5 Ways to Build your Personal Brand in the New Normal

In the new now and with this unprecedented crisis forcing us to change and adapt, it has never been more critical to define, develop, and differentiate your brand as a job seeker. Here are five easy methods to build your brand in the new normal.

The impact of the COVID-19 health crisis will continue for years to come. Some labor market and business trends are already evident, such as rising unemployment, increased competition for fewer job opportunities, a more prevalent work-from-home culture, as well as digital transformation.

The importance of promoting yourself and standing out from the crowd of online job seekers has never been more apparent. Marketing blogger and author Seth Godin once said that marketing is a competition for people’s attention. The same can be said of personal branding.

Why is personal branding important? When people hear your name, you want them to associate it with specific values, traits, skills, and roles. As a job seeker, having a strong personal brand, making yourself known in your industry and the job market, can be a competitive advantage. You will get more phone calls, more invitations to interviews, and more career opportunities in general if you are known.

But how do you build a brand when you’re stuck at home and can’t see recruiters, hiring managers, and business decision-makers in person?

There are many virtual ways to get noticed even when you’re with social distancing and work-from-home arrangements. These five actions will help you grow your brand not just during the pandemic but into the new normal.

Boost your skillset

Being quarantined at home means you have more time to hone your skills and increase your industry knowledge. The minutes or hours you spent in city traffic can now be devoted to building your skills, whether essential or technical. Check your resume for skills gaps that need to be filled, especially in light of industry trends due to the pandemic. Obtain professional certifications or pursue higher education. Register for seminars and workshops. Read books and listen to podcasts. Take online courses from learning providers such as Coursera, edX, and FutureLearn.

Improve your resume

Your resume may have all the right skills, accolades, training, and formal education, but if your resume looks boring, outdated, and filled with typos, you’re not getting the attention you deserve.

First, update your resume with the latest details on your career. When writing about your work experience, focus on results and accomplishments rather than day-to-day tasks and responsibilities. In terms of formatting, add a pop of color. Choose a photo that conveys professionalism and confidence. Omit personal information that recruiters don’t need during the selection process, such as your religion or details about your parents.

Leverage social media

Use social media to build your professional profile and become known as an expert in your field. Most importantly, your social media presence should show that you deliver value to potential employers. Edit and curate your social media into a more positive, unique, and professional presence.

But go beyond improving your profiles. Join Facebook groups and comment, react, and ask questions to other members. Get the most out of your LinkedIn profile by sharing articles, videos, and other content relevant to your job and industry. Try googling yourself. Do the search results put you in a positive light? Job seekers who make a good first impression are sure to win.

Share your skills and expertise

Start blogging about your skills and expertise, be it digital marketing, entrepreneurship, technology, or any field of study you are good at. If you are not inherently an expert, that’s fine. No one is born an expert. We all have to start somewhere.

Getting known can just be a process of taking people along on your career path. If writing isn’t your forte, go for other options like podcasting, creating videos, or designing visual content for social media. What matters is that you are willing to share your skills, knowledge, and career journey. You will be surprised that there is an audience that is willing and ready to follow you.

Network online

With social isolation and physical distancing, cocktails have now transformed into Zoom parties. Don’t be shy or afraid to join virtual networking opportunities and participate in video conferences. Reach out to professionals you admire and ask if you can schedule an informational interview. Companies, industry organizations, and influencers now organize webinars, online meetups, and virtual conferences. Put yourself out there as a job seeker and find online connections.

There are ways to do your branding and self-marketing that are authentic. Put your foot forward and make sure the image you are projecting matches your values.

Personal branding instructor Kimberly Barker once said, “Everyone has a gift to offer this world. Everyone has talents. But if you don’t tell people, if you don’t share that knowledge with the world, people don’t know you have gifts to give and how to find you.” In most Asian cultures, putting yourself forward is frowned upon. However, you can’t afford to be a wallflower hoping opportunities will present themselves to you. You need to be proactive and assertive and get things done.

Want to get noticed by recruiters? Sign up at Kalibrr and connect to thousands of employers today!

Kalibrr is a technology company that aims to transform how candidates find jobs and how companies hire talent. Placing the candidate experience at the center of everything it does, the company continues to attract the best talent from all over, with almost three million professionals and counting. Kalibrr ultimately connects these talents to companies in search of their next generation of leaders.

The only end-to-end recruitment solutions provider in Southeast Asia, Kalibrr is headquartered in Makati, Philippines, with offices in San Francisco, California, and Jakarta, Indonesia. Established in 2012, it has served over 19,000 clients and is backed by some of the world’s most powerful start-up incubators and venture capitalists. These include Y Combinator, Omidyar Network, Patamar Capital, Wavemaker Partners, and Kickstart Ventures.

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