I met someone recently who wanted to be taken seriously as a Christian apologist. He hoped to increase his opportunities to speak and teach to larger audiences, and land a publishing deal in the process. But when I checked his social media platforms, here's what I found:
- His Facebook banner photo was a shot of him fishing. (Apparently he likes to fish.)
- His Twitter background photo was his favourite football team.
- His Twitter bio was a Vince Lombardi quote: "We would accomplish many more things if we did not think of them as impossible."
All very nice.Except none of it had anything to do with his personal brand. If you want to be taken seriously as an apologist, pastor, filmmaker, attorney, writer, worship leader - whatever - you need to be easily discoverable. That means all your social media, website, blog and other information needs to support the perception you're trying to achieve.
Confusion carries a hefty price tag because increasingly, job offers, opportunities to speak, news coverage, investors, publishers and more search for your information online and via social media.And if it's not clear, they'll look for someone else.
"Don't waste your digital real estate by squandering promotional opportunities via social media." - Phil Cooke
Aim all your promotional guns in a single direction, by making sure your online, blog, and social media information point to your expertise and brand. Sure a Twitter photo of a kitten is cute, but if you're serious about your career and calling, I would suggest a photo of you would accomplish so much more.
