April and May are always jam-packed with networking opportunities and you and your team have a chance to get out there, put a face to the company and build relationships with others in the business community. Are you putting your best foot forward? Don’t worry, we’ve got your back – check out our suggestions below and see what small changes you can make to improve your personal brand.

LINKEDIN

If you have to think about the last person you connected with, it’s been too long! At the bare minimum, you should:

• Have a good professional profile picture – a head and shoulders shot is best.
• Ensure your experience section and summary is up to date.
• Post an update once every two weeks (this can be as simple as a link to an interesting article you read).
• Connect with people as you meet them, clients, event attendees, colleagues.
• Engage with other users on a weekly basis (like their posts, share their content, comment on milestones etc.)

SIGN UP NOW

Attend events, conferences and workshops, or join associations and business chambers, as long as they make sense for your company. Regular attendance at events increases your personal visibility, and that of your brand. Giving your staff the opportunity to attend more events will help them to establish more connections. Make sure they have a brief explanation prepared of what your company does and don’t forget those business cards!

DEVELOP THOUGHT LEADERSHIP FOR YOUR EXECUTIVES

A strong thought leadership strategy can position you or your executives as authorities in your field. If you have a particular expertise or valuable opinion that others should know about, then you could maximise on this by introducing blogging and beginning a media relations strategy.

SPEAKING OPPORTUNITES

Speaking at events is a fantastic way to promote you and your brand to a wider audience. It ties nicely into any thought leadership strategy, develops you as a reputable leader in your industry and establishes trust with your audiences. At Springboard, we work regularly with clients to secure and manage speaking opportunities. Usually, this leads to opportunities with the media, guest blogs, content for the website and engagement on social media. What’s not to love?

Post by Susie Horgan

Susie founded Springboard in 2011, and has developed the business into a leading, director-led communications agency. She has worked for over 20 years in senior marketing and public relations roles.