People may want to reinvent their personal brand for various reasons. It may be that you have voluntarily moved into a different field or taken a 
sabbatical or have been forced to do so because you were laid off. Or you may have a need to reinvent your personal brand for other reasons such as the passage of time having changed your outlook and interests. Or a desire to move into more meaningful work or being forced to do so due to changed economic and employment opportunities or a shift to a better work life balance if you have a family to care for. One easy tool to help you in this process of revamping your personal brand is the use of social media.
The first step is to be very clear in your mind about your new goals and where you ultimately want to be after giving it your best shot. This is not easy and will involve a lot of clarity and vision on your part. It may also demand learning new skills or returning to school. Be clear on how you can present your transition to your target audience while all the time remaining authentic to your past.
The social media platforms are rapidly growing with new sites constantly joining the fray. You have at your disposal Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Pinterest and the many popular and free blogging platforms. Good blogging platforms for beginners would be Google’s Blogger and Twitter’s Posterous both of which are easy to use. Posterous also allows you to use different profiles for each blog within the same account.
Try to link all your accounts on these social media platforms, For instance, mention your twitter handle on linkedin, your blog on your twitter profile, etc. Using social media in this way allows you to not only to launch your rebranded identity but also allows you to record your achievements as they happen in real time. Once you get the hang of things you can continue to expand your online media presence using podcasts, videocasts and video CVs, etc. For instance, use Pinterest if you are an event planner and wish to showcase your previous work visually or show photos of your creations in your blog to show potential clients if you are an artist or fashion designer.
Enhance your visibility and online connections by adding the new people that you meet and writing in trade journals if you can.
In brief,
- Once you decide to rebrand use social media as a tool to launch your rebranded self and accompanying capabilities.
- Link all your social media accounts and use your re-branded profile to reach out to clients and your new audience which will include possible leads to your future success. Post updates regularly and stay active in your online professional community.
- Record your ongoing achievements and establish your track record with your reinvented brand on social media sites by using photo galleries, video CVs, podcasts, blogs, etc., thereby consolidating your reinvented personal brand.
Good Luck!
Source: Reinventing your personal brand by Doris Clark, HBR OnPoint
