Back to The Future (In a Good Way)

I have recently noticed a huge trend in retro design (okay maybe not THAT recently) and may I say that I am super excited about it. I love retro designs. I like the mixing of type, the color palettes, the ribbons and brackets. Usually my personal design aesthetic is pretty simple but I love to throw some retro design elements in now and again.

Is retro here to stay? Hard to tell since digital design trends shift so rapidly but I do now that right now, retro is taking over design in a big way. As great as the Retro fad is, however, there is a way for it to go horribly wrong. When do you stop throwing ribbons at a site? (Probably  right before the point you start throwing them instead of placing them with design purpose) When do you know when you’ve gone too far with typefaces? (Probably when you’ve reach 10 different fonts on a single page and it’s beginning to resemble a crazy sweater) Is there a difference between Retro and Vintage? (Yes! Well…a little. Maybe. I don’t know. We’ll find out?)

Never fear my readers! We will navigate the wild world of Retro together in this blog post and come out the other side more educated designers (Maybe).

Let’s begin with definitions:

retro, adj. : relating to, reviving, or being the styles and especially the fashions of the past : fashionably nostalgic or old-fashioned

vintage, adj.
1 c : of old, recognized, and enduring interest, importance, or quality : CLASSIC, VENERABLE
2 a : marked by an advanced age : dating from the past

Putting that into plain english, Retro refers to a design aestheic which is imitating a past style. Vintage refers to something that is actually from that past time period. Bought some awesome chairs influenced by the the charming Mom ‘n Pop diners of the past but was mass produced in China? Retro. Acquired a chair that actually was FROM the Mom ‘n Pop diner? Vintage.

Clear on that? Alright, moving on.

Now obviously the internet wasn’t around back in the day of the Grease soundtrack and poodle skirts so how can Vintage websites exist? Now, I’m throwing my personal opinion into this a little but I think the style difference has a lot to do with the typefaces. Design elements such as the floral edges and borders and fancy ribbons tend to show up in both design styles (if we can even separate the two).

Mm, quite.

Usually though, I think the design style encompassing both Retro and Vintage is referred to as Retro since you’re still imitating a style either way. Searching for “Vintage Website Design” doesn’t bring up NEARLY as many search results as “Retro Website Design”. This blog post gives a list of sites using “Vintage” typography however I feel that overall the design of the sites are much more Retro.

Now that we’re past the mumbo jumbo and technical terms, let’s dive into some tasty design.

1. Form Follows Function
The golden rule of design. Just because you can design something as Retro doesn’t mean you should. First and foremost, you should be giving the client what they want. This is probably the most important lesson I’ve learnt over the past couple of months. You’re not designing for yourself. You’re designing for a client and an audience. They have the money, they get what they want. It doesn’t matter if you feel like it isn’t your strongest work. If you’re pleasing the client and fulfilling the design brief, the rest will follow.

http://www.stallanddean.com/

Ahhhh, I really like this design. It uses the Retro design aesthetic very well and the design overall is very balanced. I’ve noticed that it’s very easy to go overboard on Retro design “bits” but this website does a great job. I also think this website follows the rule “FFF”. Overall, the website gives the feel of the vintage clothing advertisements from back in the day with the classic type and grainy textures.

http://www.theworldwelivein.co.uk/

I’m a sucker for white space and simplicity and this site is no exception. Usually I’m nervous about using giant introductory paragraphs in portfolios but this one actually works really well. The sentence is short, sweet and explains what the site is. Upon scrolling down you can see some samples of the designers work. Everything is easy to navigate and find. The designer did a really great job of bringing in some small retro design elements like the texture in the background and the custom logo badge. So simple, so functional.

http://www.threepennyeditor.com/

I HAD to include this website. The concept is so simple but the overall effect is quite lovely. The website works for the company. I understand what they do and important information is given to me right away. The navigation is easy to get to, it’s not cluttered. Everything is laid out neatly and I can’t stop scrolling up and down the page (so clever). I love when a website comes together like this so effectively. The design flows together seamlessly and the resulting design is effortless. I’m not totally sold on the side scrolling animation under the tagline, but I can live with it because of how good the rest of the site is.

