From Good to Great: Using a Personal Website to Position Yourself as a First-Choice Candidate

Your resumé is on point and under two pages. Your work experience is impressive and shows you’re a well-rounded candidate. And your cover letters are always impactful and customized to the position you want. 

However, you aren’t the only candidate who knows how to present him- or herself in a positive light. So what can you do to get from good to great—and position yourself as a first-choice candidate employers can’t wait to hire?

The key is to first, collect supporting materials that speak directly to your outstanding qualities, and second, find the best way to showcase them. Here’s how:

Create a personal website. A 2016 survey found that almost two-thirds of employers use social media to research candidates. (And if you haven’t scrubbed your social media pages of any information you wouldn’t feel comfortable sharing with an employer, do it right now.)

But even if your social media presence is fine, it might not provide the top quality professional representation you deserve. That’s why you need a website that clearly communicates your professional persona.

Weebly, Wix, Squarespace, Sitebuilder and DudaOne are all free, easy-to-use website builders. Each offers customizable themes; a simple drag-and-drop interface; and responsive design so your site looks professional on screens of all sizes.

Create great content that’s visual and user-friendly. Your content should be powerful, engaging, and easy to digest. Avoid reams of text, and instead, look for ways to communicate your message in a visual manner.

For example, instead of a written “about me” section, why not create a short video that intersperses images questions with clips of you answering those questions? If you prefer to write, include pictures and icons that break up the blocks of text.

To demonstrate the quality of your work, list your most important projects on a main page, and create subpages with more comprehensive descriptions and—if applicable—images. Don’t forget to include references! Create a separate page that features engaging excerpts from three to 10 testimonials.

If you really want to impress potential employers, start writing a blog. Since you want to showcase your professional knowledge, it’s okay to go in-depth and create longer posts—but keep them under 1,000 words, otherwise the reader might lose interest. Try to make each post as timely and relevant as possible to your profession. If writing isn’t your thing, you can discuss the same topics in a vlog (video blog).

Showcase accomplishments and certifications on a separate page. While an online workshop about communication preferences of Gen Z customers isn’t as impressive as earning your Master’s in Communication, it’s still something an employer needs to know about.

Make it easy to contact you. After a hiring manager has learned more about you, you want to capitalize on his or her enthusiasm and make it super easy to contact you. Include a “contact” page with a form, or place an email link in the header of your site so it shows on every page. Including your full address and phone number isn’t recommended, since it can compromise your privacy.

Because not every employer wants to see a personal website, you’re best advised to keep your portfolio and references on a zip drive to bring with you to job interviews. That way, you can still provide decision makers with top-notch supporting materials that show you’re the best candidate for the job.

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Remember these things when looking for a job

Invest in learning technical skills.

Job seekers self-reported that their top weakness was technical, computer or specialized skills. If this is your weak spot too, do something about it, because a quarter of employers rank these as top skills they are looking for. Take an online course to develop the skills you lack or need. More than 40 percent of job seekers have never invested in online training, but it is one way to improve your confidence and candidacy.

Show internships, not GPA.

If you are a recent graduate, you may agree with the job seekers in the survey who feel grades are the greatest indicator of your potential. But to employers, experience wins attention. So instead of focusing on your academic achievements, be sure to highlight your internships.

Get ready to take a test.

At some point during the interview process, you’ll likely be asked to complete an exercise, assessment or test of some sort. It is just another way to evaluate you. The study found that 57 percent of employers administer some exercise or challenge to job candidates, so don’t let this surprise you.

Things to do before that big job interview in Seattle

Research Earnings Calls, Quarterly Reports & Blog Posts

In today’s world, content is king. Goldman Sachs publishes quarterly reports, Microsoft records its earning calls, and every startup has a blog. With so much out there, I’m baffled that few of us look past the company’s homepage. Take the opportunity to read as much as you can about the company, dont just rely on the main website, look deep and look wide.

Use Social Sweepster To Clean Your Facebook & Twitter

Nowadays, employers search your social media for any red flags. While most people tell you to watch every single thing you upload, there’s a much easier solution. Use Social Sweepster, an app that detects pictures of red solo cups, beer bottles, and other “suspicious” objects. It even detects profanity from your past posts! Now, that’s f%$king awesome!

Prepare for The “What’s Your Weakness?” Question

 Most people overthink this question and give a canned answer like “I’m too much of a perfectionist!” Others give a genuine answer but still fall short of what this question is really asking. It’s not about admitting your weaknesses. It’s about showing how you overcome them. What systems have you put in place? What progress have you made? Include those thoughts to strengthen your answer.

