Personal Branding

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We all know what brands are, or should.  When we buy a “Coke,” we are buying the worlds most recognizable brand. When we see a “Coke” sign, we immediately identify with the product, the imcoke logoage, the feelings and what benefits we may derive from it. Coca-Cola has spent billions on marketing their products and brands.

In your Job Search, “YOU” are the brand. Obviously you don’t have the money to go out and promote yourself like Coca-Cola has over the past 100 years, nor do you have the time.

What can you do to brand yourself better?

Here are some quick tips to build a better brand You:

  1. Email Address – In our group we have seen email addresses like “hotrodman57@gmail.com, or 1hotmomma@yahho.com or John316@hotmail.com” Those may be fine for your personal correspondence, but when it come to your brand, get an email address that is Your Name, your full name. Do not use any numbers. Numbers might tell a recruiter your age, birthdate, number of kids you have, anniversary or graduation year. Even if the numbers have no particular meaning, DO NOT USE numbers in an email address. with numbers.  FirstName.LastName@email.com or LastName.FirstName@email.com should be available at any one of the free services.  If the dot doesn’t work, try a hyphen. Then use that email address in your job search and only that email address for a job search.
  2. Business Cards – Business cards are not passé when it come to a job search. Use them when networking. We talk about getting free cards from a variety of sources.  Check out the Resources Pages for options. Your card should be something that promotes you in addition to providing contact information. Include a “Twittervator Speech” tagline (you can check out the video on Twittervator Speech by clicking the link). Be sure to give out 2 cards to people you meet; one for them, one to pass along.
  3. Resume – While you do not have much flexibility on branding, the content of the resume is important.  A strong Summary packed with keywords for the job you are looking for. Accomplishments under your work experience all help build your brand. Once you have your resume drafted, use the Member exclusive review service.
  4. Online – Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. All the social and professional networking sites. Be mindful of how open you are, what you post and how you present yourself. Recruiters do “Google” prospective candidates.  If you are seen partying on MySpace, that may turn off the recruiter where you do not get the interview. Get a LinkedIn Profile update. Include a professional photo. Expand on your resume with a longer summary, build out your experience and volunteer work. Here’s a recent article in Forbes talking about online personal branding. Google Search yourself, you might be surprised at what you find.

Those are just a few ideas.  Do you have any others?  Leave a comment and share what you have found to work for you.

Our Best to you always.

About Jeff Quandt

Jeff Quandt is an Inbound and Digital Marketing Strategist and owns On-Q Marketing LLC. He helps the members of the OCN through understanding their personal brand, how they have to market themselves as the solution to a hiring manager's problem, and offers a personal LinkedIn Counseling session for any member of the group. Jeff is a corporate refuge that has been laid off several times, so he is very familiar with the job hunt process, the ups and downs, and the success at the end of the tunnel. Keeping a positive attitude with the end goal in mind is crucial to a job seekers success. Today as a business owner, he is constantly looking for work, he knows the process well and it makes no difference if you work for someone else or yourself, you need to be the solution to someone's problem to get paid.