2. Form…Doesn’t Follow Function?

You know I have to include some not so good ones in here. The sites that I have listed aren’t TERRIBLE but I feel that they could have been improved in some ways.

http://www.targetscope.com/

First of all, automatic audio. That’s a huge no-no. Many viewers are already listening to their own tunes when browsing, therefore they don’t need your unnecessary music assaulting their ears. It’s annoying and it slows down load speeds of the web page. I also have a huge gripe with flash websites. I feel that it’s very difficult to make a good flash website and even if the design is great, flash is something that’s disappearing fast. In this site specifically, if you hover near the navigation, a scope or magnifying glass of some sort drops down. I don’t know what this is for. What purpose does it serve? It drops down over the links on the navigation but for no reason. If you think people need help reading the page titles then maybe you should, you know, make them legible.

My biggest problem with this website is that I don’t understand what it’s about. I see the descriptive words on the right side of the page but I actually have to go read a few pages to understand what exactly this company offers me.

http://singularityconcepts.com/

I don’t hate this site as much as the previous one but I do find it a bit overwhelming. It’s not bad, but there are so many things happening that I’m not sure what I should be looking at. The navigation is especially distracting, the different colors and different styles (why does one button completely change?) is way too confusing for the average viewer. Then two of the headings say the same thing (with one being cut off) even though the sections are about different topics. Like I said, it’s not a bad design but I think some things could have been dialed back and some things could have been cleaned up a little.

All in all, I love the retro design boom. When used correctly, retro design can be a very effective way to grab your target audience’s attention. Don’t get carried away by the ribbons and birds, always keep the audience in mind and aim to design something that’s pleasing to the eye rather than overwhelming.

Questions? Comments? Something to add about the retro fad? Let me know.

 

Week Nine: Newly Graduated, Depending on Those Around Me

I have made a mostly well thought out plan to move to Indianapolis in the next two weeks. To others it may seem rash and last minute, a plan of desperation if you will. I am moving to a new city with no prospects and no job (not even a temporary one) but one thing I do have is a fantastic support system in the form of my friends and family. This ‘career’ support system has been in place since the first day I started college as a wide-eyed freshman. My slightly over-bearing but well-meaning parents were my first supporters, my biggest fans. They were there to encourage me no matter how rough things got and tried to offer advice in times of need. I can honestly say I would be lost without them. When I first started college, I tried to be independent and act like I didn’t need them but quickly realized this was not the way to go. Family is a fantastic resource to have. You always have somewhere to stay, somewhere to do laundry for free and people who will love you and help you to the best of their ability. Not everyone may have such a great family and I realize I have been very fortunate.

When striking out on our own as young professionals, we may feel the need to distance ourselves slightly from our families. This may come from the sense that we’re finding ourselves and becoming real adults. We don’t need parents. Parents are for children. We are our own people!

This couldn’t be more wrong. Parents (and the rest of the family members) can be valuable connections not only personally but professionally. I’m not saying you should hit up your parents for jobs, but ask them if they can keep an eye and ear out for anything that may come along.

The next best support system is of course friends. Friends are on of the best networking tools to have. Friends like introducing you to their other friends (hopefully). Friends like going out and doing friend things. Friends try to help you out if you need it. The nice thing about college is that it will show you who you can actually rely on. The problem is that a lot of people don’t like to depend on other people. It’s that sense of being independent that I brought up before. Being dependent on someone is thought to show weakness, however you’re never going to get anywhere in life without depending on someone. Eventually you will have to depend on your team, your coworkers or your boss. Depending on someone does not make you weak, it actually makes you stronger. It gives you something to lean on, some time to take a breath and gather yourself again. You can’t do it all by yourself so if you haven’t learned to depend, now is the time.

The reason I’m blogging about my support system is because I will be relying on them a lot in the next couple of months. I’m moving to a city where I already have friends and my parents are about an hour’s drive if an emergency should arise. I will be living with one of my friends until I can find something more permanent. This friend actually offered to let me stay with him because he could see I was reaching that level of desperation. I was trying the tough man act where I would rely on nobody but myself. You can see how that turned out. So for the next couple of months I will be depending. I will be pushing and searching for jobs of course but I will also be depending.

