In preparation for Wednesday’s Women 2.0 Ottawa event on ‘Networking 101‘ — which includes a major theme on developing your personal brand — here are some tips I’ve gathered from across the Internet…

Lyn Chamberlain at BrandChannel.com discusses some of the myths she perceives as holding women back from championing their own personal brands:

• - Myth #1: If I Am Good, They Will Come
• - Myth #2: Marketing Myself Is a Dirty Business
• - Myth #3: I Can’t Control What Other People Think

It really comes down to an apprehension about championing our successes and our leadership qualities. For some reason it can be difficult for women to promote themselves. According to Lyn, successful branding means:

…wearing labels such as “leading” and “expert,” “sought-after,” “popular,” and “well-regarded.” It means creating a brand identity that is authentic, consistent, and memorable, one that you own and are proud of.

Ok - but where does one start in building their personal brand? Marcel Sim of GetEntrepreneurial contributed an article to The Closet Entrepreneur on this topic. In the article titled “Four Easy Personal Branding Tips“, Marcel advises:

1. Develop your own personal marketing plan.

Include your personal mission statement: what on earth are you here for? What do you hope to achieve in your lifetime? Specify your short-tem and long-term goals, and plan your timeline to achieve your goals. Include detailed strategies and action steps, and don’t forget to review your personal marketing plan quarterly.

2. Build up your credibility

In whichever field or industry you’re in, aim to be the best you can be and to offer the best you can give. Make use of every opportunity to learn and hone your skills. Become the expert whom people in your professional field go to for help and advice. Give a lecture, contribute advice and articles to an e-zine, or go join your local community organization.

3. Develop and present your “elevator speech”

An elevator speech is a short, succinct description of what you do, how you do it differently from the others, and the benefits you’re able to provide to your customers. Develop yours today and present it to prospective clients whenever opportunities arise.

4. Contribute your time, talent, and money to charitable causes

Find a charitable cause which you are passionate about and is related to your particular field of expertise. Give it back to society for the help society has given to you. Donate your time by volunteering to do work for free for a local charity. Give your expertise and advice or even donate money to a charitable cause. By doing all these, you’re reinforcing your personal brand and establishing your credibility.

Your personal brand, if managed and developed properly, can become your greatest business asset. Decide today to build up your personal brand, and it’ll go a long way in your entrepreneurial career.

The social network equation…

Marcel offers some great advice on how to get started in building your personal brand, but what about managing your personal brand on sites like Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, etc? Using these sites for both personal and professional reasons can help you to build new connections while making it easier to maintain existing ones. But it also can make managing your personal brand a bit tricky.

Dan Schawbel of Web Worker Daily offers this advice:

1. Set a Google alert to your name, so that each day you will receive an email with the latest blog entries attached to your name.

2. Concentrate your Personal Branding efforts on a select few networks, such as Facebook, LinkedIn and your blog. These tend to have the highest installed bases, so they are more worthwhile.

3. Communicate to some of your most trusted friends, to make sure they are watching your reputation as well.

4. Google your name periodically to ensure that your information is kept up-to-date and accurate.

5. Set complex passwords so that you’re accounts do not suffer identity theft.

The above authors offer some great advice for those of you contemplating how to build and manage your personal brand. Whether you are actively managing your personal brand or not, it’s important to recognize that the Web 2.0 world in which we now live and work makes it easier and easier for new and existing clients, potential employers and your professional network to discover information about you. So wouldn’t you rather be in control of how your personal brand is portrayed online?

Stay tuned for a follow-up post on Wednesday’s Women 2.0 Ottawa session ‘Networking 101‘. I’ll share insights and lessons learned from the women who attended on this blog.

Other resources to check out:

• - ‘The divide b/w your personal and professional brand has faded…’
  Personal Branding Blog - Dan Schawbel
• - ‘Podcast: The You Brand’
  MarCom Strategist Podcast: The You Brand - Dianna Huff interviews Lyn Chamberlain
• - ‘Seven Benefits of Creating Your Your Personal Brand’
  Female Entrepreuners.com - Jan Marie Dore

- Melany Gallant
Women 2.0 Ottawa co-founder