How to Write a Personal Branding Statement for Your Job Search

As you apply to jobs, you’re likely spending a lot of time thinking about your strengths, accomplishments, and the personality attributes that make you an ideal candidate. Those positive elements, whether you know it or not, make up your personal brand. Understanding and developing your personal brand can help elevate your application and set you apart from the competition.

To maximize that personal brand, creating a personal branding statement for your job search is a great first step. A personal branding statement is a brief summary establishing who you are and how your unique talents can add value to your target organization.

Let’s take a look at how you can create a resume branding statement that grabs the attention of potential employers.

Resume Branding Statement Tips

1. Write down your talents and abilities. Ideally, you want to write down the abilities that are most relevant to the job to which you are applying.
2. List your accomplishments. How have you added value to a company in the past? What have you done to save employers time, money, or effort?
3. Catalog any personal traits that have helped you succeed in previous roles. Here’s where you get the chance to spotlight your soft skills—such as a strong work ethic, attention to detail, or the ability to multitask with ease.
4. Ask former colleagues, former bosses, and mentors for input. If a potential employer contacted one of these individuals for a reference, what would you want them to say? Ask for a few key traits or accomplishments that made you successful in your past role or roles.
5. Review the job posting. Take another look to see how the items you listed correspond to the job requirements. Highlight any keywords that match up with the list of required abilities in the job posting.
6. Bring it all together. Pick one or two of your talents and one or two of the accomplishments—whichever ones that showcase your abilities the most as a candidate, and make you the best fit for this particular role. Write a brief, catchy sentence that captures all of these elements. Think of it as your own personal slogan.
7. Use your branding statement throughout your job search. Your personal branding statement should be a primary focus in your application materials, just underneath the contact information on your resume. You can also add your personal brand statement to LinkedIn, so recruiters can get to know you even before you apply for a position.

Personal Brand Statement Examples

A personal brand statement highlights those essential, specific qualities that give you an edge over the competition. As you review your statement, make sure it effectively answers the questions, “How would you describe yourself?” and “Why should we hire you?”

Here are some examples of personal branding statements:

• “Award-winning investigative journalist with a 15-year record of researching and uncovering the stories that need to be told.”
• “Highly motivated, detail-oriented executive assistant devoted to helping my bosses do their jobs better.”
• “Registered nurse bringing two decades of experience providing direct patient care and contributing to the successful development of new staff nurses.”
• “Strategic, nimble graphic designer with an impressive track record of creating bold, engaging content across print, digital, and social media.”
• “Social media guru whose on-point brand messaging increased Twitter follower count by 60% and Facebook by 45% in my previous role.”
• “Industry-certified paralegal specializing in estate law, whose exceptional interpersonal skills immediately win over clients and lead to successful long-term relationships.”

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As you craft your personal branding statement and read these personal brand statement examples, think about how you can use your statement to refine your resume and cover letter. Your personal brand should be a strong and cohesive theme throughout your job search. For help writing cover letters and resumes, check out iHire’s Career Advice Library.