You Must Market Yourself to Land the Ideal Job

In today's ever changing job market, it can be more difficult than ever to try and market yourself to land the dream job.

Employers are getting stricter with their searches and may even begin researching their prospective interviewees online, so it's important to make the most of the tools available to us today to make sure we're getting ahead online.

Step 1 - Prepare yourself

With smartphones, social media, blogs and more all available at our fingertips, we can now search for jobs anywhere, from the comfort of our bedrooms to the daily commute. If you want to get yourself in the 'zone' however, you'll want to make sure your job searching environment is comfortable and free of distractions. Ensure you have comfortable bedroom furniture, turn off the television and keep yourself hydrated and well rested. This will help you to concentrate when you're taking those online tests and sending out those cover letters.

Step 2 - Make your profile professional

Social media can be a great way of putting yourself out there, but it can also be very incriminating! If you don't want your potential bosses to see you looking slightly less than professional, ensure your privacy settings are adjusted to hide anything personal.

Your real chance to shine online is to join LinkedIn – a social networking site designed for business professionals, where you can show off all your workplace achievements in one easy to read profile.

Make your LinkedIn profile short, sharp and punchy – list your best achievements in each job or work experience roles, starting with strong verbs in bullet points e.g. 'Maximised sales by improving customer connections.'

Step 3 - Connect with others

Another great feature of LinkedIn is its discussion groups, where high profile businesses and figureheads in industry can share their thoughts and connect with others.

This is a great way of making yourself known and saves you from having to attend networking events. You can find more connections to people who may help you progress in your chosen career, and also search for jobs which are tailored to your profile.

Step 4 - Give examples

Make sure you have a visible record of your achievements online, particularly if you are working in a creative industry such as blogging, fashion design or photography.

Build your own website or blog and keep it fresh, with links back to potential businesses you are trying to target. One way of doing this is to reference others in your blog posts, via hyperlinks or Twitter hashtags. This will draw people to your website and keep you on the radar of prospective employers.

Read more articles for job seekers and those already in a job