5 Examples of Personal Branding for Students and Job Seekers

Personal branding certainly isn’t a new concept. With the advent of the age of influencers, more people understand the importance of creating their brand and identity in the social and professional sphere. But for students and job seekers out of college, creating a personal brand seems daunting.

You can use personal branding to leverage employment opportunities in a field with high exposure. We’ll go over the basics of personal branding and present five personal branding examples for students and job seekers to carve out a unique identity in a sea of competition.

What is Personal Branding?

Personal branding is when you show people who you are and what you can do in your niche. It is when you uniquely market yourself to show others what you’re all about and establish an experience for them. Both companies and individuals can develop their unique brands. You can go all out or keep it simple, but consistency is the most critical aspect.

When you establish your brand, you’re signaling to others that you have something to offer and putting effort into creating an identity for yourself and your business.

How Can Personal Branding Help Students and Job Seekers?

You may not consider creating your brand if you’re a student or job seeker. It ultimately depends on your field, the candidate pool, and your approach to a career.

For example, suppose you’re in a high-volume marketing or public relations industry. In that case, a personal brand is a key that opens many doors. But if you’re looking for a position that isn’t front facing, you may not need it.

When you develop your professional identity, you project that you’re a high-value candidate willing to take the time and effort to get noticed. A personal brand can help you stand out among other applicants. Moreover, you may not have the right experience to apply to specific positions as a student.

Is Personal Branding Necessary?

Yes. Nowadays, people are looking for something different and so are companies. You’ll start building a solid reputation by making an impression and creating a personal brand. But creating this expectation also requires hard work so others can experience your value.

You will need tools, experience, and skills to set yourself apart from others. You must offer valuable information so others can take you seriously. Personal brands also open doors to many job opportunities, and recruiters will pay attention.

Finally, creating consistent, unique branding projects that you’re a trustworthy person. Even if you don’t have many skills initially, being steady and dependable helps people recognize what you are about and builds an image in their minds.

How Do I Start Building a Personal Brand?

Building your brand takes honesty and perseverance. In terms of honesty, you need to be clear about what you can offer and be genuine in your approach. If you cannot be consistent, don’t make promises that you cannot deliver.

If you promote yourself as a health-focused person, you must ‘live” the concept you’re selling to others. Moreover, to be a social media guru, you must have a solid and active presence on major platforms.

Here are some tips to help you get started:

• Define your purpose, message, and the niche you want to be known for
• Identify what value you can bring your target audience and what sets you apart from competitors
• Create a content strategy that allows you to set goals and adjust based on the reaction you receive
• Establish a personal brand statement
• Know your target audience and find out what grabs their attention and what they are seeking
• Comb through your social media accounts and remove images or posts that don’t align with your brand
• Consider creating a website that lists your message, focus, and skills
• Start networking using digital and non-digital mediums
• Learn SEO and optimization techniques to rank higher on search engine results
• Learn from others who have already established themselves in their niche

The more effort and time you spend working on the above points, the more skills you gain, helping you reach your goal. However, remember that this isn’t an easy endeavor. You may face numerous obstacles along the way and may even fail a few times. Don’t let this discourage you – nothing valuable manifests out of thin air.

Successful Examples of Personal Branding

Whether you love them or hate them, some celebrities, businesspeople and career coaches established a personal brand that others can identify immediately. Here are some of the best personal branding examples for students and job seekers of professionals who made it in their fields:

Neil Patel

Patel is a successful marketing guru and New York Times bestselling author with a robust online presence. Patel founded multiple companies and helped people market themselves by giving personal examples and inviting his audience to follow his techniques.

LeBron James

James uses the media to his advantage and practices the positivity he preaches. The all-star also benefits from marketing exposure from high-value collaborations with brands like Nike. Besides being one of the best basketball players in the world, James sets a positive example for people through his inspirational actions and words.

Oprah Winfrey

Winfrey is a household name for her successful charity foundations, talk shows and television network. Winfrey’s branding is on-point: she projects confidence but in an approachable manner that makes her relatable to people across age groups.

Madalyn Sklar

Sklar is a Twitter marketing strategist with years of experience in digital marketing. With thousands of followers and a proven track record of success in her niche, Sklar teaches people how to extract the most value from their social media use and create successful strategies.

Khaby Lame

Lame is a Senegalese Tik Tok and YouTube star who rose to fame for his simple – yet effective – branding technique: pinpoint common sense gaps in how-to videos. Lame relies on the same facial and hand expressions in most of his “common sense” videos. He is arguably one of the most successful social media stars today.

These are just a few examples of how a successful personal branding strategy yields results that can turn someone into a household name. Even if you are not aiming for stardom, you can use the techniques adopted by similar influencers you trust to get the job you love.

With these personal branding examples for students and job seekers, you have an idea of how big – or small – you want to go in your technique and create a strategy to get there.

How Does a Resume Factor Into Your Brand?

If you’re starting a new career or are looking for a new job, having a personal brand allows you to establish a name and niche. But your resume should also reflect what you are projecting through your branding efforts. It doesn’t have to be fancy – but it does need to contain the information recruiters and hiring managers are looking for to help you stand out.

Most importantly, your resume should pass Applicant Tracking Systems without a hitch to make it to a decision-maker.

If you have a personal brand set and have made progress in establishing yourself in your niche, the next step is to create a resume that gets results. Rocket Resume has all the tools you need to create a CV in minutes. With its intuitive tools and easy-to-use platform, you’ll have a fully-functional resume in minutes. The best part? All Rocket Resume templates pass ATS systems seamlessly, giving you one less thing to worry about as you start your job search.

Are you ready to create a resume that reflects your brand? Start today with Rocket Resume for a seamless experience.