If you really know what you’re talking about, it’s a lot easier to market yourself; especially on the Internet. The first thing a potential customer or client is going to do now days is do a search of your company on the Web. What they find will largely determine whether or not they visit your site or your store and certainly whether or not they become a client.
There are several ways to develop yourself as an expert including joining forums and organizations and making speeches and presentations on your topic. You can also write articles and post them online or in local publications to gain recognition as an expert in your field. Talk to other experts in your field and pick their brains. Ask them questions you have and take advantage of their experience and background. Take advantage of your own experience and background as well. You are likely more of an expert than you think on various topics. Customers and clients will trust what you say and what you’re selling if they believe you to be an expert on the topic. When they Google you and discover countless articles and references to things you’ve written, said or done on the topic, as well as your associations with other experts in the field they are convinced.
Whatever or wherever your interest lies, explore your existing knowledge, delve into your background and examine your experiences and really contemplate your abilities and you’ll be well on your way to marketing yourself as an expert. It is critical that you understand yourself completely if you are going to purport to be an expert in your field. You must know your weaknesses as well as your strengths and be open to learning from others.
Businesses rely on experts to keep everything going – personnel experts, safety experts, public relations experts, financial experts … and on and on. These experts were not all experts when they started but a combination of education, experience, skill, networking, and dedication to life-long learning made that transition possible.
This whole idea of “walking the walk and talking the talk” is critical when it comes to relationship building in the Internet Age. Businesses must have experts at all levels interacting with customers and potential customers to maintain the image, identity, integrity and stability of the business. While the Internet has made it easier for businesses to reach their customers and build and maintain their share of the marketplace, it is a double-edged sword in that a few disgruntled clients or even employees could damage a company’s reputation rather quickly. It has been established that people buy from those they know and trust. Knowledge is easily gained while trust is easily lost. Developing an expert approach to all levels of your business is critical to successfully building and maintaining it for the long-term.
If you are not already, you should be examining your strengths, how you can minimize your weaknesses and how you can capitalize on your knowledge. You are likely to be surprised at just how much you know when you sit down and think about it. Make sure people believe you know what you’re talking about!
Yvonne – well said! I think a lot of businesses fail to consider how important reputation management is in addition to your advice about branding yourself as an expert.