How To Optimize Your Personal Brand To Get Hired In 2024

As seen on Forbes.

Landing a new job right now has indeed become tougher, especially in tech where there is a heavy surplus of workers affected by last year’s massive layoffs.

Understandably, this can make the job search process feel daunting. After all, how can you expect to compete with possibly hundreds of other applicants all vying for the same job? What are the odds of your resume and profile being the one that stands out from the rest?

Well, I’m here to tell you that all is not lost. While meeting job qualifications is a big part of the criteria, there is more to getting hired than just what’s on your resume. It’s also about how you highlight your unique skills and experiences, and how you show up online and in person. A lot of the time, it’s the best-marketed, not the most experienced candidate that gets hired. Here’s how to build your personal brand to go land the job.

What is a Personal Brand?

A personal brand is basically how you present yourself to the world. Just as companies have brands that represent their identity, products, and services, you too can cultivate your own personal brand to showcase your skills and expertise.

Optimizing your personal brand involves communicating the unique value that you bring to the table, managing your reputation, and making sure that you’re reaching the right people. Let’s go deeper into 4 tips that you can use to optimize for it.

Know Your Audience

Central to any branding effort is having a clear understanding of your audience. This means delving deep into who they are, what they care about, and what challenges they face.

Since you’re looking to optimize your personal brand as a professional in your specific field, you want to speak to your peers, potential employers, and industry influencers. Take note of these people’s demographics, preferences, and priorities and what they are looking for.

Once you have your target audience sorted out, start by asking questions. What skills and qualities are employers seeking in candidates? What industry trends are shaping the landscape? What pressing issues are relevant to the field?

By understanding the needs and expectations of your audience, you can tailor your personal brand to effectively address them and proactively offer them solutions to their issues.

Showcase Your Unique Value Proposition

As a job applicant, you need to clearly show what makes you unique. To start, list out your specific skills, experiences, and qualities that make you stand out from other candidates. Whether it’s your technical expertise, creativity, problem-solving abilities, leadership skills, or unique perspective, make sure to emphasize what sets you apart. While doing so, don’t make the mistake of simply listing your qualities. 

Try your best to cite specific examples, and include numbers where you can. For example, a better way of saying that you have “excellent leadership skills” is to say that you’re “a proven sales leader who consistently exceeded sales targets by 40% year-over-year.”

The same goes if you work in a creative field. Instead of simply mentioning creative copywriting skills, you might say that you’re a creative copywriter with a demonstrated ability to 2x brand awareness on social media and generate $250,000 in ad revenue.

Utilize Social Media Effectively and Consistently

Nowadays, having an online presence is basically a requirement if you want to cultivate a personal brand. After all, you want prospective employers to have something to reference when they look you up online (and believe me, they do).

It’s not just about having profiles either. You want to be consistently sharing good content that brings value to your audience. 

For example, on LinkedIn, you want to be regularly sharing industry insights, articles, and updates relevant to your field. You can also engage with others by commenting on their posts, participating in discussions, and connecting with professionals in your network.

On X (formerly Twitter), you can do the same albeit in a shorter format (unless you’ve paid for a premium account, which gives you 25,000 characters). But what makes the platform special is that in my opinion, it does a better job of encouraging authenticity and spontaneity, as opposed to the more corporate feel of LinkedIn. 

This makes X a great platform to showcase your personality and interests outside of work, helping to humanize your personal brand and make you more relatable to potential employers. 

When it comes to social media, aim for quality over quantity. Make sure that your content is engaging, informative, and aligned with your personal brand. Rather than bombarding your audience with a high volume of posts, focus on creating content that provides real value and resonates with your target audience.

Above all, you want your followers (and the algorithm) to know when to expect your content. Consistency is always key. 

Focus On Networking

Social media, particularly LinkedIn, is a great networking tool, but it doesn’t replace boots on the ground, so to speak. When optimizing your personal brand, it’s best to show up to as many industry events, conferences, and networking functions as you can to meet people face-to-face and build meaningful connections. 

Besides opening yourself to valuable opportunities and possibly even meeting people who are hiring, these events are also great learning opportunities. Attending industry events allows you to stay abreast of the latest trends and developments, expand your knowledge, and gain insights from industry leaders and peers. 

Make sure to maximize these opportunities by being approachable, conversational, and offering value to others. Don’t forget to exchange contact information and follow up with new connections afterward to maintain and nurture those relationships over time.

One thing to remember is that optimizing your personal brand is not an overnight process. Don’t worry if your efforts don’t seem to be gaining any traction. Progress in these situations tends to snowball over time, so you just have to get started and once you do, keep hacking at it. Before you know it, you’ll have created a personal brand that will make you the most attractive candidate in every room. Keep going!