Out here in free agent nation, millions of independent business professionals are pounding the pavement, attending networking events, and sharing their messages via cyberspace and social networks as they seek more perfect clients and media opportunities. The trouble is, many of them are failing to launch because the stories they tell about their background, experience, and qualifications are falling way too short of the mark.
Now more than ever, decision makers are doing business with PEOPLE as opposed to companies. That means they need to like, trust, and respect you immediately in order to engage.
If the story you share in your online bio or social networking profile is bland, boring, and unremarkable, you’ve built a roadblock that can stand in the way of attracting the perfect engagements you seek. Here are among the most common bio blunders independent business professionals make that can stop opportunity in its tracks.
Arrogance
- Lofty language
- Too many five dollar words that don’t count for a lot
- Too many words that say too little
- The story leaves you with a gut feeling that this emperor has no clothes
- You feel at arms length as opposed to wanting to lean in and engage.
Blah, Blah, Blah, Boring, and Boilerplate
- The words scream “Who cares!”
- The story conveys no personality
- Unmemorable and unremarkable information put the reader to sleep
Content
- Crisis of credibility
- Absence of credentials or proof to your claims
- Absence of clarity about who you serve and why it matters
- “Cute” stories that don’t deliver relevant, compelling content
- Too little content, too much content, and absence of “right sized” choices to suit the right media or new business occasion at hand
Differentiation
- Information is disconnected and fails to tell a compelling story
- The words read like every other professional in your category
- Absence of memorable, remarkable, and stunning results, quotes, facts, or compelling information
Failure to Compel
- There is a “so what” reader reaction that doesn’t bring you clients or opportunities fast
- Frustration continues to mount, along with your obligations.
If you are fed up, fired up, and finally ready to do something about it, here are three suggestions.
- Put your own bio through these filters.
- Revisit the content to lead with your stunning results, succinct stories, sassy sound bites, and social information to help your ideal clients connect with you.
- Share your new and improved story with the right decision makers to invite more of the right opportunities you seek.
You get one chance to make a fabulous first impression. Take the time to showcase what you bring to the marketplace in a compelling, memorable way in your online bio and social networking profiles. That will increase the likelihood that ideal clients will learn to like, trust, and respect you more readily, and you will likely get to "YES" a whole lot faster.
Above all else, remember this. It’s your story. Tell it well.
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