The purpose of starting with Google is to harness the power of Google to ensure you get found online and you have access to powerful Google tools as you build your web and social media presence. To do this, it is best to start from the beginning to optimize your social media profiles.
Your social media profile is the biographical detail you write and post at the various places on the web where you create a Profile (Twitter), Info Tab (Facebook) or About Me/Us page (your web site).
Your brief bios at social media sites, and your longer bio on an About Me page, or in a press kit, is the first attractor. An effective, optimized online profile will lead readers to wanting to hear what you have to say. Alternatively, you may see them skipping right by you.
Your Million Dollar Story is the story (or stories) you communicate that help people connect with you personally and begin to trust in your ability to help them with solutions.
Read on to learn how to complete an effective online profile and optimize your social media profiles. Get into action with the Social Profile Action Steps.
To complete and optimize your social media profiles, you will:
- Pick a username.
- Pick and upload an online image (or avatar).
- Write a bio/summary, a one- or two-sentence description.
- Add web site links (so people can find more information about you).
The foundation for attracting well-matched people and opportunities:
- Your expertise is known, owned, and spoken with confidence.
- Your profile clearly states your expertise, who you work with, and the results people get from working with you.
- Your profile and bio contain warm, personal touch points that invite people to connect with you in a non-business way.
- Your photo is professional AND warm and inviting.
- You present a consistent message and look & feel across all your social networking sites.
- As soon as you have satisfied customers or clients, their testimonials are easy to find and access.
Part 1 — Social Profile Action Steps
Step 1. Treasure hunt for powerful, descriptive words and phrases to use in your bio.
Step 2. Pick a username for your social media accounts.
Step 3. Pick and prepare your online profile image.
Step 4. Write your short bio description about yourself.
Step 5. Create your Gravatar if you have a WordPress site. Here’s an article at WPBeginner.com to explain:
What is Gravatar and Why You Should Start Using It Right Away
Part 1–Google Action Steps
Step 1. Create a Google account by setting up a Gmail address/account: https://accounts.google.com/NewAccount
Your primary address for your business will be some variant of this: YourName@YourDomain.com. You may not have a domain name and web site yet, so start with your new Gmail address. If you do have a primary email address already set up, have one address forward to the other so you only have to check one for email.
Step 2. Create your public Google profile.
After you create your Google account, or when you log back in to your account, you’ll be able to drop down a menu of Google account features by clicking on the square made of nine dots in the top right:
Google account menu
Click on the red Google+ circle — and then click the Join Google+ link in the left hand menu on the next page. Fill in the pop-up:
Public Google+ profile
Step 3. If you have a Facebook account, link to your Google+ profile from the Info area of your account.
Step 4. If you have an About Me page on a web site, link to it from your Google and Facebook accounts.
Note: Even before you have a web site with an About Me or About Us page, you can create a Google+ profile and link to it from your first social networking account at Facebook. The purpose is to give people a place to learn even more about you and link to all the web places where they can connect with you.
Another note: At this point, you should not spend any time at Google+ developing social networking relationships. You will use your Google account extensively later to track your web traffic AND whenever you post a link to a page or blog on your web site at Facebook, you should also post that link at Google+. More about how to make this an automated process in blog posts to come.
Other articles about your social media profiles at Social Biz Local Biz: