Last night I presented a seminar on career branding to Pace University students and alumni in conjunction with Pace University’s outstanding career development programming under the leadership of Dr. Barry Miller. Career branding is the art of creating a clear, compelling, and consistent message of your value-add and a strong career branding strategy includes both online and offline strategies. If you are in a job search or just looking to manage your career more efficiently, here are my top 4 career branding tips.

1. Create a branded resume. A branded resume quickly communicates the 40,000 foot view of what you can offer an employer. Showcase your professional identity at the top of the document and articulate your top 2-4 brand attributes with proof of these attributes. Include an overview of your core competencies to express fit. Leverage the work experience and education sections to further elaborate on your accomplishments and use metrics whenever possible to quantify those accomplishments.
2. Develop a branded elevator pitch. This is the short audio sound bite version of your resume and you need to be able to describe what you do and prove your successes in a big picture way. The elevator pitch is often delivered in response to one of the most frequently asked interview questions, “Tell me about yourself.” The goal is to communicate your professional identity, 3 core strengths and proof of these strengths, a brief overview of your background, and the reason you are interested in the open position you are applying for. By being clear and succinct, you make it easier for the hiring manager to become an advocate for you and your candidacy.
3. Build an online presence. Recruiters and hiring managers continue to conduct online searches on candidates to see what additional information they can dig up. Take control of your online identity by creating profiles on sites such as ZoomInfo, LinkedIn, Plaxo, and Ziggs.
4. Use a branded signature line. Showcase your brand each time you send an email by linking your professional identity profiles to your signature line. Or create a Visual CV and link a multi-media version of your resume to your signature line.