Week Six: Newly Graduated, Preparing for Interviews

So I had two interviews last week as I talked about a little bit in my last blog post. One of the jobs was not really what I was looking for long-term wise so I had to turn it down. Of course you may be wondering, “WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT. YOU’RE UNEMPLOYED”. That is true, however just because I don’t currently have a job does not mean I will be settling into a job that I know will not be a good fit for me. I was not comfortable with the company culture and despite the fact I enjoyed the interview, I knew that accepting that position would make me unhappy down the road.

Now on to the theme of this week’s post: preparing for interviews. Now you may think you have this all down pat, but there is always room for improvement. Take every opportunity to learn from your mistakes so that you can perform better in future interviews. Even if you’re in an interview for a job you don’t plan on taking, it’s good to practice your interview skills.

Appropriate Dress: This should be common sense. It doesn’t matter if you’re interviewing for a prestigious position at a private marketing firm or a mall job, clean yourself up! You can never be too overdressed for an interview. It shows that you care about the interview and you took the time to prepare beforehand. I have been in a group interview before where a lady was wearing sweatpants. SWEATPANTS. The horror. If you’re unsure about what to wear, you can either call or email the person who contacted you about the interview and ask. Completely clueless about professional dress? I’ve got you covered. You can either browse Pinterest for some outfit inspiration or go to this handy dandy link:

What to Wear to an Interview

Ask Questions: I think this is the portion of the interview that largely goes unused during an interview. I like to ask questions during the interview as well as afterwards. Follow up the interviewer’s questions with questions of your own. Try to find out as much as you can about the position (usually they’ll tell you all about it though), the company culture and what the company is trying to achieve. Ask about their marketing plans, who their target audience is, what their future goals are and what they’re looking for in an employee (if they didn’t mention it already). If you’re interested in the position, show them. Asking questions is a great way to have a conversation with the interviewer instead of just sitting there answering questions. Be prepared to answer those questions, but try to engage the interviewer past that point. There are a few questions that are similar from interview to interview however prepare yourself beforehand for some off-the-wall questions.

The Ten Most Common Interview Questions

The Follow Up: Many people leave the interview thinking that they’re done. They just have to sit back and wait for ‘The Call’. FALSE. Follow up with your interviewer after the interview. Send either an email or card thanking the interviewer for his/her time and talk about some points you touched on during the interview. Mention that you really appreciate the opportunity and re-iterate some of your skills you can bring to the company. Always, always get in contact after an interview (within 24 hours), no exceptions. Even if you don’t want the position or you think you didn’t get the job, always follow up.

How to Write the Perfect Thank-You Note After the Interview

Be Honest: There’s no point in lying in an interview, it won’t get you anywhere. You’ll eventually be found out and it’ll blow up in your face. Be truthful about how you got to where you are today. Talk about what you’ve overcome to get to this point. Don’t oversell your skills if you don’t feel comfortable doing a particular task. Rather say, “I don’t have much experience but it’s something that I want to learn”. That shows the employer that you are willing to put forth the effort and continue growing as a person. Being honest in an interview ensures that you’re a good match for the company. The company doesn’t want to be stuck with someone who isn’t a good fit and vice versa.

Obviously there are a ton more interview tips but I wanted to touch on some of the top ones (Go here to read some more). Being prepared for an interview shows that you’re interested and willing to put forth effort. Employers want to hire someone who is eager to learn and grow within the company. They want to see that you will strive to do your best and be a good employee.

As for next week’s post, hopefully I’ll be employed by then.

Graphic Design Resumes & Portfolios (Part 2)

Here is the long awaited Part 2 of my discussion about Graphic Design portfolio and resumes. I know you’re excited, please maintain your composure.

In my last blog post I discussed some differences between what makes a good resume and a bad resume. This time around, I will be talking about portfolios and what makes an effective portfolio. There are three important things to keep in mind when creating your portfolio site.

