SEARCH RESULTS. First and foremost. The instant barometer of your brand. Because if you don’t exist on Google, you don’t exist. And ideally, you’d like people to see as many of the following hits at the highest possible ranking:
Content demonstrating your unique expertise. Blog posts. Articles. Newsletters. Whitepapers. Ebooks. Tweets. All of which fall underneath the umbrella of your philosophy. Your unique approach. Your theory of the universe. What did you write today?
Interviews supporting your Thought Leadership Platform. Podcasts. Television. Radio. Print. Blog interviews. All of which validate your authority by virtue of third party media reaching out to YOU. And these interviews are either about you, quoting you, or exploring your expertise. When was the last time you were interviewed?
Videos portraying your interesting personality. You speaking on stage. You in action. You behind the scenes. You doing what you do. You being you. All of which show people (instead of "tell" people) why you’re awesome. And these things help your customers get to know YOU. How much money are you losing by (not) leveraging online video?
Testimonials confirming your perceived trustworthiness. Links to your content. Re-tweets about your awesomeness. Blogs about your products. Word of mouth about your service. All of which reinforce for potential clients, "Somebody has trusted this person before me." Who’s talking about you?
Pictures showing you in action. Ideally, doing what you do. Acting on your passion. Working with clients. Being YOU. Pictures consistent with your brand. NOT pictures of you hanging out at bars getting schnockered with your former sorority sisters. Do you want to become known for what you’re about to do?
