Students, job seekers and those with a “stable career” all have one thing in common. They need to build their personal brand. It’s one of those things that’s best to have and not need than to not have and need. Recommendations are a great way to do this. It’s known that LinkedIn is a good place to store your recommendations. Facebook, Instagram & Twitter are as well.
Several years ago, I wrote an article, “How You Can Use Twitter’s #hashtag To Creatively Store Recommendations.” I shared it with my colleague, Eric T. Tung.
Brilliant idea! #HireEric https://t.co/vCkrxXCApu
— Eric T. Tung (@EricTTung) September 24, 2016
Not only did he think it was a “brilliant idea,” he built on it and successfully added it to his #HireEric campaign.
Yes indeed… RT @EricTTung: “If I were assembling a team, Eric would be on my A-list.” @TedRubin #HireEric pic.twitter.com/dWmKeEa2uv
— Ted Rubin (@TedRubin) September 25, 2016
Absolutely genius! It’s that kind of creativity students, job seekers and even those with careers need to establish and maintain their brand. Thus, I want to share how I’ve employed this technique using only my cell phone.
1. Take a screenshot of the LinkedIn profile pic of the person that left you a review.
2. Use an App to decrease the contrast of the photo. I use PhotoGrid.
3. Place the photo in a PowerPoint slide.
4. Add a text box.
5. Using an internet browser on your phone, open up your LinkedIn (desktop version) and go to the recommendation on your page. Copy the recommendation. *This is important because you can’t “copy” when you’re on LinkedIn’s mobile app.
6. Paste the recommendation in your text box on your PowerPoint slide.
7. Bold the text, adjust the shape of the text box accordingly and select the key parts you want to share.
8. Type the person’s name, title & company at the bottom.
The beautiful thing about networking is when you seek to help other people you always get more in return. When I shared my idea with Eric, I had no idea he’d make it even better. Zig Ziglar sums it up by saying, “You can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want.”
Bonus: Create an Instagram story to display your recommendations. Click here
About the author…
Sam P Lark, Jr is a military spouse, speaker, and social media relationship strategist. He’s passionate about helping others achieve their goals. As he networks, his question is, “how can I help your vision come to fruition?” Networking to help others first, has earned him a place of high esteem among his colleagues. Utilizing his technical & public speaking background, Sam shares innovative ways of using social media to enhance one’s personal brand. To connect with him, click here.
