6 Ways to Become Known as an Industry Expert

Our brand is our reputation. It's built upon our stories and expertise, and our willingness to share our knowledge. In today's socially connected world our reputations have become global, making our brand more important than ever.

Here are six ways you can share your valuable knowledge with others and become known as an expert in your field:

1. Become Social. Tweet and retweet in your area of expertise, share relevant articles, white papers or videos from other experts in your field, and consider developing a Facebook business page for your expertise. Be sure to credit the original sources of content you share. Answer questions from followers, start conversations, share tips and do so consistently and you will soon be a trusted source of information in your field. A great example here is my friend Cindy Ratzlaff. Check out her Facebook page.
2. Speak. Look for a trade association meeting, industry conference, convention or Webinars in your field and look for opportunities to speak. You can submit to be a panelist or make a presentation at workshops. No matter what your field, there's likely a circle of influence you can tap into for connections and leads. Make sure you write up a speaker's page on your website, highlighting the topics you speak about. Include your speaking expertise on LinkedIn and join forums to look for other ways to network. A new site that matches speakers with speaking opportunities is Speakerfile. It looks promising.
3. Write a blog. Writing blogs on a consistent basis is a great way to showcase your knowledge, promote your expertise and develop your brand. Approach your blogs with a perspective of wanting to help people. Use tips and takeaways that are actionable. Blogs can also help you promote your expertise in social media outlets. Another benefit of regularly writing blogs is once you have enough content, you can turn those blogs into a book or e-book.
4. Write your book. A book can be your calling card about who you are, what you do, and most importantly, your expertise. One of my clients just published an enhanced e-book about becoming Camera Ready, and I love how she shares her expertise about looking great on videos.
5. Run a workshop or webinar. One of the best ways to become known as an expert in your field is to host a free webinar and help other people. You can share tips and strategies and take questions from callers or questions posted on your website or through your conference call offering. Not only will you be helping people, but you can also promote your website, your social media sites, your book and your blog -- your expertise.
6. Network online and offline. There is so much attention given to online networking, we forget how important it is to see people Face2Face. It is still one of the best ways to make meaningful connections. I was recently at the BlogHer conference and felt rejuvenated by meeting so many smart and fabulous women. Not to mention hearing and seeing Katie Couric talk about her new show. Conferences provide you with the opportunity to network, connect with other people, get referrals and expand your network. You can promote yourself and your expertise with your business card and by following up after the conference is over. Remember to connect with your new "friends" on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google+ or/and LinkedIn.

With a little bit of focused effort, a plan and time, you can become known as an expert in your industry.

© 2012 Fauzia Burke. All Rights Reserved.

Fauzia Burke is the Founder and President of FSB Associates, a digital publicity and marketing firm specializing in creating awareness for books and authors. She'll be speaking at the DBW Discoverability & Marketing Conference on September 24, 2012. For digital publicity and social media news, please follow Fauzia on Twitter: @FauziaBurke.