Adding Your Personal Career Brand Statement to Your Resume Will Get You More Interviews!
Successful social media influencers who make a ton of money creating content all have one thing in common: they have a personal brand. Even if you don’t know who they are, you can quickly decipher their content theme if you stumble on their TikTok or Instagram posts. These posts all have one thing in common: they grab your attention in the first few seconds, create interest, and get you to stick around longer than 95% of the other posts you run across.
Your resume and LinkedIn profile should do the same. You can add your personal brand to these assets and get talent acquisition managers to read your resume without scrolling to the next. Recruiters screen resumes the same way you scroll through Instagram posts. It’s time to mix it up!
If your resume can highlight your personal brand, you become more desirable and will immediately stand out from other applications. This means interviews! The challenge for job seekers is adding a personal brand to a resume or LinkedIn profile. Here is how to do this to have a fantastic resume and online digital career footprint.
1. Where to add your personal brand statement. At the top of your resume, you have your name, city, phone, email address, and LinkedIn profile link (optional). Next (without fail), add the title of the job you are applying for under your contact information. Your personal brand statement is next, and this will replace the resume summary or mission statement. Under your branding statement, add your checklist of core competencies that mirror the skills needed for the job you are applying for.
2. Build your personal brand statement. This is the secret sauce. Remember, you are building your career personal brand. Clearly articulate what makes you unique to the job. Understand what the employer seeks and emphasize how your skills and experiences connect to their requirements and challenges.
Focus on your benefits that clearly let the employer know you understand what they need in this hire and that you are the right person for the job. The personal brand allows you to show your value in your words and personality, not the dull, standard-word smithed paragraph I see on most resumes.
Here are some examples:
Customer Service Professional
I am very passionate about one thing…delivering exceptional customer service experiences every day. I love positive communication, problem-solving, and consistently exceeding my customer expectations.
Insurance Claims Adjuster
Workers compensation insurance claims adjusting is what drives me! With a proven track record of efficiently managing and settling claims, I enjoy working with customers to provide the best resolution possible, knowing that is not always possible in this business!
Sales Professional
I am a modern, fearless salesperson with a superpower in helping companies drive revenue growth. I have a proven ability to build long-lasting client relationships, exceed sales targets, and leverage product knowledge to deliver outstanding results for my amazing customers. I share my professional experience with a local business-oriented youth group I lead.
Engineer
I am a passionate electrical engineer driven by a love for solving complex challenges. My work is fueled by a genuine passion for innovation and delivering solutions that exceed industry benchmarks. My commitment to engineering is mirrored in my pursuit of quarterly triathlons.
Your personal career brand can define who you are to an employer in a fun, professional and personal way. It is meant to catch their attention and completely change your odds of getting a call to an interview. This is very powerful.