For years the answer to this question was, “No.” Then in 1997, Tom Peters published “Building Brand You: You Can’t Move Up if You Don’t Stand Out,” in Fast Company. It started a branding revolution. Branding became personal, and people became their brands.

Today, people expect to talk to their brands on social media. It’s all about building relationships and engaging your followers by opening a dialogue with them.

Social relationships take time to build. They’re nurtured just like any other relationship. Start off new relationships with personalized invitations.

Make it a habit to always extend invitations from their profile where you can add a personal note. It only takes a minute, and you’ll have a much better chance of having your invitation accepted.

Follow your invitation with a series of personalized messages. You can save time with a well-planned series of lead-building messages, but you’ll still need to get up close and personal by customizing your messaging for each individual.

Always remember that there’s a human being on the other end of your message.

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