Personal Branding Tips & YourName.com

I often speak about Personal Branding , Personal Development and how we can use Digital Tools to assist both those areas.

The most important asset to any individual looking to raise their brand online, is a Personal Website.
It is the forefront of you online, the home of your image and the gateway to opportunity.

Therefore if you are in the position where you are thinking of getting yourself a professional website, you should be considering some of these questions:

• Who do i get to build my Website or do i try do it myself?
• What platform do i use to build the site?
• Are there any layout templates or do i have to get one coded?
• Where do i get the Hosting for my site?

Then you will ask yourself the all important question:

• Damn, what name do i even give my site that best suits the image i want to portray?

Choosing a name for your personal Website is like naming your first born, (ok, i’m speculating here but it’s important). You may think your name isn’t very catchy or you may want to go with an alias.

It’s really an open subject but naming your website obviously has to reflect the values of your brand identity.

Project a professional image

If you want the world to come across your company name before they find your name, then name your site according to the topic. ie: SocialMediaWorld.com

If you are the brand and you are selling yourself to potential clients then they will be searching for people who portray a confident image in their own identity. ie: www.LucaMassaro.co.uk

Distinguish yourself from competitors with a unique identity

With YourName.com you are officially one of a kind. That’s right, no-one else with your name can have a better URL! (Unfortunately if your name is John Smith then you are kinda in trouble and may have to use your middle name. If your middle name is Paul then you may as well just give up!)

But you get the point; with a dedicated ‘Vanity URL’ you are putting yourself out there as a reputable product and employers, clients and customers will take you seriously.
First impressions are everything!

Build branding (recognition)

Have you read my article about how to Build a Brand Using Social Media? Have you read my article about how to Build a Brand Using Social Media? Have you read my article about how to Build a Brand Using Social Media?

Ok… now that you have read the above article you know how to brand yourself online.

It is imperative that you take your brand seriously because if you do not… who do you think will?
Create consistency across the board with your your projects, your talking points, your morals, your image and even your choice of font!

Attract traffic to your site using Search

If someone hears your name through a referral, finds a business card or if an employer is doing what they do best and actually wants to invade your life; how do you think they will do it? That’s right folks… Search!
Having yourname.com puts you in SEO heaven when anyone searches for your name.
If you can dominate Google Page One with relevance to your name, people will look at you as someone who takes themselves seriously.

Other points to consider

• If your name isn’t easy to type or easy to remember then this whole process will need some further thought. Although you may want your name to be your brand, carefully think whether your name in itself may hinder people finding your site.
• Try to get a .com or .co.uk if possible. A lot of people will just type yourname.com and if it doesn’t go to your site they may just give up.
• Having yourname.com makes your email address stand to attention also. Anyone who emails yourname@yourname.com or hello@yourname.com will immediately assume you are confident in self branding.

If you think i have missed anything on this topic or have any comments, please reply below and as always i will reply to everyone individually!