You can’t stand out and sizzle in the spotlight if your online bio is blah. I can give you a basic template to follow, but that alone won’t do it. If you want my advice how to write a bio, I’ll tell you this: you need to infuse it with language that will show not tell. THEN you plug that great, visually charged language into your bio and people will start to take notice.
CASE STUDY: “ANTHONY”
I recently worked with Anthony (not his real name) on jazzing up his bio on Facebook, Linked In, and Twitter. He is an account executive with a new media company whose client list includes Silicon Valley biggies . First let’s start with his short Facebook bio:
“I’m an account executive for Company Name.”
He didn’t have much more than that, so it gave us a fresh canvas to work on. I asked him to describe the work he does. He got a little technical, then I asked him to simplify it even more.
“At the end of the day,” I asked him, “what do you really deliver?”
“I’m the rainmaker”, he quickly replied.
As the “rainmaker”, he brings in high paying, high profile clients, maintains great relationships with them, and (even though he insisted this is NOT what he does),schmoozes and keeps the people happy.
We jotted down “rainmaker” in a few of his online profiles, but at second glance it felt too cryptic. I didn’t want anyone to confuse him with a weather reporter or a Dustin Hoffman movie, so I asked him to go back and explain to me more of what he does. I allowed him to think aloud, uninterrupted. A minute or two into his mental unloading, he said the word “bridge”.
That was the kind of phrase I was looking for, something easy to visualize. Even though bridge is often overused, in this case it sounded right. I asked him to explain how he sees himself as a bridge.
“I’m the bridge between the corporate decision makers and our incredible creative team.”
If you’ve ever been stuck in a chasm of misunderstanding between left and right brain types, then you know the value of someone who can work between these two for mutual benefit. Changing “rainmaker” to “bridge” shifted the focus to spotlight Anthony’s skills, his company’s talents, and the prestige of his clients.
I’ll be posting more about Anthony’s online bio metamorphosis. First we needed that anchor phrase to grab people, then in my next report I’ll show you how we hipped it up with personal info that speaks volumes about him as a person and a professional.
A bio needs to have more than a template driven list of information. Adding some spice to it with strong words will make visitors stop, take notice, and perhaps even do business with you!
Here’s what to do:
Go take a look at your online bio, especially on your social networking pages.
How does it invite people to take a second look at you?
Does it appropriately spotlight your talents?
Do you use language that is visually charged, using the “show don’t tell” philosophy?
Put these tips into place and chart the results for yourself.
About Nancy Marmolejo
