2020. I think we’ll all be glad when it’s over and even if the first quarter of 2021 is going to involve continued restrictions, we’ll feel a collective sense of coming out the other side or what has been an extraordinary period of history. One of the many ‘trends’ of 2020 has been a high number of redundancies throughout the marketing and advertising industry. As you might expect in my line of work, I’ve talked to many candidates who have found themselves to be looking for a new role and it has been challenging to say the least. In normal times, probably 30% of my placements in a given month come from what I would call ‘proactive activity’. Knowing my clients well and with strong relationships, I know that if a great candidate comes in who ‘fits’ a certain employer well, I’ll get in touch and see whether they might have a live opportunity for them. The other 50% of my briefs come from ‘live’ vacancies which have been directly ‘briefed’. During 2020, the proactive activity has been pretty lacklustre - a client has either had a brief which they want to fill - fast. Or they haven’t had anything at all. After the first lockdown, many of my conversations with candidates - old and new, were very much about staying in touch and being in the right place at the right time. It’s very disheartening for a recruiter to have a great CV and not to be able to do much with it. Anyway, preamble done. Back to the point, lots of redundancies. It has been very pleasing to see how many of my bigger clients do follow pretty good practices if they have to let people go. Not least, offering quite a bit of professional coaching as to how they might help themselves to find something new. I don’t necessarily think the coaching finds someone a job any quicker, but it does help crystallise what you might want to do next, what the ideal next role looks like, help you to take stock of the situation and perhaps turn it to your advantage. All the candidates I have spoken to who have been partakers of this ‘counselling’ have said that what comes first is the advice to get your ‘personal online brand’ in order.
I’m a natural cynic. I can’t help it. When I see ‘personal online brand’ I think what? I personally would prioritise getting your CV up to scratch, But having a personal online brand is very much a ‘thing’ and particularly if you are actively looking for a new role, it’s something that will help you become more visible to your audience - i.e. future employers, ex colleagues, clients etc. Having a personal online brand allows you to increase your network of contacts and engaging with them will hopefully multiply your chances of finding a new role.
Regular readers of my blogs will know that I have a love hate relationship with LinkedIn. At worst, it is used by lazy recruiters who give the good recruiters out there a bad name. At best though, it can be very useful indeed. If you are galvanised into developing your personal online brand I’d probably start with LinkedIn. Most people do have a LinkedIn profile but many don’t bother to keep it updated. Look at your profile objectively - review everything from the photo through to your job descriptions. I generally find it easier to do a full re-write than an edit but it depends how much time you’ve spent on it previously. Have a look through some of your own contacts, you’ll come across great profiles and not so great profiles - hopefully this will inspire you with some ideas that you can incorporate.
You can use LinkedIn to find other people who you think may be useful in your search for other roles but critically, it should help other people find you. Yes, this will include other recruiters… it’s worth getting in touch with them to see if they work in an area which is likely to help you. Many large employers now have large talent teams and talent managers are often ex-recruitment consultants who essentially spend their days proactively looking for people who would be a good fit for their businesses. I’m writing this blog assuming that you are actively looking for a new role - you’re possibly not so bothered about other recruiters and competitor businesses getting in touch if you’re happy where you are….however, it doesn’t hurt to be connected and you never know when you might need them.
Once you’re happy with your profile, you can make a decision on how much you want to post and how you want to be perceived. So identifying your own persona - what are you? An expert in SEO link building techniques? A FMCG packaging expert? A PR Account Manager? If you are going to post regular content, it needs to be topical, relevant and with a consistent tone of voice. This profile is your professional reputation, it’s visible so you want to be seen as a leader in your field and your content should reflect this. This is where employers, recruiters and other contacts will make their first impression of you. Make it a good one!
If you want to rant about the world in general keep it to your personal social platforms and make sure your privacy settings are activated! You can mention your own achievements and allow some personal insight but just ask yourself if it’s still in keeping with your ‘professional reputation’ - if it is, go for it. We are all human and a little bit of humanity goes a long way on social channels. Try to find a balance of regular posting of content - too little is as bad as too much. Bear in mind that we are all prone to being annoyed with constant feeds of blah and don’t overshare!
It’s worth finding and joining groups too, this is an excellent way to find like-minded people with similar skills and interests. Again, keep it manageable and do engage in conversations so you are noticed.
I do think LinkedIn is the optimal platform for your personal online brand. You can, of course, use multiple social channels but be realistic. This is a tool to help you find a job and stay connected to useful people…..it’s not meant to be a full time job maintaining it!
I’m not an expert in personal online brands but I am an expert in recruitment. I still think that your CV is the most important tool that you have to secure a role but in the world we live in, it is essential to manage your online reputation on an ongoing basis, you never know when you might need it.