A guide to “Selling yourself” from your trusted career advisers at Vortex Staffing:

Often times we are asked where most people fail when it comes to landing their dream job. While the answer to this can vary case by case, one skill that is often lacking is the ability to sell themselves. Consider this, if a company is expecting you to sell millions of dollars of their product and you can’t sell them on you, how far do you think you will get?

This is something that we feel is often overlooked and easy to fix if you are aware of how your skills will be valuable to the person looking to fill the role. So how do you sell yourself? I have listed a couple bullet points below that will be a great starting point, but in the end your brand should be unique to you so feel free to take this advice while also providing your own spin.

• Know the company: Sure you are trying to sell yourself, but if you don’t understand a company’s strength and weakness how can you sell how your abilities would be applicable for the job at hand?

• Put together a brag book: Once you understand where you can be valuable, spend some time to put together deals of significance that you have won, certifications, awards, etc. Think of it as a speed date, you have only a couple minutes to make a great first impression and if you can be prepared to highlight your success it will maximize your ability to ace the interview

• Give specific examples: Many candidates make the mistake of giving broad examples of accomplishments they have made. Talk in detail and add color to the picture. If you are proud of a large deal that you closed, provide details on how the deal culminated all the way the time it closed and the reasons why.

• Provide references even if it is not required: What better way to sell yourself than to have other people of influence brag about you! This is one of the best ways to back up what you are preaching. Take the time to reach out to a few people in your network that would provide a strong reference for you!

• Express that you are a “student of the game”: Many employers want to know what your pedigree is. Talk about books you have read, courses you have taken, certifications you have achieved. Don’t just focus on what you are required to do, talk about the things that you aren’t required to do that are helpful to your career. As a guideline for this, ask yourself; “What do I do in my free time that makes me better at my job?”

• Be unique and memorable:
*Send handwritten thank you notes to the people that you spoke/met with
*Talk about some of the lessons you have learned in business and how they have made you a better professional
*Have unique questions to ask. Do not use your typical run of the mill questions. Do ample research on the company and come up with creative open ended questions to ask. This serves two purposes for you. 1) It shows that you are a serious professional and you have done your homework on the company. 2) It will allow you to learn a lot more about the company as you are deciding if this role/company is superior to your current role.

These are just a few things that if done correctly should not take you longer than an hour and be the difference between landing that once in a lifetime career opportunity or falling short. At the end of the interview you need to ask yourself, “Would I hire me?” If you show up unprepared and have not taken the advice above, more times than not the answer may not be what you are looking for. If you are ever in need of career advice or guidance, do not hesitate to reach out to your trusted career adviser at Vortex Staffing. While you are a professional at what you do for a living, you are not a professional interviewer. Lean on the professionals at Vortex Staffing to help you be all that you can be in the trenches of the interview process. Good luck and happy career hunting!

-Social Media Team at Vortex Staffing-