1. Navigation – Can the viewer navigate your site easily? Can they find what they’re looking for? Keep your navigation clean and simple so that visitors to your site do not have to search for it. Also, if you want to have a splash page when someone first views your site, make sure its easy to navigate. There is nothing worse than being greeted by a splash page and then being stuck there with no hope for escape. Simple is best!

2. Work – Obviously you will need a page to display your work. You want to keep the gallery portion of your project page very clean and simple too. If you want to separate your pieces such as print and web, certainly do so but don’t get confusing with it. You want clear titles so that the viewer knows what they are looking at. Make sure your thumbnails are large enough and contain enough detail about the projects to peak the viewers interest. Tiny images are not going to look attractive on the page and neither is a thumbnail of the corner detail of the serif of a letter form. Ain’t nobody got time for that.

3. About You – This is your portfolio, include some information about yourself. You can also include your resume on the site so that potential employers who find your site have easy access to it. Keep the about you section short and concise. There is no need to ramble on about your childhood, simply talk about how you got to where you are today, what inspires you, and where you hope to go.

Now for the examples of portfolio sites!

Foundry Collective

I think this site is a really great example of a portfolio site. Now, this isn’t a personal website but still take note! The navigation is really easy to see and easy to understand. There is a fantastic use of a grid which makes the web page look very organized and clean. The page is not too simple that the viewer would become bored but rather entices the eye with large, interesting images. Also, I am really loving the text. It’s a good balance between the clean, modern white space and the serif typeface.

Buffalo

Also not a personal site but another great example of using the grid system (in a new and interesting way). The site uses a great sense of symmetry to create a clean space. The color scheme really pops against the light background and the design uses the black logo and type to create hierarchy (I’m really digging the logo). The navigation is also easy to see and neatly organized. Clicking on an image takes the viewer to a page where they can learn more about the project. Remember, when creating a website, you want to emphasize your work above all.

Made Like Me

And here we have a personal portfolio site! Now this one is a little different than traditional sites simply because the home page is the portfolio page. This designer opts to showcase his work first and foremost without messing around with silly things like home pages or splash pages (who even needs those?). He is very clear about what he wants the viewer to see. Look at his work. Look at it! The thumbnails are a great size and show just enough detail of the projects. The only critique I would have for this is that there is no description for the projects. I have absolutely no idea what these are for. Does he do them in his spare time? Are these illustrations commissioned? Any information would be fantastic.

I’ve been giving a lot of love to grid based designs (I can’t help it, they’re too sexy) so I’m going to shift my focus to something a little different…

Jesse Willmon’s 2013 DESIGN-TACULAR

“What is this monstrosity?!” you may be screaming at this exact moment, but lets take some time to examine this website. This is actually a splash page and any picture you click will take you to the actual website and the page of the project. Yes, it took me a second to figure it out, but those doodles were too fun to pass up. Another important aspect when making a portfolio website, inject your personality into it! Add some color, add some spice. When looking at this portfolio, I get this person’s aesthetic and personality right away (Whovian? Right on man.)

The navigation is clear, and you can see that this guy has done some really awesome projects. I may or may not be a little jealous. There could be more white space around the site and each project title but at this point I’m just nitpicking.

As you can see from the above examples, they kept their portfolio pieces the main priority. Remember to keep plenty of white space around your images and text and use big thumbnails. Add a little of your personality into your portfolio and show employers how great you’ll be to work with. After all, employers are looking for exciting talent and personality, not robots (yet).

Graphic Design Resumes & Portfolios (Part 1)

I have browsed the internet for portfolio and resume design inspiration many, many times. I have read countless posts showing fun and innovative resumes. I have seen so many crazy, over the top resumes and portfolio designs that I’ve lost track. Why do designers do this? The most important thing I’ve learned in class is from a design professor who absolutely adores crazy and colorful things. His designs are over the top and gorgeous and he’s not afraid to break boundaries. However, when it came time for the class to create their portfolio sites he said something very important to us,

“Let the work speak for itself.”

