1. How to Build an Online Personal
Brand (for executives)
Arik C. Hanson
ACH Communications, Inc.

2. About Arik

3. Why is an
ONLINE
personal
brand
important?

4. • Two-thirds of consumers say their perceptions
of executives impact their perceptions of the
company
– And only 30% of Fortune 500 CEOs have an active
social media presence on at least one channel

5. Today’s key customer channels:
• Sales force
• Web
• Channel partners
• Call centers
• Traditional media

6. Customer channels five years from now:
– Sales force
–Social (256% increase)
– Web

7. 76% of other executives think CEOs
should be using social media
And, more importantly…4 in 5
employees would rather work for a
social CEO

8. Why use social media to
build your brand?

9. 1 – Extend your brand—and your company’s
brand
2 – Grow your network
3 – Build thought leadership
4 – Enhance your company’s customer service
5 – Own page one of your Google search
6 – Identify new customers
7 – Position yourself as innovative
8 – Build rapport with employees—and
potential employees

10. So, what does a personal brand
look like online anyway?

23. Universal
Personal
Branding
Guidelines

24. Be a human being—
not a “personal brand”

26. Showing up is 95% of the work

28. Humility wins favor

30. Be a creator—not a follower

32. Visuals matter—A LOT

36. So how do you BUILD your personal
brand online?

37. Research: Do your homework

38. Who is your key audience?
• Where do the live online?
• How do they consume information online?
• Who, exactly are they?
• Audience profile?

39. Plan: Define the personal brand you
WANT
Define your personal value proposition
• I help people better understand online
marketing.
• I help people with professional development.
• I help bloggers become better bloggers.
• I help provide pragmatic communications
solutions.

40. Execute: Consistency over time pays off
• You need to post/engage on Twitter more than
once a month.
• You need to write a blog post more than once a
quarter.
• Look to help one person in your LinkedIn
network a week.
• Most people bail quickly—stay the course.

41. Measure: Monitor and adjust
• Check your Google Analytics regularly (I check
them 1-2 times per week)
• Follower/fan counts aren’t everything—don’t
get caught up in them.
• Relationships > numbers.

42. 6 tips to a rock-solid
online personal brand

43. 1 – Have an opinion…a STRONG opinion

44. Benefits of having a strong opinion online
(for me):
• Never-dreamed-before speaking gigs: Seattle,
Destin, Solo PR, BlogWorld
• Instant credibility: With clients, bloggers and
media
• Random—but useful—opportunities: Guest
posts, opportunities to connect, etc.

46. • Networking cornucopia: Through guest posts,
PR Rock Stars, list posts.
• The opportunity to meet people’s Moms (I’m
kidding…kinda)
• An opportunity to showcase my skills

48. • However, there is no direct tie to the bottom
line (but, blogging has been a HUGE factor in
my business success).
• Community=power

50. 2 - Build your online ‘home base’

51. What’s the value of a robust LinkedIn
profile?
• 238 million worldwide users (84 million in U.S.
alone)
• 39% of members are a manager, director, owner,
vice president or CEO
• 50% of Fortune 100 companies hire through
LinkedIn

53. What should a robust executive
LinkedIn profile look like?

60. Make sure the basics are in place:
• Short summary
• Head shot (personality)
• Work experience (with detail)
• Honors/Awards/Education

61. Then, enhance:
• Blog posts
• Presentations
• Status updates
• Recommendations

62. 3 – Become a LinkedIn juggernaut
– Share 1-2 relevant posts/stories each day.
– Set aside 10 minutes each day to connect with 3-5
colleagues, peers or vendors.
– Make an effort to HELP people in your LinkedIn
network.
– Use LinkedIn as a research tool to help YOU:
• Identify candidates/connections
• Research coffee meet-ups
• Spot rising stars

63. 4 – Build out (low-maintenance)
spokes
– Slideshare
– Instagram
– YouTube
– Quora

66. 5 – Use Twitter as the ultimate
door-opener
Network with like-minded people (using Twitter
lists)

67. Better opportunity for success (fewer people at
executive level on Twitter—better chance you’ll
get noticed and remembered)

68. Let your personality shine through… (for me craft
beer, kids, Minnesota sports, TV)

69. Use hash tags,
WeFollow,
Twellow and
Twitter Search to
find the RIGHT
people to follow.

70. What would I share/talk about?
• Personal interests
• Professional articles/posts (journals, industry
blogs, etc.)
• Live tweet events/conferences
• Share your OWN blog posts/Slideshare decks
• Bottom line: You have PLENTY to say

71. 6 – Master the art of “Propinquity”
– Show up where your key audiences live—a lot
– Foster the allusion—you can appear more
busy/prolific than you really are online
– Don’t take every opportunity—just the ones with
big payoffs

72. Questions?

73. arikhanson.com
@arikhanson.com