Personal and business content blend into one solid identity

Whether to have a personal or business brand is not a huge concern. The reality is people usually have both as one.

Small-business owners have a united personal and business brand. There’s no reason to be sophisticated and make people wonder who they really are.

“The business itself should always have a strong focus on building a brand,” said Anthony Gaenzle, who comes to the subject with a bit of experience.

He is chief executive officer of Gaenzle Marketing. He has spent more than 15 years helping brands uncover opportunities for growth and developing powerful marketing strategies to help businesses thrive.

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Gaenzle also played an integral role in launching and growing 10 startup companies.

He talked with digital marketing expert Madalyn Sklar about creating an inspiring personal brand on Twitter.

“Whether the small-business owner should have a personal brand to help grow the business hinges on a few things,” Gaenzle said, posing these questions:

• Can the owner’s personal brand benefit the business?
• Does the owner have time to focus on building a personal brand while growing their business?
• Does the owner’s personality play well online?

“People love transparency in a brand,” Gaenzle said. “When the owner of a business has an active profile online — on channels like Twitter and others — people tend to gravitate toward the brand. So, if the fit is right, a personal brand can certainly be a good idea.”

Face of the Business

Yet, it is not mandatory.

“If you’re the face of your small business, it would be great to build your personal brand so people can feel connected to you,” Sklar said. “You can keep your business and personal brands separate or merge them together.”

Twitter is a powerful channel to build a personal brand because you can be brief and intimate at the same time. Little nuggets fill out your picture in unexpected ways.

“Twitter is a space where you can build genuine relationships, have real conversations and make an impact by helping others,” Gaenzle said. “Carve out your niche, and build an engaged following.

“If you stay engaged — as well as add true value to others — your following will grow,” he said. “Your advice and the content you publish will gain authority. You’ll be able to leverage this powerful channel to spread awareness about your personal brand.”

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As with any successful venture, you have to do the work.

“It takes a lot of effort, but if you’re willing to put that effort in, you can really grow,” Gaenzle said. “Plus, you meet great people along the way.

“When I host my Twitter chats, I schedule the questions up front, but I love the engagement — which is what makes the chats,” he said. “So, mostly I post tweets manually and in real time.”

For meaningful engagements, Gaenzle said the choice is clear.

“LinkedIn is a distant second, but Twitter is the one channel where I find the communication to be real,” he said. “I’ve met people who’ve become more than just Twitter connections from all across the globe.”

Thought Leader Cred

There are opportunities to gain authority in several ways.

“Twitter is a great platform for providing valuable content in an effort to position yourself as a thought leader in your field,” Sklar said. “In time, people will see you as an authority and a dependable resource.

“Twitter is also great for making connections,” she said. “It’s easy to have real-time conversations there, allowing you to nurture relationships with new people from all around the world.”

Most people would like to have a large number of followers, which might not be as necessary as it seems to create a credible personal brand.

A little piece of yourself can help people trust youTap into your personal brand to build and expand your businessmedium.com

“A large follower account can certainly be helpful, but more importantly, your personal brand should have an engaged follower base,” Gaenzle said. “If you have 10,000 followers but zero conversations and zero engagement, that will get you nowhere.

“On the other hand, if you have 1,000 followers — and you consistently start long conversations, your followers regularly retweet and engage with your content — your personal brand will reach much further and have a bigger impact,” he said.

Sklar definitely leans on the quality side.

“It’s more important to have a loyal, engaged following than it is to have a large following,” she said. “Sometimes those who have a lot of followers see very little impressions and engagement on their content.

“What’s the point of having a huge following if those people aren’t taking notice of the content you share?” Sklar asked.

Hootsuite Follower Tips

Those in the market for quality followers might note tips and tricks from Nick Martin, social listening and engagement strategist at Hootsuite, a social media management platform. He gave three tips for getting more Twitter followers:

• Find a unique voice. Carve out a niche people want to be a part of.
• Post visuals to say what you can’t in 280 words.
• Engage with brands you like. Their followers may align with your brand, too.

Hootsuite has 27 more tips that can help you increase your follower count.

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Sklar also has suggestions to get more Twitter followers:

• Tweet consistently.
• Listen to others.
• Engage, engage, engage.
• Follow others.

Her article featuring Two Hour Digital has more tips to get followers.

Those who have different personal and business brands will have to tell them apart.

“You need to be able to differentiate through tone and voice,” Gaenzle said. “You can showcase parts of your personality, your life and the rest that one wouldn’t find within your business brand.”

Content also should be different.

“Decide what you want to share on your business accounts versus your personal accounts,” Sklar said. “It helps to set boundaries regarding the types of content you want to share and topics you want to discuss.”

Relationships Come First

Numbers aside, relationships are central to build networks on Twitter.

