When Your Name Is Your Brand

Taking the leap to running your own business has many challenges. Do I have the money to do this? Do I incorporate or become an LLC? Do I need an employee? Do I need a name? What if I fail?

When I took the leap and started my business, I toyed with many different names, but nothing fit. The few ideas I did come up with were taken (which questioned my creativity, because they sure seemed original to me!). After awhile, I realized that I was trying to brand myself by coming up with a business name. I then decided I didn't need to come up with a name, I would just use mine. I would be my own brand.

Being your own brand has its own set of challenges. It’s the first and foremost way you will advertise your business, always. When I first made this decision, I had a small panic attack. I’m a very open person online. I pretty much communicate online as I would in person, what you see is what you get.  No one has ever said to me “you are not how I expected you to be!” when they meet me in person (other than the occasional “you’re shorter than I expected.”). I’m actually proud of that, because it is my belief that you should just be open and honest, good or bad, in how you present yourself online. But that is a different post for a different day. However, I noticed I was beginning to be a little more conscious of how I interacted and presented myself online.

Here are some tips for having a strong personal brand:

1. Google your name. The first thing you need to do if you want to use your name as your business is see what comes up in a search. Is it public photos from your last weekend in Rocky Point? The weekend you have fuzzy memories about? That’s probably not good. Is it the Twitter account you created so you can talk politics and argue rudely with anyone who disagrees with your position? That might not look good either. Here is another reason to have a good online profile. A Google search of your name is a great start to figuring out the next step, which is-

2. Have a Facebook Page for your business. Facebook is still the most used social media site. If you don’t separate your business from your personal account, you’re going to get in trouble. I have a Facebook page for my business, and that is the link that comes up when you search my name on Google. The same applies to Twitter.

3. Know your business. If you are a media personality and your shtick is to be outgoing and offensive, then these tips probably do not apply. If you are a bikini model, then scantily-clad photos probably won’t hurt your personal brand. If you are an attorney who practices family law, that’s a different story.

4. Decide overlap. I have friends who knew me before I started my business. I also have made new friends who found me after I started my business. Some I add as friends on my personal Facebook page, and some I don’t. It’s really your discretion. Facebook has the best privacy settings of any network. I have lists, and have control over who gets to see what in my personal life. I also do not need everyone who I friend on Facebook knowing everything about my life, so I make sure I have the proper settings for anything I do online. Twitter is the same way. Many posts are the same, but I also know it is a more public forum, so I take more discretion when posting things there. My life is mine, and I will choose how I want to share it with you. 

5. Stay true to yourself. Never change who you are because it might cost you business. If you know your brand, and for the most part keep your business separate from pleasure, you should be fine. Also go with your gut. If you question something you are about to post, maybe you should think twice about posting it. Things can always be interpreted the wrong way, and you have no control over that. If you are ok with what you are posting or saying, then don’t worry about how it will be perceived. If someone has an issue with something, most likely they will come to you anyway. If it keeps someone from doing business with you and you don’t think you did anything wrong, then you do not need their business.

Do you have anything to add? Tell us in the comments! Being your own brand can be a little terrifying if you aren't used to being so exposed. Be conscious of your actions, follow these tips, and always have confidence in yourself and who you are. That is what is going to bring you business, and success.

Thanks for reading! If you feel so inclined, you can follow my daily ramblings on Twitter, and get all sorts of information from my Facebook Page! See you around the interwebs!

Your Online Profile Matters

Daughter only likes to take advantage of Mom's
open Instagram account.

Being accused of something you didn't do is never a good feeling. It happened to me this week, and I wanted to share my experience.

Earlier in the week I was browsing around, and an email receipt popped up from PayPal letting me know about my recent transaction. This was curious because I didn't make any transactions recently. Turns out there were about 6 different transactions made within 20 minutes, all for bit coin. I had been hacked. 

You could say an advantage of being online constantly is that I caught it immediately. The next thing I did was get on the phone with PayPal. They were very quick about stopping payment on the transactions and sending them to their Resolution center. Basically this works like a mediation, they get in touch with all the sellers, then PayPal decides whether to refund my money. They also encourage buyers and sellers to work it out on their own. After CHANGING MY PASSWORD***, I felt better. 

The next day I received an odd email, asking me why I was stealing from him. I responded politely, apologizing for the inconvenience, and briefly explaining that my PayPal account was hacked. He didn't believe me, responding that I had the transaction sitting in my Ebay account for over a week so I had to be lying. 

Ebay? I don't have an Ebay account, so now I had somewhere else I needed to check and see if someone was using my name. I responded again, once again explaining that I was hacked, and now I will have to check and see if I have an account on Ebay that I don't know about. 

I would have liked that to be the end, but he again responded in an accusatory manner, telling me the account is active and he has reported it. He ended this email snarkily, telling me to enjoy my "ill-gotten gains."

Now I was getting more frustrated. One, I have over $100 that I am trying to recover from this. Two, I have some guy I don't know at all accusing me of stealing. I know I shouldn't care about what a complete stranger thinks, but I do have a business that I run online, and I really don't need anyone spreading falsities about me. At the same time, I was finished going back and forth with someone who obviously doesn't want to listen or be reasonable. I responded one more time. I probably should have stopped responding two emails prior, but I was happy with how I left it. 

"I am sorry you don't believe me but there's not much I can do about it. I had over $100 lost over this that I'm trying to get back. I don't know you at all and I tried to explain thinking you might understand. Not much more I can say since you refuse to take my corresponding with you as a sign of good faith.
"I appreciate you reporting the account, because I couldn't log in at all. It didn't recognize any user names or email addresses I have. So I hope they shut it down.
Take care of yourself, and I hope neither of us have this happen to us and our money again. "

I sent it and went to bed. The next morning I woke up to this: 

"I have been looking into the buyers account and I noticed it is in Va. and you are in Az. Then I googled you, and I see you are dynamic and successful person. I was obviously mistaken about you and I do apologize. Ebay will put 2&2 together and get him. I hope you are able recover all of money."

This is why I wanted to write about my experience. He Googled my name to find out about me, and that is what changed his mind, along with not losing my cool and remaining calm in explaining the situation to him. I understand that he has a business too, and it sucks to have someone steal from you. I don't blame him for accusing me, and I am glad he finally did a little more research to see that I am legit. 

The bottom line is this: Keep a good online profile, especially if you are a more public person or run a business online, like me. We are in a world where someone can find out more about you in just a few clicks. What do you want someone to discover? 

***CHANGE YOUR PASSWORD!!!

Thanks for reading! If you feel so inclined, you can follow my daily ramblings on Twitter, and get all sorts of information from my Facebook Page! See you around the interwebs!