The Difference Between Personal Branding and Your Personal Branding Statement

Your resume should be branded regardless of who you are and what your job search goals are; your resume has to be a unique representation that differentiates you from other candidates.  In much the same way that a business has to distinguish itself from others in the marketplace in order to have a competitive edge, you must differentiate yourself in the job market if you want to stand out rather than blend in.

Branding is a great way to differentiate yourself.  After reading some responses to an article we published on our blog last week about branding your resume, I thought it best to clarify the difference between a personal branding statement and personal branding.

What is a personal branding statement:

A personal branding statement is a one- or two-line, extremely concise, and polished statement that sums up the value you offer the employer in relation to their needs and how you can meet them.  If you know the organization’s pain points—especially the excruciatingly painful ones—you can easily target your branding statement and the value you offer around the needs of the company.

What is personal branding:

Personal branding in relation to your resume includes the factual, success-driven statements, bullets, and facts that you use to support your personal branding statement.  Personal branding goes further than just your resume and should be incorporated into all of your career documents, networking efforts, and social media profiles.  This includes branding your cover letter, thank you letter, reference sheet (use quotes whenever possible to support your brand), LinkedIn profile, Twitter account, personal blog, networking cards, and the list could go on.

The goal is to create a solid reputation for yourself that will cause the hiring manager to remember you and your unique promise of value.  To maximize your job search efforts, be sure that your resume includes a personal branding statement, that the entire document supports that brand, and also that every other element of your search is branded as well.

For additional tips concerning branding and all things job search, follow us on Twitter at @GreatResume.