Step 1

Your marketing plan doesn’t have to be complicated. It can be as simple as a few written pages that outline specifically what you are going to do to market yourself. Before you get to that part, however, you first have to answer a few key questions:

(a) What’s your personal brand? Your brand is your reputation– what you are known for and what people expect from you personally and professionally. You should be able to succinctly state what you do, who you help and how you add value to relationships. Focus on what differentiates you from your competition.

(b) Who do you want to target with your marketing? You have to develop a profile of the person you are trying to reach, including their demographics, industry, geography, etc. Then identify their interests and concerns and the best places to find them (ex. industry organizations, publications they read, etc.). This will help you develop a strong marketing message and promote it in the right places.

(c) What are your priorities and goals? Where do you want to focus your efforts? For example, is your objective to get new accounts, retain or upsell existing clients, get a promotion/new job or attract media attention? Once you know what you want, then set a concrete target, such as a certain number of accounts, amount of revenue generated, positive reviews from clients and so on.

(d) How much time and money are you willing to devote to marketing? If your firm is supporting you, then you may not need to outlay money. However, the firm will have a budget. If you aren’t getting assistance, set your own budget. Regardless of whether you are getting money, you still need to devote your time to marketing. How many hours a week will you set aside?

Step 2

Next, you have to outline what specific marketing activities you will undertake and set goals for yourself. For example:

(a) Outreach to referral sources or prospects. Who will you meet with? How many people will you contact every month?

(b) Speaking engagements. How many per year? What types of organizations?

(c) Articles. How many per year? What types of publications?

(d) Networking. How many and which groups will you join? How often will you attend meetings?

(e) Marketing to past and current clients. What materials will you send and how often?

(f) Social media. How often will you post? What types of content will you post? How often will you interact with your contacts online?

(g) Website. What content will you create for the firm’s site (blogs, videos, eBook, etc.) and how often?

(h) Publicity. Will you submit your name for awards, reach out to reporters or podcasters, send out press releases, etc. and how often?

Step 3

Finally, you need to determine whether and how your firm will assist you. Can they create appropriate marketing materials, provide social media and business development training, research and pitch organizations and publications on your behalf and/or provide client data, prospect lists and competitive intelligence?

This may seem overwhelming but once you answer the first few questions, the second part is basically a spreadsheet listing your activities and goals. Importantly, you don’t have to do it all from the start. Pick one or two things to focus on and be diligent and consistent in your activities. Then expand from there.

If you need help with your personal marketing plan, contact us for a consultation.

• Women have made up at least 40% of U.S. law students for decades and today, about 48% of law firm associates are women, but only 23% of equity partners are women.
• Approximately 62% of accountants and auditors are women, but only 23% are partners in accounting firms and 14% are CFOs of Fortune 500 and S&P 500 firms.
• Among entrepreneurs, 39% of businesses are women-owned, but only 2% achieve $1 million in revenue.

By strengthening their personal brand, women can raise their profile both within their companies and to a broader network to help position themselves for advancement and better opportunities.

Here are a few tips to get started:

1. Figure out your current brand. Your brand is your reputation and identity. It’s what you are known for and what people expect from you personally and professionally. A good way to think about it is that your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room. To determine your brand, talk to people you know – colleagues, clients, managers, and other contacts to learn more about how you are perceived. There are ways you can couch your questions to make sure you are getting helpful and accurate feedback.

You should also ascertain your online brand. Google your name to see what shows up about you. Review your website and social media profiles and compare them to your competitors. It’s important to have a strong online presence with lots of positive information appearing when people search for you.

2. Identify any problems with your current personal brand. Do others have a negative or incorrect impression of you? Or is it that you have a good reputation but you are barely known beyond a small circle of people? Are there aspects of your brand you (dis)like and would like to change? Is lack of confidence, cultural conditioning, a bad work situation, bias or other circumstances affecting your personal brand or inhibiting you from promoting your brand? It’s hard to fix a problem without determining what it is.

3. Create a personal brand story. You want to highlight your personality and values along with your expertise. To do this, it helps to create your personal brand story – consider how your background and past personal and professional experiences have influenced your choices, work and relationships. Why do you do what you do? What do you enjoy most about your work? What unique value do you offer that your competitors don’t? What examples do you have? Your brand story should piece together the different aspects of your personal and professional life to tell a concise story demonstrating that you’re not just knowledgeable, but people can trust you and know what to expect from you.

4. Find brand champions. It’s always better to have other people talk about you in positive ways than talking about yourself. Ideally, you’ll have a few people that are true champions, but anyone you’ve dealt with can be helpful. Regularly request feedback from those you work with and when it’s good, try to document it publicly. (If it’s bad, make sure you address the problem or you’ll develop a poor reputation.) Don’t be afraid to ask for recommendations/reviews. Also, ask happy clients for referrals and introductions. If you are praised by your boss, try to make sure others know about it in appropriate ways. Seek promotions, raises, desirable work assignments or even just a public thanks. Women often downplay their accomplishments which can significantly hurt them when they are looking for new opportunities. It’s also a good idea to develop a diverse support network to give you the most options in the future should you decide to take a different professional path.

