Personal Brand | Pitch Yourself Online

Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn are among the most popular social media tools that individuals and many companies use to either promote themselves or simply share relevant content with others. Now days online personal branding is crucial as most employers will Google you when job hunting. But rather than utilizing a form of media everyone is utilizing, being creative and thinking outside the box is sometimes what employers will look for.

Ever heard of an elevator pitch? Well imagine an online pitch to elevate your career. Video resumes are a great way to show your personality and pitch yourself in less than 2 minutes whether it is general or job specific - they can be a clever complement to your existing job hunting resources i.e a traditional resume.

The number one rule of thumb is to be clear, concise and have a powerful but also memorable message that will grab your audiences attention. In terms of content, state your desired outcome and build a short story around it to illuminate your skills. Use words that create a visual image in your listener’s mind and focus on connecting the dots based on your experiences. A great piece of advice would be to not recite your resume but show a unique side of you, something that wouldn’t necessarily be portrayed on a piece of paper. A video resume gives you plenty of room to express who you are, while conveying the message of why you would be the right person to hire. Be creative, yet professional as preparation, hard work and lots of thought is required! 

So if you've struck a chord in your audience with a lasting word or phrase and left them wanting more, then you have literally ‘hooked’ them. But remember, create a video resume if it is relevant to the job you want to do and not because you can.

Hint
Instagram videos, Vine and Youtube are great resources!

Good luck with job hunting!