How to build a personal brand to attract recruiters

One of the most important topics when it comes to becoming more employable or finally getting that dream job you’ve always wanted or just getting the full out of your career is your personal brand. We purposely chose to cover this topic as our first article in 2023 because we strongly believe that people like you that are active in the job market actually need it. Hopefully, after reading this article you will have 1) a clear understanding of what personal branding is and 2) how you can build and develop it. We will also give you a quick action plan as a bonus so keep reading. 

What personal branding is

Personal branding was first coined by Tom Peters in 1997 who wrote in a magazine “You’re not defined by your job title and you’re not confined by your job description. Starting today, you are a brand.” Later in 2007, Arudda and Dixson said that “You need distinctiveness to beat out the competition.” and after 4 years Kahnenman wrote the following “How do I make people feel?” even in the supposedly reason-focused world of the modern organization. Ideally, personal brands evoke favorable emotional responses from coworkers, superiors, professional connections, and, of course, customers.

Can you spot a patent here already?

If not, it’s okay, we will come back to it later. 

In today’s job market that competition has skyrocketed you have to be different. Period. No matter what others tell you or what you see on the internet, taking the time to build a personal brand is -we’d dare to say- maybe even more important than your past experience or your degrees. And if we still didn’t manage to convince you, you can just refer to a very familiar guy that owns a very popular company -you might know it- Jeff Bezos who said “Your brand is what people say about you when you are not in the room.”..

Now let’s dive into the process of building your personal brand. Of course, if you have already built yours, you can just make some corrections to nail it.

The process

Define your brand

Before even putting the first rock to build your brand you have to do your research. While everyone says the classic “just be yourself” and not defining what the h#ck this means you have to identify your unique strengths and skills and most importantly wants. You have to consider what sets you apart from other candidates and what value you can bring to a company, team organization. Once you have a clear understanding of your brand, you can start communicating it to the world. Unfortunately, you have to do this process on your own or with professionals like us because if you see what others say you might miss your own magic..

Use social media to your advantage

The “communicating” part that was mentioned above mainly refers to social media. While Linkedin is considered the king of the job market’s social media for certain industries Twitter, and Instagram are equally great tools for building your personal brand. Use all of these platforms to showcase your expertise, share your thoughts on industry trends, and connect with other professionals in your field. Always make sure that you keep your profiles up-to-date and professional. Just don’t fall in the trap of making it like a diary, it’s your brand.

Use your resume to your advantage

Selling yourself in your CV and cover letter is an essential step in the job application process. Some tips to help you make your CV stand out to potential employers:

Use personal branding statements that will differentiate you in the screening process.

Make sure you inject your unique strengths and skills across your resume.

Use strong action verbs: Use strong action verbs to describe your past experiences and responsibilities. This will help to make your CV more dynamic and show that you have a track record of taking initiative and getting things done.

Highlight your accomplishments: Instead of simply listing your responsibilities, highlight your accomplishments and the results you achieved in your past roles. Use numbers and statistics to demonstrate the impact you had on your previous employer.

Tailor your CV for the industry, if you are in a creative field, consider creating a portfolio to showcase your work.

For more tips you can read our article “CV for the win”.

You can also book a free CV review with us! Write “I want to book a free CV review” in our contact form.

Networking

Networking is an essential part of building a personal brand because it involves meeting people from the industry you are interested in. Try to attend industry events, join professional organizations, volunteer and connect with other professionals in your field. Actively engaging with your community will help you build relationships with people who can help you advance your career.

Interview – able

According to research data recruiters still want a live session with the candidate to make their decision on whether they are proceeding further. The classic  advice “just be confident” most of the time backfires and it effectively hides your true self which is the reason you have tried to build your personal brand in the first place. Consistency here is more than important and there are no magic pills here, you just have to be fully prepared. We do offer interview consultations for every industry and every level of your career. 

Consistency

It goes without saying that you must be consistent and keep building your brand in tough times where nothing seems to work out for you or even after getting a job. The world is a small place and chances are that you will meet the same people twice or more in your working life. Make them be your “marketing” by keeping your personal brand consistent. You will not regret it.

Bonus – Action plan to immediately become more employable

After discussing all the aspects of personal branding and how you can build it, we will share with you a quick action plan on how to become immediately more employable.

First, create a portfolio. Make people interested in hiring you “imagine” how you would help them and the value they would get from you. If you are a designer for example, you should always have a portfolio with your designs available (behance, dribble etc.). Or if you are a copywriter, you should always have a portfolio with your content on LinkedIn, Medium etc.

Second, try to get others to endorse you or your work on LinkedIn. The endorsements are visible to everyone and they work miracles. When you want to buy a product you always read the product reviews; the same happens with recruiters.

Third, optimise your resume for the specific industry you are aiming to attract. Make it look like you are picturing the industry you want to work for. My next job can help you with that. Contact us now to see how.

Fourth, become a volunteer on matters that show that you care about your community’s well being.

Finally, invest in yourself. Don’t just collect degrees and certifications. Of course, they are important but your skills are way more important in a fast-paced environment. Always try to be up to date with your industry’s changes and news. One of the most important things to note is that cost and investment are 2 totally different things. 

TLDR

To sum up, personal branding is an extremely powerful tool that if used consistently and with a higher vision in mind it will make you stand out in the job market no matter your career level. You can build your personal brand by doing the following: 1) defining your brand, 2) using social media, 3) using your resume, 4) networking, 5) working on your interview skills.

Personal branding is a continuous effort, not a one-time task, so it’s important to work on it. It will increase your opportunities, -be it jobs, network or relationships- exponentially.

We can build your personal brand together. Get our magic bundle “CV, cover letter and LinkedIn” today 20% off.

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