I often times get asked how I’ve learned the art of promoting myself online. Most people tend to think that self-promotion automatically means you’re going to alienate people, and as such they don’t do it. The problem then becomes that they don’t get any new business because no one knows they are available for hire.
I’m going to be honest, promoting myself online used to be difficult for me too. We’re taught to be humble and modest and it seems to counter the actions we need to take in order to grow our businesses. I’m here to tell you that’s not true. Here are ways you can rock promoting yourself online.
Get Over Your Fear of Alienating People
The first step in promoting yourself online effectively is to get over your fear of alienating people. Believe it or not, most people want to know what’s going on with you. How are they supposed to know if you don’t tell them?
Perhaps there will be a small minority that will be annoyed, but those aren’t the people you’re meant to work with anyway. And if someone gets really annoyed, then just remember that you can’t please everyone. I often times have to remind coaching clients that not everyone is going to like them. In fact, some people get annoyed just by you breathing so you really shouldn’t pay them any mind.
Consistently Provide Value
The art of promoting yourself online effectively is all about consistently providing value. This often times means sharing free online marketing content that is actually helping your audience – such as blog posts, inspirational images or social media messages.
For example, I consistently share my most popular blog posts with a social media scheduler like Edgar. I also schedule questions, prompts, images and other different types of helpful content on a consistent basis. I’m also regularly on Periscope giving value to my audience on livestreaming video.
Another way of looking at it is Gary Vaynerchuck’s method of Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook. Provide free value multiple times and then ask for the sale.
Celebrate Accomplishments
Everytime I find out I’ve been quoted somewhere or something exciting happens, I celebrate publicly by sharing it on Facebook. I don’t necessarly say “I got quoted in The Huffington Post! I’m so cool!” but rather I invite people to celebrate with me.
I find that just like most people want to know what’s going on with you, they also want to celebrate with you whenever you’ve reached a milestone.
Make Sure Your Heart is In The Right Place
You can do everything I just mentioned, but if you’re posting stuff on social media with an energy of “Oh man someone better buy my stuff!” people can smell it from a mile away.
This is what really annoys people. It’s not that you’re promoting yourself, it’s that you’re doing it with a sense of desperation. I see it all the time on Facebook with some network marketers and other types of business owners and it’s not a good look.
The art of promoting yourself online requires that you not care whether or not anyone responds. You’re sharing things for whoever needs to see it. That’s it. It requires a certain level of detachment and it takes some practice, but it can make all the difference.
Final Thoughts
There’s no magic formula for promoting yourself online. In fact, it has more to do with common sense than actual formulas. Share what you think is valuable, celebrate and stay detached from the outcome.
