Thoughts on Personal Branding

BOSTON, MA -- A subscriber to my blog writes,

"Harry, I'm writing a book on personal branding, and I think a quote from you would be perfect for it.   If you could please send a 3-5 sentence quote on how the role of human resources has changed and how applicants are being judged differently, I would greatly appreciate it.

I enjoy your work and can't wait to hear what you think.

Thanks.
D.S.

My thoughts:

Document searching technology has radically changed how HR professionals source, screen and acquire marketing talent.  Until roughly five years ago, finding great talent was like finding a needle in a haystack.  No problem, given Google's capability.

Today it's like finding a needle in a stack of needles:  Monster contains 44 million resumes.  CareerBuilder has 17 million.  HotJobs has 5 million.  And that's just the tip of the iceberg.  Facebook, LinkedIn, Spoke, and numerous other online networks add to the clutter.  Plus whatever resumes are posted on the worldwide web.  The amount of noise in the employment marketplace is unbelievable.

Now more than ever, it's far better for candidates to have a small circle of competence that's sharply defined around the edges than one that's big and fuzzy.  Specialize and keyword load your resume to reflect your successes in your niche.  Stake your claim in a small, growing market -- and work like hell to dominate that niche.  As a modern marketing executive, that's your only hope of survival.

Thanks for reading.
- Harry

PS - For more tips like this, see 97 Job Search Tips.
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Comments

[Ted Grigg]

Very nicely put.

It's not so much who you know, but who knows you well.

I agree that a close circle of advocates is far more effective than a 1,000 contacts who know little about you.

Yet ... even niche players need as wide of a circle of contacts as possible.

Years ago, I discovered that my direct marketing niche was a good one. It continues to yield tremendous opportunities. Over time, however, it may become necessary to specialize within a certain industry.

What are your thoughts about how narrow to caste that niche?