One of my loyal blog readers asked: I’ve learned from you and others that personal branding is a must if you want to set yourself up as an expert in your given area. Therefore, I’ve been positioning myself via my websites by personally branding myself. I have a few trusted advisors who are black women. They suggested that I needed to take my face off of my site to create a “colorless” business if I wanted to be known beyond the black construct. They said that I should use a white woman vs. myself to be the face of my business. Did you go through any of this? If so, how did you overcome it?
Thank you for asking me this question. First of all, I will answer your first question. No, I’ve not really faced this. But I also never write or talk about being a successful black woman in business. I only talk about how to become successful in business. I don’t think anyone cares that I’m African-American. They only care about whether my information can help them in running their small business better.
Now, your business is very different from mine; I am selling information and my small business expertise. You are selling services. In your case, I would not necessarily brand your name or your face to your business other than on your “about” page. Look at your top competitors. I do not see many virtual assistants who focus on their personal brand. They have focused on a company name like my VA, YourJobMyOffice.com. I think you should consider renaming your business and do the same. No one cares that you are black, they just care that you are good.
Make sure that your website features video testimonials from satisfied customers and highlights what your niche is as a virtual assistant. Do you do accounting backend services, scheduling, travel coordination, social media marketing, email & newsletter management, WordPress set-up and maintenance or copy editing? I would want to know these things before I even schedule a consultation with you.
If you make sure your website highlights what you do and the types of businesses your company focuses on, you won’t go wrong.
Do you have any advice for this reader?
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