“The most important thing to keep in mind is that you should focus on helping others,” Gaenzle said. “If you’re building relationships for your benefit alone, the relationships will fail.

“Build relationships that are mutually beneficial,” he said. “Be sure you can actually add value for the people you’re connecting with. Actively seek out ways to help without asking for anything in return.”

That comes from putting your content second.

“Share others’ content,” Gaenzle said. “Mention people in your Tweets. Join in conversations with useful answers. Be in the moment, and stay engaged. Don’t be afraid to highlight what makes you…you.

“Take the time to show people you add value for them and you’re not just in it for you,” he said. “That’s when the magic happens.”

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Good practices on one platform carry over to others.

“It’s all about how you can help others on Twitter — and should be on other channels as well,” Gaenzle said. “That’s one super valuable thing anyone looking to build a personal brand on Twitter needs to know.”

Just like a business, success stems from putting people first.

“If you want to build relationships and grow your network on Twitter, make sure you’re engaging with people,” Sklar said. “Prioritize having genuine, one-on-one conversations by replying to tweets you receive and starting conversations on your own.

“Find Twitter chats and rooms in Spaces on topics you’re interested in, and become a regular participant,” she said. “These discussions are such an easy way to meet new people.”

Not a One-Trick Pony

Different types of content work best for a personal brand.

“Variety is the key,” Gaenzle said. “Posts links to useful articles. Create all-text tweets, lists and polls. Don’t always make it about you. Share others’ content as well. Provide useful insights and answers to help others grow.

“Be passionate about what you create,” he said. “Then understand your audience thoroughly so you can find that intersection.”

It is tempting to repeat what works, although it is easy to go to the well too often.

“Just constantly posting links to articles on Twitter doesn’t work,” Gaenzle said. “You need to mix in conversational tweets, join existing conversations and be all in.

“When you figure something out and gain from it, share that knowledge with the world,” he said. “We’re all in this together. Helping others helps us each grow.”

A Twitter Content Plan Helps to Guide You In the Right WayTweeting should be a big part of everyone’s marketing campaignsmedium.datadriveninvestor.com

The sweet spot is finding a happy medium.

“Content that works best is the content that appeals to both you and your audience,” Sklar said. “You need to love what you’re creating and sharing and so does your target audience.

“I love using my own custom GIFs as well as video,” she said. “It’s such a great way to stand out and get noticed.”

Getting a personal brand verified on Twitter might sound more prestigious than it really is.

“It isn’t mission critical,” Gaenzle said. “The blue check can be helpful for some, but it’s not a necessity. It can definitely give a boost to your profile, though.

“I found my follower numbers grew more quickly after being verified,” he said. “My engagement has gone up as well. Coincidence? Maybe. Not sure.”

All About Verifying

For anyone looking to take the verification journey, Gaenzle has a guide from his experience.

“If I can get verified, Madalyn should be 10 times verified and have a gold badge,” Gaenzle said “That said, if you have 93,000 followers who verify you, it’s certainly not a necessity for Twitter success in any way.”

Sklar also does not put a premium on verification.

“While having a verification badge on Twitter is nice, it’s not a necessity,” she said. “Don’t feel bad if you haven’t been able to get verified yet.

“I’ve tried many times and have been turned down,” Sklar said. “I guess I’m just not worthy enough in their eyes.”

There’s a hashtag for that, if you do it rightKnow the basics of hashtags to market your businessmedium.datadriveninvestor.com

Also enticing and not an absolute need is to have a unique branded hashtag.

“Having a branded hashtag isn’t a requirement, but it’s a nice touch,” Sklar said. “Hashtags allow you to link your related content. Plus, you can encourage others to use your hashtag to source user-generated content for retweeting.

“I started the #TwitterSmarter hashtag in 2013 as a way for me to share helpful articles and resources that help people understand ways to use Twitter better,” she said. “Nine years later and I still do this daily.”

Translating NFTs

Sklar has also launched a new branded hashtag: #NFTsmarter.

“I’ve spent a month learning about Web3 and NFTs — it’s fascinating,” she said. “I want to share what I’m learning with others.”

Crypto and Culture Meet and Greet in the New World of NFTsArtists go digital to win control of their valuable creationsmedium.com

Like Sklar, Gaenzle capitalizes on hashtags for chats.

“A branded hashtag can be useful,” he said. “The more people share that hashtag, the more the word spreads about your personal brand. The #TwitterSmarter hashtag is a great example.

“I use #AGMarketingChats for the Twitter chat that I run,” he said. “Plus, I use #BloggingForBusiness to promote one of my books.”

Gaenzle’s hashtag pro tip: “If you choose to use one, make sure it’s unique. Then when people search for it, you’re involved in the results that show up.”

About The Author

Jim Katzaman is a manager at Largo Financial Services and worked in public affairs for the Air Force and federal government. You can connect with him on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.