Brainstorm 3 “PAR” Anecdotes

Your interview is as memorable as the stories you share. Many people have fascinating experiences but forget them when they’re on the spot.  To remedy this, have three anecdotes ready to plug into your interview. Your anecdotes should follow a simple format:

  1. Problem – what was the situation?
  2. Action – what did you do to solve it?
  3. Result – what changed afterwards?

With this format, you can adapt your PAR anecdotes to fit a variety of questions such as “tell me about a time you worked with a team” or “when have you struggled most?”

Network your way to success in Seattle

Learn How To Effectively Network: If you are not already doing so, learning how to network with people is a skill that will help you succeed in your job search endeavors. With the number of candidates for jobs increasing while the amount of available positions is dwindling, job openings are becoming more and more of a precious commodity. While it is important to send out resumes and chase down leads from newspapers or job sites, that alone isn’t enough anymore to ensure success. There are many people from a variety of industries out of work right now, so going to a job seeker support group, taking continuing education classes, or attending unemployment seminars are a great way to meet others in a similar situation as you.

Inevitably, some of those people will get jobs, and if you’ve established a relationship with them, even if they are not in the same field as you, they could always hear of opportunities or meet other people through their company that could help you. At the same time, if you are the one who finds a job, keeping in touch with those you have met and reaching out to them if you think you could help them will ensure that you have a solid network built in the event that you need their help with anything in the future. Keep in mind most jobs today are part of the “hidden job market” you can only reach them through effective networking.

3 Tips to kickstart your 2017 Job Search with Seattle Recruiters

1. Be Positive:

It is important to understand how difficult the job market is today, and that it is not necessarily your fault that you are out of work and having difficulty finding a new job. However, you must own your job search and start taking the necessary steps to improve the way you present yourself to potential employers. Just remember that you are not alone in this situation, and every job you get passed over for actually brings you one step closer to the one you will get.

Attitude Confidence, Motivation, and Positive Thinking

2. Stay Motivated:

It is easy to become disheartened when you have been out of work for a significant amount of time, and seeing reports in the media about high unemployment rates and benefits being cut off can make it seem like things are never going to get better. The best way to combat falling into a rut or depression is to stay active. Make a point of sending out resumes or filling out applications at least once a day, even if it’s to a job you don’t think you can get, as job seeking is a skill that needs to be practiced, just like playing the piano or lifting weights.

3. Create a Personal Marketing Plan:

Create a list of target companies and industries you want to work for, so you can channel your efforts into a more focused job search. Looking for work is a full-time job, and to increase your chances of being successful, you need to approach it that way. Researching information about the what a company does, where it fits within the industry, and what will be expected of you in the available position will aid you tremendously when you are in front of a potential employer, and show that you have the knowledge and motivation to be successful with them.

Blog to get a Job in Lynnwood

Think of the word “blog” and what comes to mind? Mommy bloggers? People posting funny cat videos? Well, no more. Today’s savvy job seekers are putting their skills to the test and blogging their way to success and job opportunities. Here’s why a blog can get you your next job.

1. It’s your resume, only better: Everyone has a resume. But a blog allows you to highlight the skills on your resume, times ten. For example, if you’re a writer, you can flex your writing muscles and post examples of your creative writing. Even if you’re a tax accountant, you can write your thought-provoking opinions on some of the new tax laws or add a testimonial from a happy client. Just be sure what you write is accurate and well-supported.

2. It gives you a positive digital footprint: Whenever you apply for a job, the first thing a recruiter will do is investigate you online. Having a blog will give potential employers a fuller (and positive) picture of who you are and how you carry yourself, both personally and professionally. And unlike being tagged in an unflattering — and public — image of yourself on Facebook, your blog contains content that you can completely control to project yourself in the best light possible.

3. It helps you build a network: Employers are not only looking for employees who bring knowledge and a superior skill set to the table, but they also want someone who is well connected. So while you might have 500+ connections on LinkedIn, having a blog that has a dedicated readership shows that you know how to create — and keep — connections, both in the digital world and the real world.

4. It keeps you current — and sharp: If you’ve been scanning and searching the Internet for job postings for a while, it’s easy to let your skills slip a little. Blogging will not only keep your knowledge current, but it will also keep your skills sharp as you create cool new content for your readers on a consistent basis. It can also help you stand out as a career expert in your industry.

5. It makes you interesting to employers: When hiring managers read resumes every day, it can get really boring, really fast. If you have a blog that represents not only your skills but also (hello!) your personality, that makes you stand out more than the other seekers who submitted their resumes on fine linen watermarked paper. Suddenly, you become a person — and a possible job candidate they’ll call in for an interview.

Creating and customizing a blog makes you attractive to potential employers. It will help set you apart from other candidates and give you that added edge in finding a job.