In today’s job market, job seekers inevitably want to get hired and are constantly seeking new and unique ways to brand themselves so to stand out from the crowd. However, with so many professionals trying to establish their personal brands off and online, it may seem that it is becoming increasingly challenging to stand out and get noticed in one’s industry or area of expertise and interest.
I reached out to fellow job seekers and career experts for effective personal branding tips that could help you distinguish yourself to your chosen and targeted audience of employers, and here are some top tips that I compiled to share with you today:
Learn or Master a Skill
Focus on your area of expertise that you want to be known for. Stick to what you’re good at, and then make it even better it. How? For starters, don’t do what everyone else is doing. Don’t go to the local non-profit organization and volunteer your time, joining its marketing team to end up doing whatever task comes your way. Take control of the direction of your marketing project. Go online, research, and commit to learning one new focused skill; pick a skill that increases your value in your expertise. This is your new job for now. Really commit to it, and spend the time it takes to learn it. Master it. Then, go to someone in your target audience, and offer that skill to them to solve a problem. Show them how you can help them; offer them your solution. Make it the best. Wow them with it. - Maren Finzer, www.marenfinzer.com
Write a Book
I’ve been lecturing and writing about careers for quite a while now and the best branding advice I can give is this: write a book. Or, an e-book at least. Choose a unique title to enhance your branding efforts. Include the e-book when job-applying online. Ideally, you can afford to have an actual book printed and can include it with your resume when you’re being interviewed in person. Don’t let the idea a writing a book deter you–books nowadays don’t fit the traditional definition. They can be a collection of blog articles. Or, short manuscripts. (I’ve been some that have fewer than 30 pages, some of which contain a simple quotation.) You could even outline the knowledge/expertise that brands you and hire a ghostwriter. - Marlene Caroselli, www.caroselli.biz
Plan an Event
Plan a local event for your industry. Sounds crazy, right? With the popularity of “un-conferences” growing, it’s possible for anyone to plan an event for their industry. Local project manager Jason Brett planned ProductCamp Atlanta. He recruited sponsors to pay for the food and facility. He invited everyone he knows in the industry. 200 people RSVPed for the free event and 185 people attended. It was held on the Georgia tech campus, which provided ample parking and free wireless access. Jason used consistent branding for himself and for the event – so that his name became well-known throughout the community. Jason received a job offer within 30 days of the event. - Brandy Nagel
Use Video
Because personal branding is just that –personal– one of the most effective tools we teach our clients is to allow potential employers (or customers) that “VIP-Access to get to know you” via use of video. We encourage our clients, for example, to produce a 6-part series of 60 second videos sharing relevant information to not only show their expertise, but also to allow others the chance to understand their personality and build a following. Potential employers start to like you before you’ve even met face to face. Suddenly, you are walking into an interview where everyone has already watched your carefully built You Tube channel and vlog posts (they watched it while you slept) and they feel like they know you. You are a friend on their doorstep, while the other candidates are strangers they’ve never met. And you know the rule about that. Never talk to strangers. - Aly & Andrea, www.AlyandAndrea.com
Special thanks to everyone who contributed to this wealth of personal branding insight!
Chris Perry is a Gen Y Brand and Marketing Generator, a Career Search and Personal Branding Expert and the Founder of Career Rocketeer, the Career Search and Personal Branding Blog.
