Part of running your own business means that you need to be able to market yourself as an entrepreneur to your clients. This can be an incredibly difficult and daunting task, especially if you don’t know where to start. Here are some ideas to get you thinking about how you can market yourself as an entrepreneur.
Know Yourself
One of the key aspects to marketing yourself is to know yourself. If you don’t know your skills and attributes, how can you sell them to other people? There are certain skills that are essential to develop as an entrepreneur, but in order to market yourself, you need to be able to discover what other skills and abilities you possess. You also need to be confident in the knowledge of those abilities because confidence is a large part of your personal image. Everyone has something of value to bring to the table, but you have to be the one to find it in order to market yourself.
Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile
Once you have come to understand your skills, it is important to mention them on your LinkedIn profile. Using search engine optimization (SEO) will help you better improve your chances of getting clients. SEO allows search engines to pick up keywords to display “hits” when someone searches for a keyword. By using those keywords, you are optimizing your profile. Optimizing your profile is important because LinkedIn favors profiles with good SEO.
Establish Your Personal Brand
Another important thing to do to establish yourself as an entrepreneur is to establish your personal brand. This is especially important because it signifies to other people what sets you apart. To establish a personal brand, you need a distinguishing image (or logo) that is unique to you. That logo needs to be consistent (along with your color scheme) on all your platforms because you want to show your clients a consistent feel for your brand. You can also establish a personal brand statement—what you want your clients to know about yourself. You can also create business cards that you can give out to potential clients. Establishing a personal brand is important because it helps clients identify with you as an entrepreneur.
Marketing yourself as an entrepreneur can be daunting, especially if you’re not comfortable sharing your achievements. However, it is worth it because of the opportunities and clients marketing yourself will bring.
Sometimes building yourself up as an entrepreneur can be discouraging or challenging. Sign up for some coaching to get some help achieving your goals!