Being Authentic in Business

Authenticity in business is a big deal! It builds the know, like, trust factor and helps our target audience see more of who we are.

But there is a fine line between authenticity and oversharing. 

Authenticity is sharing things in your life that are relevant to your business or help people get to know you better. Oversharing is giving me information that doesn't benefit me, help me get to know or connect with you, or tell me about your business. I see this line crossed pretty often, all for the sake of authenticity and it can seriously damage your business.

If you find that you are having trouble determining what is authentic and what is oversharing, ask yourself "does what I'm sharing provide value in some way?", "is what I'm sharing relevant to my business?", and "is sharing this on brand for my business?". These are sure fire ways to stay away from oversharing and possibly driving customers away.

As a business owner, it is your job to make sure you are nurturing your ideal client at all times. This may come in the form of sharing a personal story that relates to business, or this may be in the form of a motivational quote. Depending on who your target audience is, you will need to tailor your content for that person. So while it is important to always be authentic, it is also important to understand who you are speaking to in order to prevent oversharing.

For example, I use to work for a business finance company that had a pretty relaxed culture (I'm talking, get invited to your bosses house for parties relaxed). I am an open book and if people ask me questions they will always get very raw and honest answers. My boss at the time was pretty laid back and I chose to match this energy when he would ask me personal questions, often leading me to overshare with him. I remember him telling me so on more than one occasion. Because I did not want to make him uncomfortable I had to tailor my responses to his questions while still being honest. Doing this was not an easy task but over time I learned where his boundaries were and we were able to have personal conversations without stepping over this line in the sand.

This is how you need to approach your marketing. Understanding who you are talking to will help you tailor your approach while still being authentic and standing in your integrity. If you don't have a really solid client avatar, I suggest you take the time to nail down that person. Ask yourself questions like, "how old is this person?", "where do they live?", "do they have a family and kids?", "what kind of personality do they have?". Getting to the really nitty gritty of your ideal client will help you make sure that even in times of chaos you can still communicate with your audience in a way that is authentic and open without oversharing by mistake!