5. Leverage all channels to promote your brand. Unfortunately, people have short attention spans. You want to be the one your contacts remember so you have to promote yourself. Obviously, networking is important both within your organization and outside of it. However, also take advantage of digital marketing channels like social media and email marketing, your website, blogging, writing and speaking opportunities, publicity and other owned, earned and paid media outlets. You want to share your ideas and expertise publicly so people know about you and you take control of your image.

6. Take small but well-planned steps. Random acts of marketing are a waste of time. Before you take action, it is important to develop a plan. For example, write down your brand message, who you want to target with that message, what you want to accomplish and what steps you will take to improve your brand. Start with a small targeted plan and commit to at least one or two marketing tactics or a set amount of time per week and then expand from there. Marketing is cumulative and the longer you keep at it, the more successful you will be.

If you are looking for help with your brand, contact us for a free consultation.

1. Assess your Google results. What shows up on the first page? Presumably, your website and social media profiles will appear at the top, but what else? Are the other results on the page little more than directory listings? Is there anything that demonstrates expertise or credibility, such as articles, presentations, professional memberships, awards, media mentions and the like? Do you have any reviews or recommendations? It is not enough to ensure that bad things don’t appear in your search results, you want to make sure a lot of good things show up as well. A minimal presence can hurt you because people want to know you are active in your profession, in your community and so on.

2. Google your competitors. How are they marketing themselves? How does their online presence compare to yours? Review their Google results, website, and social media profiles. It is important to know what you are up against. However, if your competitors aren’t doing much online, don’t take that as an excuse to continue to ignore your online presence. You have an opportunity to lead the field and make everyone else catch up to you.

3. Do the easy stuff first. Your website and social media profiles are typically the first results that show in Google. Fortunately, you have complete control over what appears there and should be taking advantage of them to demonstrate the value you offer clients. Highlight your strengths, but don’t make it a marketing brochure. Instead, provide information that your prospects would find useful and interesting. It might be insights about their problem, what they can do to help themselves, and when they may need extra assistance. Blogs, articles, eBooks, newsletters, videos, podcasts, presentations, FAQs, and case studies can be added to your website and highlighted on social media to build credibility.

Also give prospects a reason to like and trust you. Tell them a little about your background, your motivation for doing the work you do, and your other interests (charitable activities, hobbies, etc.). Social media is great for this because you can be a bit more informal than on your website, just don’t go too far into the personal.

4. Develop content for third-party sites. Appearing on reputable third-party sites is invaluable because you can’t control it. The more authoritative the other website, the more it affects your credibility and search engine ranking. Start identifying a list of sites where you could provide content, such as articles and presentations. Likely sources include associations relevant to your profession (e.g., bar associations) and to your client base (industry and business groups). Consumer-oriented, community, and charitable websites may also be possibilities. In addition, reach out to contacts in complementary businesses and offer to guest blog on each other’s websites or otherwise partner on creating content to cross-promote.

5. Ask for recommendations/reviews. Contact people you know well – referral sources, colleagues, vendors, and happy clients – to ask them if they would be willing to give you a recommendation or review on your firm Google listing, on social media pages, and other relevant websites. Remember to give them one as well if you can. Depending on the nature of your relationship, encourage them to be detailed in the review and suggest things they could share in the review. When dealing with clients, it is best to ask for a review at the conclusion of a successful engagement.

6. Downplay the negatives. If you have negative reviews, you should respond online carefully. Do not engage in a debate online, but do tell the person you want to discuss the problem and follow up offline to try to resolve the situation. If you are successful, try to get the person to retract the review or add a comment that the matter was resolved. If you have negative press, there may be little you can do but if there is a possibility of responding to limit the damage try to do so. It may be worthwhile speaking to a public relations agency if it is a serious matter. Again, take care in your response that you are not making matters worse or drawing more attention to the situation. Assuming you cannot eliminate the damage, you can counteract it by getting more positive reviews and publicity and taking the other steps mentioned above. Most businesses end up with some negative feedback so it is not as bad as it may feel. Over time, the impact will lessen.

7. Have a marketing plan. It takes time to implement these steps and we all have limits on the resources we can put towards this. A written plan can help you think through your options and prioritize, set goals, and determine what time and money you will need to achieve your objectives.

Following these suggestions has additional benefits. First, it will improve your search engine ranking when people search for a professional with your expertise or want more information on a specific issue that you have written or spoken about. It also makes you more visible with existing contacts. Assuming you are actively promoting your activities through your website, email, social media, and other means, they help you stay top of mind with your referral sources.

Finally, it makes you more aware of what your competitors are doing so you can be more effective in your own efforts. Studies show that prospects research and talk to multiple firms before making a decision. If you want to compete, a strong online brand is essential. It may not guarantee you get the business, but the lack of one may lose you the business.

If you are concerned about what Google says about you, contact us for a consultation.