A business persona is a carefully cultivated representation of the image, personality, values, and reputation that marketers want their company to be associated with. For example, IBM is seen as the dorky all-business type with no sense of humor, and Twitter is the cool kid that everyone wants to be like.

Your persona is the embodiment of your brand philosophy and unique selling proposition, and represents the public face of your company. It reflects the values that you bring to the marketplace and helps answer the basic question of why someone should choose your company over one of your competitors.

Developing Your Persona
Identify your ideal audience. Write down a list of the adjectives that you would like this audience to use in describing your company; use this list to refine your thinking on the type of company personality most likely to appeal to your audience. Consider your product category and the nature of the solutions that you bring to the marketplace.

Determine the beliefs, values, and purposes that best represent your company philosophy. You want to create a convincing picture of your business that appeals to your customers while remaining true to your company mission.

Once you decide on a persona for your company, use it consistently throughout your marketing efforts. Never stray too far outside of your persona’s tone and voice.

Make a commitment to total transparency. Your ability to handle even the toughest issues with brutal honesty and frankness will go a long way in maintaining your positive image through good times and bad.

Creating the Action Elements of Your Business Persona
Once you have your business persona in place, you need to make sure that you’re ready to use it to full advantage in every opportunity that comes your way. Your persona should be presented consistently and accurately across all of your marketing channels and action elements such as:

Professional Headshots. Populate your social media posts, guest blogs, company website, and what-have-you with a professional image that reflects your new company persona. Get a series of professional and creative headshots taken before the need arises. Not having quality images readily available means that in a crunch you’ll end up using any old photo that you have lying around, which defeats the purpose of creating a brand persona.

A Memorable Elevator Pitch. Translate your persona into an effective elevator pitch that conveys the importance of what you do in terms of a powerful customer benefit. Rehearse it until you can deliver it convincingly and without stumbling or sounding like a robot.

Social Media Networking. Maintain an active presence on as many of the important social channels for your niche as you possibly can. Effective social strategy is all about consistency; engage with your followers, fans, and influencers on a regular basis with content that is unique to each social channel.

Social Causes That You Feel Passionate About. Support any causes that stir your passions however you can. Your involvement will speak volumes about the type of company you are, boosting your business persona while serving the cause of your choice.