As designers, we are tempted to throw as much skill and talent as we can manage at potential employers. We want them to notice our work and notice how good we are at it. However, crazy resumes and portfolios are not the way to go. The most beautiful, innovative designs I’ve seen are from designers who use their resources to make their work the most important thing. They realize that potential employers are not there to look at their website but to look at their work. They want to see how you develop ideas and create innovative solutions to design problems.

I’ll break down a couple of examples of good and bad resumes and website designs and explain what works and what does not. In this post I’ll break down some resumes and then move on to portfolio sites in a later post.

Bad Resumes

This is a fantastic design piece, however this is a bad resume. There is so much information on the page that the eye doesn’t know where to look. A resume should have a sense of flow and a sense of hierarchy however this doesn’t highlight any specific points and the information gets lost in the design. I’m not saying that a resume should be thrown together in a word document but it should be clear and easy to understand. Obviously this designer is really good at what she does, however the important information that a potential employer would be looking for is not clear. Resumes are no place for an infographic.

Again with the infographics. Employers will not want to dissect everything on your resume to make sense of the information. It’s too much work, they’ll move on to the next resume. Most recruiters only look at a resume for about 20 seconds. Of course this will vary between job types, but that is a very small amount of time to gather information. How much information about this person will they be able to read in 20 seconds?

Good Resumes

Easy to read does not mean boring. You can make your resume clear to understand but still insert a little bit of personality into it. Take this example, the information is separated into clear columns, The most important information is at the top and there is fantastic use of type throughout the resume. You want to use the type to create hierarchy information and highlight important information. There is a good use of white space throughout the document so nothing is too cramped and there is a good break up of text so that the information is not running together.

Another clear, easy to read resume. Again, just because the resume is clean and easy to understand does not mean it’s boring. This designer has displayed that she understands layout and typography really well and uses color to emphasize certain points of the resume. The only problem I could potentially see with this resume is that the blue might fade out a lot if it gets copied which could make the type hard to read. However, the overall design is very strong.

So the next time you get the temptation to throw all of your design talent onto your resume, stop. Think about what the most important information is and what you want the recruiter or potential employer to get from your resume. You only have a short amount of time to make an impression. Make it count.

No Excuses

I’ve had a hard time getting inspired lately. Now is the wind down to graduation. 2 and a half months left, time is flying and I’m just “meh”. I feel like I’ve been doing a lot of half-assed work, simply because I’m feeling lukewarm about what I’m doing. Every night I get home, I feel exhausted and I haven’t even started on the stack of homework I have to do. For the last couple of weeks I’ve been making excuses and putting off work until the last minute simply because I feel I’m not physically or mentally capable of doing it.

This is not okay.

I’m an intern at the Liberal Arts Career Development office here on campus and this week is our “Career Week”. Basically this a week long event filled with presentation and activities to get students involved and inspired about their majors and career paths. There have been some fantastic speakers (I even got to present on Monday), but I want to focus on the two that have inspired me the most.

The first speaker I got to see earlier today, Matt Barnes, is very involved in the parkour community and his presentation was all about “Breaking Free” and how he found his inspiration through parkour. He is young, energetic and completely excited about what he is doing in life. You can view a Ted Talk he did at Purdue here which is a small 6 minute snippet of what he talked about today. It was really great to hear about how he got to where he was and the advice he gives to not just young entrepreneurs but students generally. What really struck me the most was him talking about finding that one thing you’re passionate about and pursuing it. If you love to do something, you should spend a lot of your time doing it. Really look at what you’re spending your day on and re-prioritize what you’re doing with your life. There are so many unnecessary  useless things I’m doing in my life that are not helping me in my career path but are instead wasting my time. Do I need to watch Netflix? Nope, but I do it anyway. Instead I could be applying to jobs or doing research for projects. I need to change these habits and re-energize my life.

