How Job Seekers Can Build Their Online Brand

Personal branding expert says creating a yourname.com website is the first step

January 18, 2011 RSS Feed Print

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How can job seekers utilize YouTube or other video-sharing platforms?

If you're introverted and not good on video, do not use video. It can really hurt you … The reason why video is powerful is because it's the feeling of, I already know you … For people looking for jobs, [the hiring manager has] such a better sense of the person's personality and who they are, before [they] make the hiring decision. If [you're] applying for [a] job [and you have] a video resume … it's going to differentiate [you]. But it's got to be good, and it's got to be short, under two minutes.

The good thing is you can do 1,000 takes before you put [the video resume] online. You have a lot of chances to make it perfect.

Using social media to find a job was hot last year. What do you think will be hot this year?

I think soft skills are really becoming more valuable than technical skills. Because a lot of people can be good programmers or good accountants, so what's the differentiator? It might come back to personality and organizational skills and teamwork … How well do you get along with people? Can you network well? How large is your network? That's another reason why if you're on social networks and you're blogging and you're building all these relationships, you become more valuable.

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Should a freelancer or consultant approach personal branding differently than someone who's looking for full-time work?

For someone who's a freelancer or consultant, it's going to be even more valuable. For anyone in the service industry, [personal branding] is huge. Whether you're a plumber, a personal finance person, any type of consultant or entrepreneur, you're a business of one. So who else is going to sell you besides you?

[Consultants should start by] building their [web]site under their own name, definitely starting a blog, getting their ideas out there. Being specific [and] taking a niche [is] a good way to position yourself in a crowded marketplace and start getting more visibility. And have products. Create an e-book, maybe write a book, create a workbook. All that stuff is going to help you, going to make you look a bit more credible.

Start [public] speaking. Speak at the college you went to. And then use that as a case study, with an endorsement and a video, to get your next speaking gig. Starting small is the right way.

For job seekers who use Twitter, do you recommend they write in their bio that they're looking for a new job?

I think it is a good idea. Because if people don't know you're looking for a job, how can they help you?

Tags:: media,; internet

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I am appalled at the number of people in today's society, especially the 20- and 30-somethings who are all-too-willing to be lemmings. They just follow down whatever path these giant Internet corporations sell them on - their products (e.g., Apple, Blackberry, etc.) and "services" (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Linked-In, etc.).
These corporations, especially the ones who offer no tangible product and are nothing more than Internet posting boards, enticing you to disseminate to the world at large just bout everything about yourself and/or your family (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Linked-In), are merely using YOU so that they can ENRICH THEMSELVES at the expense of YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION! BIG BROTHER is not, as we all feared in the past would be the case - the government. It is Facebook, Twitter, Linked-In, Intelius, and similar types of corporations that cyberstalk us and violate our privacy.
In this day and age where being online and participating in "social media" (which would be more appropriately called "ANTI-social media") is often times EXPECTED of us by employers, it is CRUCIAL that our privacy be respected, and it is ETHICALLY INCUMBENT UPON these providers of "social Internet space" to create policies that PROHIBIT: the dissemination of highly personal information about the poster, information and comments about others who have not agreed to such information being disseminated about them, and similar COMMON-SENSE matters. It is also incumbent upon OUR GOVERNMENT to control content on these sites. Yes, yes, we all know about the GRIEVOUS ERRORS IN CRITICAL REASONING AND THINKING committed by our JUDICIARY, especially the U.S. Supreme Court justices; however, we must test the limits of constitutionality vis-a-vis PRIVACY matters and the EMOTIONAL HEALTH, SAFETY and WELFARE of our citizenry.
Society is falling apart at the seams as a result of the dizzying rush by Internet corporations to DESTROY OUR PRIVACY FOR THEIR FINANCIAL GAIN. It is high time that WE, THE PEOPLE, PUT AN END TO IT and ASSERT THOSE RIGHTS! I seriously doubt that our FOUNDING FATHERS AND MOTHERS risked their lives so that the likes of the owners of Facebook, Twitter, Linked-In and Intelius can enrich themselves at our expense! We did not fight a war of Independence, nor did we craft our Constitution for that nonsense (just as we did not do so in order to have the First Amendment erroneously interpreted by our UN-esteemed judiciary as protecting pornography). Enough said!

Mary D. of CA 5:34AM February 17, 2012

I can tell that Alexis Grant (Ms. or Mr.?), the "author" of this article, is not concerned about PRIVACY. This individual should be well aware that if one creates one's own personal web site, as part of which would be included our resume, EVERYONE in the world will have access to it, including: criminals, terrorists, identity thieves, those scumbag aggregators of our personal data, who cyberstalk us to find more and more information about us, and then splash it all over the Internet, every stranger out there, abusive ex-husbands whom we do not wish to find us, and other people whom we do NOT want to know everything there is to know about us, including our entire educational and professional history. These matters are PRIVATE between our employer and ourselves and others do NOT HAVE THE RIGHT to know that. That is why one's EMPLOYEE FILE IS CONFIDENTIAL! It's that simple!
Let's just STOP THIS NONSENSE about personal branding and go back to the basics that have worked in the PAST and should continue to work just fine: Email or mail to the employer 1) a cover letter and 2) our well-written resume. That should more than suffice. At that time, if upon reading our submission they are interested in us, they can give us a call, do a preliminary phone interview, and determine whether they wish to interview us in person.

Mary D. of CA 5:11AM February 17, 2012

Today you need to let people know why you are special, the reasons why people will not only read your content, articles, and emails, but see that you have something to offer. You need to sell yourself in today's fast paced society, it means looking at yourself as a product, with special features, and these skills can help others, such as employers, temporary employers, or others what want to hire your services. No one will know you unless you are willing to discuss that make you a special brand, that has specific skills that will benefit others.
Expect rejection, setbacks, failure while you sell your most important brand: yourself. You are special, and you need to continue to let the world know you have a bucket load of skills, talents and abilities that are special. You can do it. Go for it.

William J. Bond, Author, Motivator,Speaker,Educator of MA 2:01PM March 18, 2011