MemberTALK: Putting Yourself On The Market

By Kae Ngo, Member of the Public Relations Committee, SMArt TALK blogger

It’s a no brainer that we’re reaching a day and age where social media is seeping into our everyday life. Lets face it, it’s taking over the way we communicate and socialize with each other. So, is it only a matter of time until this innovative outlook transfers over to the workplace?

Communicating ourselves to employers has traditionally been through mundane resumes and interviews. Today, more and more creative designers have set forth in fashioning together their resumes to become visually appealing to the eye. In this sense, creativity holds a respectable place in the designing world. In a general sense, setting yourself apart from others is what makes your selling point more attractive to your target, and establish competitive advantage over your competitors. A creative designer will use this edge to craft out their cover letters, resumes, and even incorporate unique character and personality traits of themselves such as: their story, skills, personality, and memorability. Essentially, they are marketing themselves through mediums of artwork.

Of course, it shows initiative and it may certainly be a head turner for most—especially in the current competing job market… but is it worth it? I can’t speak for everyone, but it is a different attitude towards the hiring-process. Keep in mind that the audience may be traditional, and these employers will value other aspects of what you have to offer. Some people do not have the time to read over all the wit and flow of a designed resume or cover letter. In their eyes, less is more. Although this is true, we have the other end of the spectrum where the open-minded lay. Put in the right hands, people with this mindset and attitude will appreciate your high-risk, high-reward approach.
Click the following link to a video titled “Content-Rich Resume”: http://player.vimeo.com/video/21228618

Overall, it won’t work for everybody. Creating a crazy good-looking info-graphic resume isn’t suitable to hand into an environmental-specialist firm, but it does strain a point that we should try new things in an age-old tactic. Whatever way you decide to set yourself apart, it is important to show your initiative. Set the bar to spend time on your cover letter, resume, or portfolio. Time spent will not fail to be recognized and this is what will help you stand out against the competition.

In my experience, I attach a purple coloured paperclip to the top of my resume and cover letter when I hand them into employers. And I’ve received a call from each.

This article was provided courtesy of Simon Fraser University’s Student Marketing Association. See the original post here.

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