Applied for 100s of jobs and not one interview?

Let's take a look of your Personal Brand

There could be a number of reasons why you are not even getting a chance to prove yourself in a phone interview let alone formal interview. 90% of online applicants are faced with the same result time and time again. It is a full time process and a very frustrating one that lowers your confidence to the point when you do finally do get a call you come across as though you don’t deserve it. Does this sound like you? Assuming you have tailored your resume, cover letter and followed up on each application. What next?

Before you even contemplate on a job change, you must establish your Personal Brand and then you must be mindful of your Personal Brand.

There are 2 reasons why this is not only essential to your job search but also an affective method to showcase yourself.

First, when a recruiter decides you’re a contender based on your resume, they will always Google your name to find you on LinkedIn before contacting you. You want the information they find to further sell you as the candidate to call.

Second, a good online presence can get you noticed prior to you even knowing the job is available. It is possible to get directly contacted by a recruiter so you need to build your brand.

How to build a job winning Personal Brand

One - Let’s start with LinkedIn

Start with ensuring you have a LinkedIn profile ideally with the top Profile Strength. Here are the top 5

1. All-Star

2. Expert

3. Advanced

4. Intermediate

5. Beginner

How to become an “All-Star” Level?

My blog “How do I get my LinkedIn profile to All-Star Level?” will highlight in simple steps how to get to All-Star level and why it’s crucial for your job search. See my blog on how to get to All-Start level.

http://www.mcvcareers.com/single-post/2017/05/02/How-do-I-get-my-LinkedIn-profile-to-All-Star-Level

Two - Social Media

Managing your social media can help paint a clearer picture of who you are, what your aspirations are and what you’re passionate about. For example liking and sharing interesting articles and posts about your profession or posting pictures of industry networking events. Your social media activity is another area recruiters and hiring managers will see when they do a search of your name online, so be mindful of your online activity.

Ideally your brand should reflect not only your skill in the industry you’re seeking, but your passion. If it doesn’t, perhaps consider doing a course or volunteering, so that you can highlight this on your resume, personal site or LinkedIn profile.

Three - Network, network, network

Most experts will recommend that you network your way through your job search. Utilise LinkedIn and see if there is anyone who can introduce you to someone who you can reach out to. There are no shortcuts to building a network, but there are some best practices you can start implementing now. You can start with the following effective networking methods:

• Set some goals and be consistent. For example aim to connect with 2 to 5 people within LinkedIn per week. You can also connect via Twitter or personal websites through the ‘contact me’ page.

• Make a plan to reach out to your new connections. You can start with asking for their advice on something relating to their field. You could also ask them if they know the best person to make contact with relating to discussing employment opportunities and if they wouldn’t mind introducing you to them via LinkedIn. This takes time, so take it slow otherwise you might find you will be ignored.

Informational Interview

Ideally you want to aim for an informational interview with your new contact. A quick introduction via a coffee catchup. If you are successful in organising this remember people love to talk about themselves, so get the conversation going by asking the following:

1. How did you get your start in this field?

2. What’s it like working at your company?

And then you can go in with:

1. I’m waiting to hear back about interviews for positions, what advice would you give me about how to be best prepared?

2. What experiences, skills, or personality traits does your company look for in new hires?

3. What job search advice would you give to someone in my situation?

Finally go in with your elevator pitch that briefly describes who you are and where you’re heading. See my blog on Effective Elevator Pitches. http://www.mcvcareers.com/single-post/2015/03/03/How-to-write-an-Elevator-Pitch

After your brilliant pitch, go in with:

1. Can you advise on who the best person to reach out to?

2. Would you mind organising a brief introduction via LinkedIn or an email?

3. Are you happy to keep my resume on hand if an opportunity arises?

Industry Events

Make the most of industry events and professional industry seminars and meet people who can give you more insight into a specific job, and maybe even recommend you for a role when the times comes. Always ask for a business card and email them letting them know it was nice to meet them and ask them if they would mind you emailing them your resume in case an opportunity arises.

Start building your personal brand and develop a networking system that will introduce you to the right people to secure the chance to showcase your expertise!