Building ‘Brand You’ – 7 Steps To Create A

In today’s job market, it’s so tough to stand out when you are seeking your next career step. The question is no longer should you create a personal brand but why haven’t you already done so?

A personal brand in a work-related context is your story and how you present yourself and should demonstrate your unique combination of qualities and skills and position you as someone to watch in your industry or specialism. Once created, it should be continuously nurtured and will then allow you to connect with your target audience and stand out from your competition when it comes to snaring your dream job or the next career step towards it.

Personal branding in today’s jobs market is vitally important as it gives you a clear path to establishing a consistent digital footprint when it comes to your career; as well as a proven reputation and a clear, visible identity when that company you would love to work for wants to come and find out more about you.

Whether you use your personal brand for your job search or as a more holistic way of sharing who you are (in a work context) with the world, it is a key tool. It will allow you to get in front of the people you would like to work for, get to know about future colleagues, and grow your business network. That old adage ‘Its not what you know but who’ is so true!

Here’s some steps to master the art of building a unique personal brand:

1. Have a signature image/style of image

Usually the image would be head & shoulders and reflect how you would look if you were going to an interview. Why? Because you want to make a good impression, relevant to your prospective employers and in keeping with the style of your industry/occupation. This is not the time for group shots of you on holiday with your mates, or you with your dog, children, or gran. It’s also not the time to use a caricature, avatar, or picture of your latest product creation, or work examples either. This is YOUR personal brand, and people want to discover who you are. There will be plenty of time for sharing about your life etc in other ways.

2. Craft Your Brand Story

A strong personal brand is dependent on a memorable story.

For inspiration, consider industry thought leaders or people you aspire to in a work context, ones who have a strong personal brand. What do you associate with that individual? What are they best known for? What is their personal style? Where do they show up – it should be where their audience is.

Create your story in a way that demonstrates your life/work journey to where you currently are. Focus on how you have acquired your unique combination of skills, experience, and industry knowledge and with a small percentage of the story focused on work related achievements and milestones.

If you have multiple areas of interest or specialism, a well-developed story becomes even more crucial so there is a unified theme.

3. Start thinking of yourself as a brand

Firstly, consider what you wish your target audience to associate with you when they see your name.

· Is there a certain subject or discipline in which you want to be perceived as an expert?

· Are there general qualities you want linked with you?

Try to focus on developing yourself in a very specific niche. With this specific focus, you'll have more opportunities to prove you know what you're talking about, and while your potential audience might be slightly smaller, it will also be that much more relevant.

Once you understand how you wish your personal brand to be perceived, you can start to be much more strategic about developing it.

4. Audit your online presence

Understand exactly what your current brand actually is. Set-up alerts for your name and if you have a common name then it might be worth considering using your middle initial or middle name to differentiate.

Take the time to ensure your social media profiles are as robust and complete as possible.

5. Invest the time to grow your brand presence on social media

Share content and show your knowledge but more importantly actively engage with your target audience. Cultivating a strong personal brand is just as much about being responsive to what is being said as it is about creating intellectual property.

Don't be afraid to re-share your older content for your newer followers, fans and connections as long as it’s still relevant, or give it a new, current twist.

Find ways to add value to your audience by sharing content that’s in line with your personal brand. Always be purposeful in what you share as everything contributes to how you are perceived. It is an amalgamation of multiple daily actions. Once you understand how you wish your brand to be perceived, you can start to be much more strategic about your style and tone of communication.

6. Look for opportunities to promote brand you

Once you know your niche, it's time to start building your reputation for expertise in that area. Content marketing is one way to build a personal brand and reputation; when people look for information, they tend to go back to sources that were helpful to them. Long form content includes LinkedIn articles, blogs, white papers, videos – you don’t need to do them all, start with the format you’re most comfortable with.

If you can become a trusted source of information through your content, over time you'll become collectively known as the expert in your specific niche. Start by guest blogging on relevant reputable blogs, get interviewed on industry related podcasts, Tik Tok or YouTube channels and look for in person speaking opportunities at industry events.

7. Always be in networking mode

The key to building ‘brand you’ really is to be continuously in networking mode. Always be ready to engage with other individuals in your field and anybody else who could be valuable in helping you spread the word about your expertise. Become a regular in community/group discussions and forums and follow and engage with industry related organisations whenever you can. (We’ve included a suggested list of these at the end of this article for you).

Summary - Be in it for the long haul

A personal brand is not a one-time project, nor is it about just having a static presence on social media. It requires consistent fine tuning – so invest the time in adding to it, enhancing it with new work achievements, skills and more. This is the key to developing a truly memorable personal brand. One that both your networks and your prospective employers will grow to recognise, follow, and engage with.

List of Industry related Groups/Organisations

Within the industries in which we recruit we’ve collated a list of some key organisations and LinkedIn groups that could be of interest when you’re looking to raise awareness of ‘brand you’:

Organisations:

OCCA: https://www.linkedin.com/company/oil-and-colour-chemists-association

RSC: https://www.linkedin.com/company/roysocchem/

CBA: https://www.linkedin.com/company/chemical-business-association/

CIA: https://www.linkedin.com/company/chemical-industries-association/

BCF https://www.linkedin.com/company/british-coatings-federation/

SCS: https://www.linkedin.com/company/society-of-cosmetic-scientists/

SCS Formulate: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scs-formulate/

Surfex: https://www.linkedin.com/company/surfexltd/

Incosmetics: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/incosmetics-global/

ChemUK: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/chemukexpo/

BASA: https://www.linkedin.com/company/british-adhesives-sealants-association/