By Bruce Hurwitz, Ph.D.

The adage used to be, "Everyone is in sales." Today, "marketing" has to be added. It does not matter what position you hold in a company, even if you are working for yourself (either as a job seeker or a business owner), whether you like it or not, you are in marketing.

So are green grocers. (I wonder if the PC Police have outlawed the term!?) When they place their produce on display, they have awaxcoating on them (the produce not the grocers!) to preserve, protect and enhance their appearance, in other words, to make them look good and slow spoilage. Job seekers need the same (primarily looking good, but also not spoiling!).

I am not referring to clothing, accessories, or evenresumes, a topic which I have previously addressed. The wax, so to speak, for a job applicant, should be their online presence.

On July 12, I will be writing about LinkedIn's Social Selling Index, which is the gauge of how well someone is promoting themselves on LinkedIn. For now, suffice to say that individuals will not get their dream job if they are the best kept secret in town. But beware, if you are in the public domain, you are leaving yourself open to ridicule. If you can't take criticism, and feel the need to respond to every comment someone (usually a someone who is jealous) makes, it might be best to stay out of sight.

That said, there is an alternative to expressing your own opinion. Being a source of important information for your profession is enough. You don't necessarily have to write posts or long-form articles opining on different subjects. Simply sharing articles with your network will get you noticed.

Posting articles that you have written on LinkedIn or a blog on a different platform, and linking to them on all social media accounts, will get you noticed. You want your online reputation to be that of a consummate professional. As a recruiter, I had one candidate whose LinkedIn presence was the definition of professionalism. Then I saw his Facebook page. It was dedicated to attacking a politician who will remain nameless. He, the candidate, went over the deepend. He was a raving lunatic. I could not submit him to my client because I did not know who would show up, the professional or the lunatic.

For my part, the only thing I post on X, Facebook, Instagram, etc., are things I post on LinkedIn. The same should be true for any professional, not to mention a job seeker. No one should want a prospective employer thinking that they suffer from some sort of split personality disorder.

The important thing is to have employers run after you, not you running after them. And the only way for that to happen is if you create an online persona which makes you look like the personification of professionalism. Once you have done that, you will be able to wax poetic.

(5) How to Market Yourself | LinkedIn