When we talk about brands and branding, it’s likely you’ll think of large companies, their corporate identities and core messages. However, the idea of personal branding has really begun to dominate the recruitment sector, especially for jobseekers.
The basic concept behind personal branding is taking a leaf out of these big, international brand’s books and applying it to how you market yourself when you are looking to change jobs. It’s about learning what makes you stand out, what makes you different and promoting those qualities to prospective employers.
It’s ‘Brand You’ and you are the Director of Marketing.
Why develop a personal brand?
The simple answer to this question is that it’s really beneficial to your job search efforts. In an increasingly noisy and populated recruitment marketplace, anything that can help you stand out and communicate more clearly will give you an edge. Having greater knowledge about who you are and what you want will make you more confident and will give you back some control over how others perceive you. This is a great asset when trying to impress, whether you want a new job or that all-important promotion.
Create your brand
The best place to begin when thinking about your personal brand is to really spend some time establishing what it is that you want; from life and from your career. You need to think about what your values are, where your skills lie and what you are passionate about. It’s really important to make sure your brand is a genuine and authentic expression of who you are.
Build your brand
Social media and your online profile will start to figure largely as you focus on how to market yourself. Recruiters can and do use social media to research potential candidates, so how you appear online is of the utmost importance.
Platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube give you the chance to communicate with people in a variety of ways, which is brilliant! Keep assets like your photo and biography consistent across all platforms so that your brand is strong and speaks to your identity. Keeping a blog is a great idea, especially if you’re in the creative industries, as it allows you to showcase your skills online.
Maintain your brand
Once you’ve established who you are and what you want to portray to the world with your brand, the key to success is consistency. Make sure that you regularly update your professional profiles with accomplishments, especially ones that will enhance your reputation as an expert.
Don’t forget, your brand doesn’t disappear once you’ve landed the job of your dreams or you’re rising up the ranks thanks to a promotion. Make sure that you’re online presence always reflects what you’re up to and what you’re achieving. That way, you can make new connections and forge ongoing relationships to help you at every step of your career.
There is no doubt that personal branding can help you discover what you are passionate about and define and reach your goals. It’s the perfect way to showcase your talent and personality to influential people that can help you take your career to the next level.
Keep in mind that consistency and professionalism are the keys to creating a watertight and professional brand. Having a strong personal brand will not only help recruiters find you, but also want to get to know you and consider adding your skills to their team.
Here at FRS Recruitment, we’ve recently had a rebrand, as you can probably tell from our slick new website! We value the importance of making sure that our branding reflects exactly who we are as recruiters, dedicated to great customer service and the thrill of placing our customers in jobs that are perfect for them. We hope you enjoy the new site!
If you’re interested in developing your personal brand and want to transform your job search then make sure you get in touch with the team at FRS Recruitment to find out how we can help you! Or, if you’re in the middle of a career change then make sure you sign up to our job alerts service or submit your CV online today.
