Blast from the Past: Building a Digital Brand

In January 2014 I graphically recorded a roundtable on building your digital brand. It was an internal event at Deloitte that was planned, hosted, and attended by people interested in the topic.

This was the first time @zfstasi and I tried tandem graphic recording

This was the first time @zfstasi and I tried tandem graphic recording

Today I remembered this event after reading about how Twitter changed a key element of their functionality from "Favorites" to "Likes". You can read Twitter's justification for the change here, and you can read about the backlash here and here. A lot has been said about how Twitter needs to become easier for the casual user, and this is a deliberate step in that direction. 

I have been using Twitter for a couple of years and am still figuring out how to make the most out of it. I still feel like a newb, but after following some of the guidance offered by Dan, Brad, Christina, Justin, and Ross during the roundtable, I left with a bit more direction.

Thanks to their advice, I took a leap and decided to share more of my work on Twitter. Taking that risk has helped me discover me with a like-minded community and connected me into some key opportunities. It didn't happen overnight, and even now after a couple of years I don't have an overwhelming number of followers or "influence". However, as we learned in the panel, being social is a marathon and I think even more opportunities will continue to develop as I keep running slowy along the course, and as more people jump in the race. 

It's almost two years later, but better late than never right? Here is the final recording: 

Since the photo isn't the best resolution, here are the top five takeaways that have helped me build a digital brand: 

  1. There is no such thing as information overload...only filter failure. At first I followed a bunch of celebrities, but my feed was just overwhelming. And dumb. 
  2. You need to find and use what is going to work for you. Twitter might serve as a vehicle that points to your primary platform. 
  3. Be active and consistent. And strike a balance between original content, retweets, and sharing. Engage with your followers!
  4. Showcase your expertise. And promote others you are digging.
  5. Being social is a marathon, not a sprint. And always a work in progress. 

Any other good bits of advice out there?