Yesterday, I told you about how being personally invisible, flying below radar, had cost me literally tens of thousands of dollars when one of my customers couldn't find me on the internet.

That was the day I decided to create a personal brand, the idea of Terry that would exist on the internet, the search engines, and social media to make sure that anyone who wanted to write me a check was able to find me.

The very first thing I did was to register the domain TerryLancaster.com and that website became the jumping off point for everything I've done since then. I'll go into more detail about the steps I took over the next couple of days, but let's just say I'd better be careful about running up any gambling debts with the mob. There's no way I can hide from anyone anymore.

The days of me being invisible are long gone.

If you Google me now, Google will tell you, right on the front page, who I am, what I do, how to get in touch with me, and what my customers think of me (plus their five-star ratings). The truth is, I don't even put my phone number or email address on my business cards anymore. It just says "if you want to get in touch with me, Google me."

Google is telling the story I want you to hear.

And the very first listing on the very first page is TerryLancaster.com.

Owning the website for YourName.com is the gold standard for being found in the search engines. YourName.com will be one of the first things the searchbots look at when they're scouring the net for YOUR NAME. And when you own YourName.com it gives a subtle signal to your customers that you're kind of big deal. You're not just another salesperson. You are somebody. You are YOUR NAME.

So right now, while it's fresh on your mind go check and see if YourName.com is available to register. I use GoDaddy, but there's no shortage of place where you can register a domain. If YourName.com is still available. Register it. Today. Right Freaking Now. Don't think about it.

It will be the best $15 you ever spend.

Now of course if your name happens to be Bob Smith, Jane Johnson, or Kim Kardashian odds are that YourName.com isn't going to be available. You're gonna have to get creative.

The important thing, in that case, is to make sure Your Name and .com are included. The .com is always going to win the bot wars and Your Name is the search term that we're optimizing for so it has to be there.

I've seen people add their middle name or initial: YourMIDDLEName.com or YourIName.com

I've seen people add THE in front of their name: THEYourName.com
OR you can take a page from the Donald Trump personal branding playbook and possibly the most famous Twitter handle in the world to become TheRealYourName.com.
Keep it simple. Keep it short and keep it generic. If you add a word to indicate where you live or what you do, you've locked yourself in.

You might change jobs. You might move to a new city. But you will always be you. And you are the brand.

TODAY'S ASSIGNMENT

Register YourName.com or the closest available proximity then share your new domain in the Personal Branding Mastermind Group. We're anxious to meet the new online you!

If you've already got a personal website, share it in the group too.

If you don't I've got an extra bonus download I'll give you for making it through Day 2 of bootcamp: 7 Dirt-Cheap Ways To Build Your First Website in Under Half An Hour

I'll see you dark and early tomorrow for Day 3.​

Terry Lancaster did more to motivate me than 50 years of books and motivational presentations. He made me turn the key to get my motor running for the long journey, not the quick trip to the corner.

- Bert Copeland, Toastmasters

PS

If you've got any questions, run into any problems, or just get stuck. I'm here to help. Let's book a 25 minute no-charge, no-obligation strategy session to help get you unstuck. You can schedule your session here.