To advance professionally, we must also demonstrate and share our expertise, putting ourselves and our talents into the spotlight.

I am fascinated by what it takes for someone to become known for their expertise. During my career, I’ve been a part of integrated marketing and communications teams tasked with positioning people, projects or organizations as experts.

That process has now become a big part of what I do for my freelance clients.

To advance professionally, we must also demonstrate and share our expertise, putting ourselves and our talents into the spotlight. Here are a few insights into how to position yourself as an expert.

1. Select the topic for which you want to be known. Align it with your knowledge, experience, interest and your objectives.

2. Decide on key messages that are clear, concise and memorable. With repeated use they will serve as the foundation of all your communication efforts.

3. Set clear and measurable goals to help you chart your course and measure your success.

4. Identify who you want to reach and what you want the outcome of the communication to be. Do you want audience members to be introduced to you? Do you want them to take action? Be explicit and precise because unclear objectives will undermine the effectiveness of your strategy.

5. Identify the channels that target the individuals you want to influence. Will your audience be reached via newspapers, magazines, television, blogs, speaking opportunities or social media?

6. Measure the results. It could be the volume of article downloads, media mentions, interview requests or any number of other metrics. If you can’t find a measurement associated with the goals, they might be too vague. If this is the case, it’s time to re-evaluate.

Bringing in the help you need to position yourself as an authority is also an invaluable part of the process. In other words, using the rights experts to help you showcase your expertise is a smart way to help you get the results you want quickly and effectively.

My personal branding services include: cover letter and resumes, online portfolios, business cards, press releases and other offline and online components.

If you’re looking for a really easy, streamlined process to help establish you as an expert in your field, please get in touch.