The second speaker that was really inspiring is Haley Price. She’s also young and energetic and has really accomplished a lot in her life so far. You can view her website here. The most striking thing she said was “Find a way, don’t make excuses.” A lot of the time a situation arises where it would be totally acceptable to make an excuse. Maybe I’m feeling tired or sick and it would be acceptable for me to call off homework or projects for that night. However, finding a way around that and pushing forward will be much more beneficial in the long run. Having that can-do attitude and choosing to be active is how I will be able to overcome challenges. I want to meet those challenges head on every time and not make excuses about them. Getting past those situations and staying strong will make me a stronger and a better person. That’s what I want to do.

Matt and Haley had a lot of other great points that they talked about but those were the things that really spoke to me and inspired me. I want to be like them, I want to have that passion and drive. I’m done with excuses.

Portfolio Website

I’ve been working on my new portfolio website and it’s now up and running! I still have some things to change around and add, but the basics are there and my portfolio can now be viewed.

We had a speaker come in to talk to us in my ‘Professional Practice’ and talk about his experience as a former student in Visual Communications Design and how having a portfolio is really important when looking for a job. My classmates and I all have digital and print portfolios but now is the time to spruce them up!

The link to my portfolio: http://web.ics.purdue.edu/~murrays/

I’ve been getting some great comments on my previous posts so keep them coming!

Standing out from the crowd

Since I am graduating this upcoming May, all I’ve been thinking about it is the end of college and the start of my professional career. How will I be able to stand out for the other 30 people in my major graduating at the same time as me with the same experience not to mention various grads across the country that may have more experience. How do we, as grads, stand out from our peers?

• Find hands-on learning opportunities – This may refer to anything from internships, independent studies with professors and freelance work. Not only does it boost your resume but it will also give you valuable experience that will help you with your future career. This gives you the unique edge over other applicants and could get you the job. Having these opportunities will also solidify your future goals or help you decide on your future career path.

• Take classes outside of your major – As Liberal Arts students we are required to take core classes to fulfill our degrees. This may seem like a huge pain but in reality this is making us well-rounded individuals. You may even find another subject you are passionate about and pick up a minor or another major. There are many exciting classes offered that usually can be taken by students of any major. Also consider taking classes that will help your “soft skills” such as communication, public speaking, finance and general business.

• Networking – This is one of the most important aspects of college. Network with your peers, network with alumni and network with faculty. Any contacts you make could potentially get you a recommendation or a job in the future. There are many events happening on campus that can help you get out there and network.

• Know how to talk about yourself – When being interviewed, you will be asked questions about yourself. It may be uncomfortable to talk about yourself but you will have to ask questions such a “Tell us about yourself” and “How would you fit into this company”. Knowing what you want to say about yourself will make the interview process smoother.

Of course there are many things you can do to make yourself to stand out from the crowd but gaining extra experience in your field and getting to know your peers are two of the top things you can do while still in college than will help you in the future.

 

Source: http://jobs.aol.com/articles/2012/10/30/10-things-college-kids-must-do-now-to-snag-a-job-post-graduation/

Personal Branding (Part 2)

In the first part of this series, I talked about creating your personal brand and using that brand to market yourself to potential employers. In this part, I will be talking about social media in particular and how it can help you even further when promoting yourself and looking for a job. Social media has become more and more important in this digital age in networking, finding job postings, and connecting with potential employers. You may think that people aren’t visiting your pages on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and LinkedIn, but you are mistaken. Employers are using social media more as a tool to scope out what you’re like as a person and what you enjoy.

