Personal branding important for personal and online interaction

Personal branding is about revealing unique strengths and it is important for professionals to bridge the gap between what professionals think they are and the perception of what they are, said Nidhi Kush Shah, founder & director of Alchemy Consulting.
At a breakfast meeting hosted yesterday by France Macau Business Association (FMBA) for corporate professionals, guest speaker Shah shared the ways and importance of building personal branding, saying that both face-to-face and online are important.
‘‘One thing I will say to all Macau professionals is that personal branding is so important whether we are working in Macau, Hong Kong or in China or any other part of the world,” she said. “In my experience of travelling in so many countries, I observe that it is important to identify what is unique to me, and then use those strengths and accomplishment to stand out from the rest. And build the connection with my clients and professionals, colleagues and leaders. So if I have to say one thing to Macau professionals, I would like to say it does not matter where we are, personal branding is really important.”
Ms. Shah pointed out that cultural differences may lead to different approaches in communicating but business networking can be achieved even in other channels.
“I know a lot of clients from Asian culture find it a little bit difficult to talk about themselves and to talk nicely and be more open.
We can brand ourselves even if I don’t want to go out and speak to a lot of people; I can maybe write quietly in my room and I can use social media, online channels to build my brand,” Shah explained when asked about special tips or suggestions for Macau professionals.
Personal contact
“Face-to-face and online branding are equally important in today’s world; a lot of social media like LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, personal websites, all are definitely important because what people do is that immediately like we met today, I think most of the people will go back and Google me about what this person is doing, so I would say both of them are equally important. And vice versa, I’m saying that if online I am very passionate and excited to be here, then I need to show that when we meet one on one,” she added.
Nidhi Kush Shah is an experienced and passionate keynote speaker, writer, facilitator and coach specialising in executive personal branding, communication skills and business networking.
In the last eight years, she has gained leadership and training experience in Australia, Hong Kong, China, Macau and India. Since its inception in 2012, Alchemy Consulting has gained popularity for providing unique, interactive and effective Learning & Development solutions.
Personal branding techniques introduced by Ms. Shah like lowering the voice can be useful, said organiser Rutger Verschuren, chairman of FMBA.
He added that the group would like to invite more guest speakers to join the meetings in future.