These days, the term ‘branding’ is no longer restricted to companies and their products. It has become increasingly important for jobseekers to create a personal brand value for themselves, and position themselves in the recruitment market in the best way possible.
What exactly is Personal Branding for jobseekers? While the term might seem daunting to some of us, it mainly involves channelling your unique abilities and presenting yourself in front of potential employers to maximise your chances of succeeding as a job seeker. This can be done easily if you know your strengths and can create a reputation and prove that you are the ideal candidate for a role you are looking for.
So, before you start looking for your dream job, ask yourself, “How is your job seeker branding?”, “Are you selling yourself to the companies you dream of working for?”, “What steps can you take to accomplish this?”. And to make this easy, we present to you a breakdown of 3 simple and easy steps that can help you create a strong branding for yourself.
- Step one – Create a strong personal profile
To start the process of applying for a new job, you need to write a professional CV to let recruiters and employers know that you have the specific experience, skills, and qualifications that they’re looking for.
You will need to include:
- A concise and chronological list of your previous positions (if possible, for the last ten years)
- Education and qualifications
- Skills and abilities
A CV is your primary marketing document so it’s essential that it’s contemporary and professional to represent you in the best way possible. Next, you need to craft a powerful statement summarising key benefits that you can bring to your future employer as well as any specific career goals. Read this article for more advice on how to write a good CV that employers look for.
Key point: Keep your CV and personal statement to 2 sides of A4 – be clear, concise and make it easy for recruiters and employers to read. Depending on a role you are applying for will depend on whether you need a CV. Challenge-TRG Recruitment require a CV when you are applying for roles such as Shift Manager, Shift Supervisor, Recruitment Resourcer, Site Consultant and so on. However, when it comes to our temporary positions such as Warehouse Operative, Production Operative, Forklift Driver and so on Challenge-TRG will not require you to have a CV.
- Step two – Position yourself better than your competitors
What makes you stand out from others? This is the key question you must ask yourself and be able to answer. It is no good listing several skills or qualities – everyone can be creative, innovative or work as a team. Give real life examples of how you were able to showcase your skills and the results that came from this. Employers want to see evidence of skills and abilities, so this is your time to show off!
Key point: Be original in your thinking and focus on your strengths to demonstrate why you should be chosen over someone else.
- Step three – Utilise your social media account
LinkedIn is a professional networking site where you can search for potential employers and where they can read up on you. You should use LinkedIn as an online CV; a platform where you can detail all your relevant skills, qualifications, and experience. Remember, this is a professional platform, and different to Facebook and Twitter, so use it appropriately.
Key point: Network and be active on LinkedIn! Make sure your profile is up to date, share relevant content relating to the fields and industries you are interested in and gather recommendations from people you have worked with.
In a nutshell, in this day and age of digital landscape, by branding yourself and combining it with efficient networking strategies, you’ll rank yourself higher in the job market.