Do I Need to Build a Brand to Land a Job in 2024?

To build a brand or not to build a brand. Influencer or not to influence. All questions that have been trending on LinkedIn when it comes to landing a job in this tough 2024 job market. Do I really need to have 100k followers on LinkedIn to get a job now a days? Why can’t my experience just speak for itself? Nobody asked, BUT here are my thoughts:

I don’t want us to get standing out as a candidate confused with being an influencer. There has always been a need for you to stand out for a job application weather that’s reaching out to the hiring manager directly after applying or even physically going up to the company asking to speak to a manger about your application (remember when we were trying to get a job at the mall? No? Just me? Cool lol) Standing out means being different from the rest. That doesn’t mean you have to promote change or have a ton of followers.

I’m not saying that being an influencer or having the power to influence is a bad thing either. I’ll be lying if I told you I haven’t benefited from having a big following. I’ve been provided with opportunities and had access to rooms just off my network alone. With that being said, it is important for me to connect my network with amazing opportunities as well. As an influencer, if you are not helping to grant other with tangible opportunities, what are you really doing?

At the end of the day applying and waiting for someone to get back to you is NOT enough unfortunately. WE HAVE TO STAND OUT! Does that mean starting a hashtag? No, not necessary, but that does mean you have to do more to get notice. If having a following is not for you that’s totally fine, but we have to come up with creative ways to grab the attention of recruiters and hiring manager. Some examples are:

1. Creative message intros: “Did a dinosaur eat my last message, or did it just get lost in your spam?”

2. Commenting under job post: “I’ve applied for the position and would love to explain how my experience at Google, Microsoft & Salesforce will allow me to exceed expectations. Did you have time to chat this week?” This could be a connection request message as well!

3. Reaching out to our 1st connections for help: “Hi John! Hope all has been well since our Oracle days! I see you are at IBM now! Would you be open to giving me a referral or potentially passing my resume along to the hiring manager?”

4. The “Keep me in mind” message: “I know you may not be hiring recruiters at this time, but wanted to ask if you could please keep me in mind for when the next opportunity hits your desk.”

5. The “Company Call Out” post: “Hi Network! I just applied for these positions at these companies (list out job title & companies). Does anyone have a connection they could introduce me to for one of these positions?”

I know, its CRAZY that we have to do all this! I have great skills and a great background with amazing transferable skills… but so does everyone else & I want you to be the one that stands out! That’s why you have me, Get Me Hired Kristi and I’m here to help you along the way ❤️ 

Just a few things before we wrap up! I made a list of the best job search resources to help you land a job in 2024! Be sure to check out each platform provided in the link below:

If you know a software engineering that is struggling to land an interview in big tech, let them know about Simplify Interviews scholarship application. They can learn more here: Simplify Interviews and actually apply here: https://simplifyinterviews.typeform.com/scholarship

For those going through a layoff season, you can learn more about how to make money in the meantime by watching this video here:

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Love yall! Signing off,

GetMeHiredKristi