Aligning your job application materials and professional profiles is critical in ensuring success as a job candidate. Washington State University’s Carson College of Business deems a successful job search one that requires more than just a strong resume but, “creating a cohesive professional brand across multiple platforms.” All three maximize your professional presence. Therefore, they must work together to tell your unique professional story and effectively market your personal brand.
Your Resume
Your resume is a living document. A concise, high-level reflection of your skills and relevant experiences on paper that provides a first impression of your professional story and brand. But this document, often a single page, can’t work alone to fully capture all you’ve accomplished and are working towards regarding skills, experiences, personal projects, and more. It needs the support of your cover letter and LinkedIn profile. This is why ensuring effective alignment between your resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn profile is so important. Your resume acts to pique the interest of the recruiter or whoever’s eyes it lands upon, giving them a sense of your qualifications and leaving them eager to learn more.
Your Cover Letter
While your tailored resume simply states some of what you’ve accomplished, cover letters provide a narrative that explains why what you’ve done matters and how it connects to a role. Your cover letter should not reiterate your resume but build on it. Think of it as your pitch, and let your voice, personality, and motivation come through. Here, make the case as to why you are best suited for the role and portray your personality, which isn’t conveyed through your high-level resume. Your cover letter will provide context and show how you employ the skills on your resume or LinkedIn profile. A good method is to expand on a few accomplishments from your LinkedIn or resume that tie to the role. You can share a story and demonstrate that you’ve done your research as well. Remember, your cover letter is also the bridge between your resume and your LinkedIn profile, connecting your skills, values, and goals in a cohesive and personalized narrative.
Your LinkedIn
Your LinkedIn profile serves as an online extension of you and your personal brand in motion. The best part is that when it comes to your LinkedIn, there are no page limitations or length requirements, so use it as the most comprehensive source of your professional story and information. Think of it as your robust master resume and live cover letter. Use your profile as an opportunity to build your credibility and professional digital footprint, and humanize your resume and cover letter through posts. Your LinkedIn posts should be timely and expand on those key experiences you’ve highlighted on your resume or cover letter, plus more. Share links, upload your work, credentials, and projects, share timely industry insights, and make an active effort to create a robust platform. The key is to continually update your profile, fine-tune your bio, add skills, engage with relevant content, and curate original posts based on new experiences, events, and conversations, all while ensuring the most relevant updates are reflected in your resume and cover letter when applicable.
The Three in Action & Key Takeaways
When applying for a job, start by researching the company and role. What values, skills, and tone do they use? Think about what skills, experiences, and career capital you can offer by pulling from your LinkedIn and resume and using that to build a cover letter. Remember that each of the three does serve its own purpose, but they must all complement each other, and the core information should remain consistent, not verbatim. Your resume is a living document and requires continuous tweaks and updates. Your LinkedIn profile should be an active narrative where information is, then adapted for your resume and cover letter. Don’t wait until you apply to a role to make profile changes or LinkedIn updates to show you’re an engaged professional.
The more authentic and cohesive your personal brand is, the stronger your candidacy and market value will be. Develop a system that allows you to balance maintaining these three key materials in your job search and career to create a seamless transition and avoid any gaps in conveying your professional story.
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