Marketing Yourself

Introduction:
In today’s economic climate Brand Relevance also applies to the individual especially if you are looking for a job- your dream job. Working with a head hunter or posting on line resume is not enough. People don’t realize they are marketing themselves with that two pager with a cover letter. With such a saturated market, full of experienced and upcoming businesses, you need to differentiate and be unique from the crowd of applicants. This is where networking comes into play and the opportunity for you to showcase yourself in a more personable atmosphere.

Brand Relevance: MarketingYourself:
Many jobs these days are not advertised or publicized in the public and are mostly only known about the “hidden job market”. To access this market, you must know how to network within your current surroundings.

This starts with knowing who to talk to within your family, friends, fellow co-workers, etc… By starting with the people close to you, you are already building a word- of- mouth network foundation, and in hopes that they will spread the word as well. Once you start to gathering information about potential job leads and different companies, you need to start organizing your profile. This includes strengthening your resume and cover letter to reflect your point of difference and your promise. Remember that you cannot rely on old resume for its content or design since it will not be a true testament to your achievements and strengths, to date.

Next In addition the internet. Generating buzz and popularity online is quickly becoming a dominant trend and social marketing outlets, such as Twitter, Linked In and Facebook, are becoming popular for companies and individuals to showcase themselves. Social media marketing is becoming one of the strongest ways to network within your respective industry, whether as an employer or an employee, thus it is a beneficial channel for both parties.

Be proactive in following up with your leads (send emails, make regular phone calls, etc…). Building a relationship with them is very important and connection is what brand relevance is all about. Even if your skill set might not fit their needs, they could very well recommend you to a partnering company. Therefore, it is evident that word of mouth marketing does not just end at potential employers but goes much further if you’re able to successfully market yourself.

Final Thoughts:
As demonstrated, networking is a “no pain, no gain” approach. With the right efforts, the beauty of networking comes with great short term and long term benefits. Whether for personal or business reasons, marketing yourself will always give you that competitive advantage and confidence that you’ll stick out from the rest.