• Blog – Last time I discussed having a portfolio or a website to show off your skills and previous work experience but having a blog in the mix can also be beneficial. The blog should be under your own name so that it can be aligned with your brand. This can be a way to show employers you can write clearly, professionally, and that you have something to say to the world. You can blog about what your passions are, your hobbies or talk about articles related to your major and interests. Posting at least once a week and using tags will ensure that your blog is being seen and being read. Those who blog will have a higher asset that those without a blog because blogs rank higher in searches and lend expertise to your name.
• LinkedIn – Having a LinkedIn profile goes without saying. This profile combines your resume, cover letter, references and a moving database of your networks all in one convenient place. This is an excellent way to promote yourself and your brand. LinkedIn is also a great tool to use for following companies and finding jobs. You can apply directly to these jobs using your profile, convenient and easy.
• Facebook – Almost everyone has a Facebook profile but often people (especially college students) don’t realize how Facebook can affect their professional life. Keep your profile clean with a decent profile picture without nudity, obscene gestures or alcohol containers. Turn off the option that allows others to see tagged pictures of you if your friends have a habit of tagging you in unflattering pictures. Even if your profile is only view-able by friends, employers searching for you can still see your profile picture and cover photo. You can choose to restrict viewing on your profile or use your profile as another way to showcase your previous and current work experience and education.
• Twitter – Twitter is a great micro-blogging tool where you can post quick updates or share links that interest you. Many people choose to have two separate accounts, one for daily use and one for professional use. The daily use account can be set to private so that you restrict viewing on your profile and tweets. This is a great idea if you tend to be “expressive” in your tweets and would rather not have potential employers (and the rest of the world) see. Keep your professional twitter clean and use a profile picture that matches your LinkedIn profile to keep with your professional brand. You can also use the themes and colors available in Twitter to go along with your brand.
• Email Address – Many people underestimate the importance of having a professional email address. Using Gmail is recommended because its integration with Google+ and GTalk allows for easy communication and networking. Your email address is a great opportunity to promote your brand, professional emails usually follow the formula of ‘firstname.lastname@gmail.com’. Using your tween email address of hockeyduckylover_599@hotmail.com is definitely not recommended.
• Pinterest – This social media site has grown tremendously over the last year with more and more users every day. Since this site is public everyone can see your pins and likes however, this is a great way to show your brand. You can use Pinterest as an inspiration for you blog posts and as a way to showcase what you’re really interested in. Do you love Art & Photography? Pin it! Show the world that you’re a well-rounded individual with ambitions, goals and passion.

What do you do next? Apply for jobs! Get your brand out there. All of these tools can help you promote yourself and your skills and help you land that job you’re looking for.

Source: http://mashable.com/2009/02/05/personal-branding-101/

Personal Branding (Part 1)

In the past few years social media has become more important in the career world and so has personal branding. Personal branding is crucial for companies looking to hire you. You want something about yourself to stick out and be remembered. We are in the day and age when our opinions and activity online are very visible so why don’t we use that to get hired? There are several steps to begin the personal branding process as well as many resources that can help you be more visible online and more attractive to recruiters and companies.

The first step of course is to discover who you are. These seems like a huge task right off the bat. Many people make the mistake of branding themselves simply because they have to or for the sake of doing it. You need to take the time to decide who you are and what your brand should be. What are the most important aspects of your personality? What is your passion in life? This is the time to set goals for yourself and plan out what you want for the future. What drives you in life? You need to make your self impression equal how others perceive you. Your brand is going to represent who you are so make it a good one.

The next step is to create your personal brand. You will be creating a personal branding tool kit. These are the tools to help you build your brand, network and establish how you want others to perceive you.

• Business cards – This is a very important tool. As college students and soon to be graduates this will be on the most effective ways to network and gain those connections. This should contain your preferred contact information, including an online portfolio (if you have one). Keep it simple. This is just a way to keep your information handy. There’s not need to cram a lot of stuff onto such a small space.
• Resume/cover letter – Both of these are very important to have on hand. How else are you going to apply to jobs? Your resume and cover letter should reflect your personal style (but don’t get too crazy) and should involve your most pertinent information such as education, job history and skills. Employers want to see what you’ve done and what you can do. Remember to customize your cover letter to each job you are applying to.
• Portfolio/website – Having a portfolio is a great way to showcase what you’ve done. Showing projects you’ve worked on in the past as this is an effective way to convince potential employers that you can do the same in the future. Having your own domain name for your website is a good way to keep your personal brand in plain view.

Always remember to keep your personal branding the same between the different sections of your tool kit the same. Develop a logo or a theme and keep it the same on your business card, resume and website. This makes you look organized and more professional.

In the next part, I’ll be talking a little more about social media and how you can involve different social media sites in your personal branding.

Source: http://mashable.com/2009/02/05/personal-branding-101/