Personal branding is front of mind for most people who use LinkedIn - especially recruiters who are trying to establish themselves and build a strong presence online.
LinkedIn has millions of members, and with the majority of recruiters (around 91%) using LinkedIn to find candidates, it’s natural to assume that personal branding will be a priority for many.
However, many recruiters don’t know where to start - because LinkedIn has become somewhat of an echo chamber of news articles, memes, and content that isn’t deemed helpful.
A lot of people get personal branding wrong because they haven’t deciphered what their own USPs are, so instead fall into the trap of sharing generalised knowledge without an individualised opinion.
What are the building blocks to creating a strong personal brand?
Finding your tone of voice
Understanding how to craft your own tone of voice can be difficult, especially if writing isn’t your strong suit. However, a great way to break down the tone of voice is ensuring that when you read something written by you, it doesn’t sound like a completely different person is writing!
Expressing ourselves through the written word doesn’t need to be complex or involve using vocabulary that we wouldn’t necessarily use in our day-to-day conversations. Instead, focus on being concise, yourself, and don’t overthink it so much!
“Tone of voice is how a brand communicates and connects with its audience through messaging and customer interactions. It helps businesses differentiate themselves from the competition and communicate their brand values to their audience.”
For more advice/templates on how you can craft your tone of voice, Semrush has created a set of incredible tools you can start using today.
Being consistent with what you talk about
Especially on LinkedIn, it can be easy to fall into the trap of trying to follow every trend or topic that people are talking about.
Although it’s good to switch things up and ensure that you’re talking about topical things, you also want to talk about things that are consistent with your personal brand and image. Pick three key things or themes and ensure that each time you post, you have consistency around at least one!
Include images and videos where possible
Images and video content naturally draw your audience in quicker, and can also be a lot easier to digest than a lengthy text-based post. It’s also a great alternative if you don’t enjoy writing as much, and instead can let your images do the talking.
Focus on what your audience wants and how you want to be perceived
Somewhere that people go wrong with personal branding is assuming that their audience wants to hear about a specific topic - without any evidence or research to back this up.
To understand your target market, you need to know what type of content they hope to consume and what they want to hear about. Knowing this will give you the upper hand on what to talk about as well as give you a positive
What are the benefits of investing in your personal brand?
- More leverage
- Better online presence - more exposure to who you are as an individual
- Creates trust with your audience
- Better networking opportunities
- Become an expert in your field
- Share who you are professionally and personally so people can feel connected
And finally, your competition is also doing it! Get ahead of the curve and ensure that your personal brand is at the top of your priority list.
