Personal Branding: Make Your Answer to “Who Are You?” a Good One
The question “Who are You?” is one I could answer in a lot of ways. I am a student, I am an intern, I am a friend, I am a daughter, I am a sister. Yet, none of these things make me special. A lot of people in this world could say those same things. Not to rain on your parade, but you are unfortunately a dime a dozen. The pool of people you are similar to doesn’t get smaller when you filter yourself down to the category of a Grand Valley State University student majoring in public relations looking for a job. It is 109 Ad/PR students, to be exact. Add that with every other college around West Michigan, and you are back at square one.
You Are More Important Than Your Qualifications
I am sure that was not what you wanted to hear, but, I do have a solution for you: personal branding. Want even better news? You are not the problem. It is not necessarily you that makes yourself not stand out. It is how you answer the question: “Who are you?” Personal branding is all about finding yourself a niche in that big sea of fish. The key is to market yourself, not just your qualifications. “But I have a lot of experience!” So do a lot of people. “But I am a good writer!” That’s great, we all should be. The point is, despite your tendency to believe that your skills make you stand out, you might be selling yourself short.
Find Your Personality Traits, and Run With Them
So, who are you? We need to self-reflect to understand what traits we have that make us different. You may want to recruit some friends, ask your family, question your professors, etc. It can be hard to identify these traits by looking in the mirror, and you may need some help. Authentic, confident, unique, and adaptable are all great examples. Once you have these narrowed down, hone in on them. These are the words you will use throughout all of your application materials. From LinkedIn bios to your cover letter, these traits are more valuable than you may think.
Personal branding is about creating a feeling. Feelings are what employers base their decisions on. If you make it to the last round of interviews, you can bet your qualifications compared to the other candidates are pretty similar. So, what is going to land you the job? How the recruiter feels. If you shared the same values, if they felt you would fit in at the office, if you made them laugh, these are all things that your title at an internship cannot account for.
Consistency is Key
Now that you can answer the question “Who are you?” familiarize yourself with the answer. Employers like to know what to expect, so create an expectation around yourself as an employee. This consistent message will make you shine. Take it a step further and create a brand mantra. Forbes has a great article on how to create this. It only takes four short steps: pick a personality trait, a word related to your industry or skill, and one word that tells what you do best. A great example of this would be, “A passionate public relations storyteller.” Don’t steal it though, that one is mine.
Tell Your Story
You now have your personality traits nailed down and a brand mantra to go with it. Utilize these tools in every place you can. As we all know to include your prospective employers' values throughout our cover letters, we must do the same with ours. Sprinkle your traits throughout your application materials. Make your LinkedIn “About Me” section actually about you! Employers already scroll down to sift through your experiences. Use the space given to you to share your story. Because that story is the special one. Personal branding is about making yourself the selling point. Be proud of it, because that selling point is pretty good.
Claire Spitz is a senior pursuing a degree in Advertising and Public Relations with an emphasis in PR. This will be her second semester in GrandPR, where she previously served as an Account Associate with an Emphasis in Design. This year, she takes on the role of Firm Editor. Claire is passionate about Public Relations, specifically in social media management and content creation. She has previous experience managing all Panhellenic digital media outlets for the year of 2023 and is now serving as their Social Media Analyst for the fall. After graduation, Claire hopes to pursue PR in the health, beauty, or entertainment industry.