“Personal branding” and “mobile” are two terms trending off the charts in 2010. It only makes sense that the combination, building a personal brand via mobile, is the next evolutionary step.
I realize not everyone owns a smartphone. Unfortunately, without an iPhone, Blackberry, or similar device, mobile personal branding will be extremely difficult. In today’s fast-paced environment, a smartphone is a near necessity for those looking to stay connected and build a personal brand from the road. If you aren’t yet convinced that a smartphone is right for you, hopefully this post will do the trick!
Here are 7 ways to build your personal brand via mobile, at any time of the day and from anywhere in the world.
1. Social Networking
Staying connected to your network from the road is easier today than ever before. In fact, social networking via mobile applications is often simpler than from a desktop computer! Facebook and Linkedin offer their own powerful mobile apps, and Twitter has more 3rd-party apps than you can count. My favorite is Tweetie 2 for iPhone, which is a steal at only $2.99, providing all the Twitter functionality you could ever dream of.
2. Location-Based Networking
Location-based networks such as Foursquare and Gowalla have recently become hugely popular. In short, these applications allow you to broadcast your exact location to the world. Truth be told, location-based networking might be too intrusive for some. But for others, this new functionality provides an interesting opportunity to further your brand.
3. Mobile RSS Feed
A huge part of personal branding is remaining knowledgeable on your given niche. I read many different blogs pertaining to my field everyday, and 90% of them I read from the road. MobileRSS is a free iPhone app that syncs with your Google Reader feed, and delivers all the latest news to your mobile doorstep in real-time.
4. Business Cards
Wait a minute, business cards aren’t high-tech! True, business cards might seem like an ancient relic, but they still serve their purpose better than any imitator. Need to deliver your information to someone you meet on the road? No better way than to hand them a business card that contains all the details you wish to convey (including where to find you on the web).
5. Google Docs
In the land before Google, you carried your documents with you on a floppy disk, or worse…you e-mailed files to yourself to be opened later! Today, Google Docs has solved the previously perplexing dilemma of how to access files from the road. You can open and save any type of file to Google Docs, and view the files from any computer or phone with a network connection.
6. Mobile Blog Theme
One aspect of building a brand around mobile technology is recognizing that others will be viewing your work via mobile as well. If you write a blog, you’ll want to consider installing a mobile theme for easy viewing from any smartphone. My blog Personal Branding 101 utilizes WPtouch iPhone theme, which aims to format the site perfectly for smartphone readers. (Also note that via WordPress you can publish blog posts from a mobile phone as well.)
7. Your Own Smartphone App
Want to take #6 a step further? With MotherApp you can create your own iPhone app that displays your blog posts and tweets. The service is free if you allow ads and share revenue 50/50, or you can pay a one-time fee of $99 to avoid ads. Yes, your app would actually appear in the iTunes Store – incredible, right? Check out Guy Kawasaki’s iPhone app for an interesting example.
Building a personal brand from the road once would have seemed like an impossible task. But today, the tools and technologies available have changed the game significantly. What do you think? Do you know of any other great ways to build your brand via mobile?
Ryan Rancatore can be found discussing the latest topics and trends related to building a brand at Personal Branding 101. Connect with Ryan on Twitter at @RyanRancatore, or on Linkedin or Facebook.
