The LinkedIn Marketer: Karen Hollenbach Karen Hollenbach

In this episode I explore the three steps involved with embracing and developing your personal brand, and suggest a series of questions to consider.



1. Managing the discomfort of personal branding

Some of us think our work should speak for itself and we should not have to be active on LinkedIn. The world has changed and you do need to show up on LinkedIn and share your perspective from time to time. Questions I ask you to consider to help you navigate and develop your personal brand include:




What makes you feel uncomfortable about personal branding?
What are your values and how does this relate to your career?
What are your short and medium term professional goals?
What expertise would you like to share with others?
Who do you identify as like-minded individuals?
What in real life or online forums can you attend with these types of people?



2. Develop a Personal Branding Strategy

Crafting a personal brand requires more than just an ad hoc approach – it demands a well-thought-out strategy. Once you’ve delved into the various factors shaping your brand, you must assess your commitment to maintaining a cohesive online presence anchored in a strategic content framework. This entails understanding the communities you aim to serve and identifying aspects of your personality that resonate with them and align with your comfort level in sharing. Questions to consider:


What do you want to be known for in terms of your expertise?
What do you want to be known for in terms of your professional approach? e.g. helpful, expert, etc
What is your detailed client avatar / persona?
What are the topic areas you assist your clients with?
What are your perspectives on particular industry topics that interest current and potential clients?
What other topics or issues do you care about that is/are relevant to your ideal client, and that you want to commentate on?

3. Taking risks with your personal brand

While most of the insights I share focus on offering practical value in LinkedIn Marketing, this podcast episode and the Thought Starter category of articles on Think Bespoke's knowledge base offer more introspective pieces, and take me beyond my comfort zone to provoke deeper thoughts and discussions.

Striking a balance between asserting my convictions and maintaining approachability is at the heart of personal branding. It’s conceivable that a robust personal brand might alienate certain segments. This ongoing journey underscores the iterative nature of personal branding—a continuous process of refinement and adaptation.



Resources mentioned in this episode:



Karen's Substack: Confessions of an Ambivert

https://karenhollenbach.substack.com/



Knowledge Base: Thought Starters category of articles:

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/category/thought-starters/



Virtual LinkedIn Consults with Karen

https://info.thinkbespoke.com.au/meetings/karenhollenbach/meeting-with-karen-hollenbach



Sign up to Karen's newsletter

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Get a free preview of LinkedIn Profile Essentials

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/linkedin-online-learning/

Learn more about Karen' LinkedIn Marketing Mentoring

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/linkedin-marketing-mentoring


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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/5minlinkedinmarketer/message

In this episode I explore how LinkedIn has changed in more recent years and what this means in terms of how I recommend you approach it. I discuss the trend of being vulnerable, the humble brag and provide suggestions for how I encourage Think Bespoke's clients to start more conversations and build stronger business relationships on LinkedIn, including:


respond to invitations to connect with a conversational follow up message
follow up face to face conversations with new contacts by inviting them to connect on LinkedIn
react (e.g like, etc) to relevant posts and updates shared by colleagues
comment when you can genuinely add value to the discussion
share relevant and insightful content (e.g. useful articles you have read) and remember to stay focussed on your chosen topic areas

I recommend you take the time to consider your plan for LinkedIn. An intentional and strategic approach will deliver greater results over time.



Sign up to Karen's newsletter

https://share.hsforms.com/1IJbsofhGQP-dVnPh6-dQMw3cymv

Get a free preview of LinkedIn Profile Essentials

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/linkedin-online-learning/

Learn more about Karen' LinkedIn Marketing Mentoring

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/linkedin-marketing-mentoring




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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/5minlinkedinmarketer/message

In this episode I share a resource with you that was requested by one of the Marketers who I am mentoring as part of my LinkedIn Marketing Mentoring program. With a number of client facing team members playing a key role in the implementation of this organisation's LinkedIn marketing plan, he was keen to develop a checklist that summarises the key actions the team needs to take to maximise LinkedIn, now they have a company page and profile strategies in place.



Tune in as I walk you through the 11 items on this checklist and how they were developed based on the 5 modules in the LinkedIn Marketing Mentoring program, including:


LinkedIn Profile Strategy
LinkedIn Page Strategy
Networking & Sales Rituals
Marketing & Content Rituals
Measuring Success

Resources mentioned in this episode:

LinkedIn Marketing Plan Checklist

https://hubs.ly/Q02pVJZq0

Content Marketing Strategy Playbook

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/product/content-marketing-strategy-playbook/

Sign up to Karen's newsletter

https://share.hsforms.com/1IJbsofhGQP-dVnPh6-dQMw3cymv

Get a free preview of LinkedIn Profile Essentials

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/linkedin-online-learning/

Learn more about Karen' LinkedIn Marketing Mentoring

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/linkedin-marketing-mentoring


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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/5minlinkedinmarketer/message

Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠thinkbespoke.com.au⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for more LinkedIn Marketing tips.

In this episode I explore the reason why I developed the LinkedIn journey. It's the 5 stages I use to explain LinkedIn to help individuals and organisations assess their LinkedIn training needs and the key steps they need to take to maximise LinkedIn for their career or business. These steps include:


Understanding
Branding
Networking
Rituals
Thought Leadership

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Sign up to Karen's newsletter

https://share.hsforms.com/1IJbsofhGQP-dVnPh6-dQMw3cymv

Get a free preview of LinkedIn Profile Essentials

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/linkedin-online-learning/

Learn more about Karen' LinkedIn Marketing Mentoring

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/linkedin-marketing-mentoring


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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/5minlinkedinmarketer/message

Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠thinkbespoke.com.au⁠⁠⁠⁠ for more LinkedIn Marketing tips.

In this episode I explore changes LinkedIn has announced for the LinkedIn Profile feature called Creator Mode. This feature offers benefits for LinkedIn members with free accounts. In this episode I explore some of the features and benefits of Creator Mode including creator tools, link in bio and the recent change to choose Follow or Connect as the main CTA for other LinkedIn members visiting your profile for the first time.



To read more about this feature visit Think Bespoke's knowledge base and read my articles about Creator Mode, LinkedIn Newsletters the link in your LinkedIn Profile intro card and my case study about running a LinkedIn Live.



Resources mentioned in this episode:

Sign up to Karen's newsletter

https://share.hsforms.com/1IJbsofhGQP-dVnPh6-dQMw3cymv

Get a free preview of LinkedIn Profile Essentials

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/linkedin-online-learning/

Learn more about Karen' LinkedIn Marketing Mentoring

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/linkedin-marketing-mentoring






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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/5minlinkedinmarketer/message

Visit ⁠⁠⁠thinkbespoke.com.au⁠⁠⁠ for more LinkedIn Marketing tips.

This episode is a great one to share with leaders in your organisation who may be feeling tentative about being more active on LinkedIn. In this episode I explore 5 key steps you can take to help you get started with better leveraging LinkedIn to control what recruiters, potential clients and employers can find out about you online, including:

1. Take Control of Your Online Presence

2. Lock Down Your Privacy Settings on Social Media & Apps

3. Decide Your Focus for LinkedIn

4. Take a Fresh Look at Your Profile

5. Ask Colleagues & Clients to Endorse & Recommend You



Resources mentioned in this episode:

Sign up to Karen's newsletter

https://share.hsforms.com/1IJbsofhGQP-dVnPh6-dQMw3cymv



Get a free preview of LinkedIn Profile Essentials

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/linkedin-online-learning/



Learn more about Karen' LinkedIn Marketing Mentoring

https://thinkbespoke.com.au/linkedin-marketing-mentoring


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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/5minlinkedinmarketer/message