be very useful if, for instance, publications want to quote you and need a better idea of who you are.
Start Showing Some Thought Leadership
Spend enough time running a business, and you’re going to have some thoughts, insights, and ideas that can help you navigate the market better. However, rather than just keeping all of your ideas to yourself, if you’re willing to show a little thought leadership, it can establish you as a credible authority in the industry. This, in turn, can help a little shine rub off on your business by association. Find the opportunity to publish your own blog posts, to write guest articles, to show up on podcasts, in webinars, or other speaking engagements. You don’t have to pose yourself as a revolutionary or a guru; simply offering your own perspective and practical advice can be enough to help you grow into a voice that people pay attention to.
Professional Presentation Is A Must
While it might sound relatively simple, don’t underestimate the importance of how you present yourself, be it at public events, in private meetings, or anywhere else. Dressing professionally, which could mean business formal, smart casual, or otherwise, depending on your setting, shows a level of self-respect and respect for those you deal with. Make sure that you have clean, well-designed cards on hand with the help of a business card maker, as well. This attention to detail is going to leave a better impression on those that you communicate with, which can, in turn, open the door for future profile-boosting collaborations or simply help you maintain your professional reputation more easily.
Overcome Imposter Syndrome
Perhaps one of the most common challenges faced by growing entrepreneurs, especially those who are maintaining a degree of public life, is the fear that they are not good enough to be in the position they are in or to hold the platform they hold. Impostor syndrome is real, and it can cause you to inadvertently shrink away from opportunity and even weaken how you present your business. Be sure that you’re always mindful of your achievements, of the skills you have demonstrated, and the real value that you have brought to your clients and your customers. Sometimes, those negative voices in your head can be loud, and you need to drown them out with pure evidence, so document your wins and milestones to remind yourself that you truly are worth it.
Show Up As Your Best Self
Impostor syndrome might be one of the ways that your personal self-care can have an impact on how you present yourself to the world, but it’s not the only way. If you’re dealing with a lack of sleep, chronically stressed from deadlines, or approaching burnout, then it can weaken the energy, creativity, and clarity that you speak and present yourself with. Investing in self-care as a business owner isn’t just important for you on a personal level; it can have a tangible impact on your personal brand and, as a result, on business-related outcomes. Prioritize regular rest, movement, and downtime, and take the time to build routines that support your mental, emotional, and physical health.
Network To Bolster Your Message
Networking, when done with care, is able to help you improve the positive social proof around your worth as a voice in the industry. Of course, it also helps to have relationships with other business owners and voices in the sector that align with your goals and values. As such, make an effort to show up to industry events, conferences, and take part in online communities. Do it with the intention of building those connections and look for the relationships that are built on mutual understanding and gain, rather than just looking for opportunities to collaborate. Even if you don’t find new speaking gigs or guest post spots, having a positive and reinforcing presence in the community can passively build your professional reputation over time.
Don’t Stay Stuck In Your Bubble
One of the biggest risks to your online reputation is to get caught out of step with the thinking of the moment. It’s a short step to go from being a visionary to a pariah, and there are plenty of modern examples of personal branding failures to take as a warning. It’s important to keep your input feed wide open, seeking feedback from trusted peers as well as checking in with the sentiment of the public, especially if you plan to weigh in on any potentially controversial developments in the business world.
A lot of entrepreneurs and business owners might want to stay out of the spotlight, but when it finds you, it’s best to embrace the potential power that it has with the help of the tips above.
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