Marketing 101: You are the Product
By Daryl M Williams
Think back to the past several Super Bowls and some
of the companies that produced commercials. At the end of their 30-60 second
spot, you had no idea what service or product they were introducing or selling.
DON’T be those guys!
Even GoDaddy.com, a seemingly successful and newsworthy
company is an example NOT to follow.
Why?
Well for one thing, they relied on your desire to research
them further by going to their website, routinely ending commercials before you
knew what was being sold. It worked for them but unless your résumé offers
truly captivating content, ending it before you’ve sold the connection between your experience and the role you are
pursuing is a sure fire way to hear crickets from that job you applied for.
How do you avoid being those guys? Glad you asked and here
are some tips:
·
AVOID
the empty rhetoric such as:
o
Keen eye for detail
o
Strong communication skills, written and verbal
o
Hard worker
·
Tell YOUR
story
o
Provide supporting details:
§
Change Keen eye for detail into Displayed a keen
eye for detail as an editor for my department newsletter or a member of my
organization inventory auditing team (if true).
§
Give examples, OBJECTIVE statements, details and
NUMBERS, NUMBERS, NUMBERS
I have heard and read the empty, subjective statements too
many times to count in the last decade of reviewing résumés, re-writing résumés
and interviewing candidates. They are empty statements because there is nothing
to support them.
It seems like a novel concept, something easily accomplished
with a couple of key strokes and time invested. Newsflash, it’s not! Marketing
isn’t always easy whether it’s a prospective client or an organization
attempting to introduce you to its products. That doesn’t mean it isn’t worth
it to make the effort.
In terms of you and your résumé and cover letter, you don’t
want to be those guys because if you are making a recruiter/hiring manager
guess as to your fit for a position, chances are the game will soon be over,
for you.
Daryl M Williams, MBA,
M.S., is an adjunct professor, teaching Career Planning and Management as well
as being a Career Coach. He is passionate about providing information to assist
friends, family, students, alums, and even frenemies (really) in professional
development and uses his management experience in Fortune 500, non-profit and
private corporations to inform his decisions. Feel free to connect via LinkedIn.
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