With Instagram's staggering 2.4 billion active users and Tik Tok boasting over 1 billion monthly users, social media platforms are the ultimate stage to flaunt your personal brand and showcase your expertise. Despite these opportunities, there's even more pressure to be ‘perfect’ online.
By now, we are well-versed with the pressures on women stemming from social media and its impact on the next generation, with research showing that 51% of women between the ages of 18 and 24 feel the demand to be perfect. However, with social media being used more and more for recruitment and being authentic online seeming the key way to securing new opportunities, how do we ensure we’re putting our best foot forward?
Louise Christian, Education Manager at Sol de Janeiro, a brand who attributes 90% of their growth to success with organic social, has witnessed firsthand the huge impact that online authenticity can have. She says “It’s really important to maintain an authentic online presence by being open and honest about your own experiences. It deepens the connections between you and your followers, and allows you to better reflect your own values and beliefs.”
This philosophy works for brands and individuals alike. Daisy Morris is a community strategist, author of ‘Community Is Your Currency’, and Founder of creative content consultancy, The Selfhood. She believes an authentic presence is the opposite of creating to appease the algorithm and others, sharing that “the creators and brands who thrive are the ones who share because they love their craft and their community can feel that.”
So, why is authenticity so important? Louise explains audiences are so much more aware of inauthenticity now and actively move away from accounts who display it, wanting to discover all there is to know about their favourite creators, warts and all. Daisy agrees, “we have to remember that the same way we earn trust in real life: being sincere in our approach to life, standing by values, being trustworthy, reliable, accountable, self aware and honest will serve us in the URL space as well as the IRL space.”
How to build an authentic online presence
Although Louise admits it is nerve-wracking to share openly on social channels, and normal to feel out of your comfort zone, this approach appeals much more to the audience of today. She says that speaking openly to connect with your followers, taking an unfiltered approach and trying not to overplan are three ways she would recommend staying authentic online. Daisy’s most powerful piece of advice she can give is to lean into the things that make you unique and magnify them. “Cookie cutter content may gain you short term traction, but if you want to establish a brand that feels aligned and true to you, give yourself permission to explore how you create content. Treat it like an art project, don’t focus too hard on the outcome. Outcome focused creation (whether it’s art, content, music or anything else) immediately redirects us from our creative flow state, believing content created from flow state is when the magic happens.”
Louise Christian, Education Manager at Sol de Janeiro
Who is leading the way?
Sol de Janeiro have been praised for being able to connect with audiences in a genuine way, by harnessing customer feedback and keeping their finger on the pulse. Louise shares some insight into how they have amassed this large and loyal social following. She says “Our Sol de Janeiro social platforms embrace our brand values with every interaction and for me this is what makes them connect so well with the audience. We celebrate self-love, self-joy and self-celebration on our social channels just how we would if we were talking about our products in-person!”
If you need anymore inspiration on how to successfully build a strong, authentic personal brand, Daisy suggests checking out:
- Stef Sword Williams (founder of Fuck Being Humble)
- Tiwalola Ogunlesi (founder of Confident and Killing it)
- Giselle La Pompe Moore (author of Take It In)
- Kelsey McCormick (founder of Coming Up Roses)
- Nafisa Bakkar (author of How To Make Money)
- Charlotte Stavrou (founder of Seven Six agency)
- Chloe Pierre (founder of thy.self and author of Take Care)
Why are they good examples of how to be authentic online? Daisy explains that each of these women have a memorable mission within different industries, missions they are known and respected for amongst their communities. She recognises that they speak up on issues they feel are important, share knowledge, resources, personal stories, career anecdotes, failures, lessons, highs and lows.
Unlocking career opportunities
“Building an online presence has so many benefits for boosting your career- from positioning yourself as a thought leader, getting more eyes on the work you do, opening up the door to more opportunities, and most importantly magnetising a network and community of likeminded people who can shout your name in rooms you may not know exist yet,” shares Daisy.
Despite these opportunities at our fingertips, it can be scary to take the plunge and be ourselves online. Daisy considers comparison culture to be the ultimate thief of authenticity. She suggests focusing on micro steps when it comes to building an authentic presence and reminds us we do not have to dive straight in and share three TikToks a day in order to establish ourselves. Her final word of encouragement is to understand “there is a vulnerability to sharing on the digital stage set by social media, allow yourself time to find your flow, experiment, and find your people. I would also say that engaging with others and facilitating meaningful conversation is just as important as sharing your own thoughts too.”
For more inspiration on presenting yourself authentically online, follow Sol de Janeiro now.