Branding isn’t just for big companies. In today’s world of social media and professional networking, everyone has their own individual “brand”.
Your personal brand as an accountancy professional is defined by everything you do and say in the professional world. It’s what shows up when someone Googles your name or looks for you on LinkedIn. It’s also the impression you make through face-to-face meetings.
As an accountant, your professional brand convinces clients and employers that they can trust you to manage their financial needs. The concept of personal branding is also becoming increasingly important as around 70% of employers now screen candidates by checking their social media.
So, how do you develop a strong personal brand?
Step 1: Figure Out Who You Are
A personal brand needs to be an honest reflection of who you are, your skill set as an accountant, and your most appealing traits. Starting with an evaluation of what you do and the skills you possess will help you determine what kind of things you want to draw attention to with your personal brand. For instance, think about:
- Your most appealing traits: Are you productive, ambitious, and committed to constantly improving your accounting skills? Do you have a great collaborative spirit?
- Your skills: What are your certifications as an accountant? How can you share your skills, education, and experiences with your community?
- Your ambitions: What do you want to accomplish as an accountant? What drives you, and what kind of people do you want to impress with your brand?
If you’re not sure how to define yourself, you can begin by auditing your personal brand by searching for yourself online and seeing what shows up. It’s also worth talking to existing colleagues, employers, and friends about how they might describe you.
Step 2: Establish Your Unique Value Proposition
As you search for opportunities to upgrade your accountancy career, you may find yourself coming head-to-head with many professionals who have similar skills and certifications. With that in mind, it’s worth thinking of ways you can make yourself stand out from the crowd.
Your unique value proposition is what convinces people to work with you over a wide range of other options. Think about areas where you might have excelled in the past. Are you particularly good at tax-based accountancy? Can you share stories about how you’ve saved companies a lot of time and money on their accounting requirements?
Once you know your unique value proposition, the next step is making sure people are aware of it. Consider asking people to endorse you on social media and share blogs or content online discussing your achievements from the past. You can even highlight your strengths in a job interview, a cover letter, or your CV.
Step 3: Optimise Your Digital Presence
To secure the best potential roles, you’ll need to know how to interact with people offline and build the right image on a day-to-day basis with posture, body language, and even your clothing. However, as the world becomes more digitally driven, it’s crucial not to underestimate your online presence.
You may already have the initial foundations for your online presence in place, such as a range of social media accounts. Make sure they all present a professional image to anyone who might be looking for you online. If you don’t want your employers to judge you by your social media accounts, you can set them to private.
Ideally, accountants will at least have their LinkedIn profiles set to public so that employers can check on their previous relationships with other brands and past experiences. Remember to optimise your LinkedIn profile by keeping it up-to-date and regularly sharing valuable content.
Step 4: Develop Your Network
Who you know is often as important as what you know in a competitive world like accounting. Developing your network both online and offline will help you to improve your credibility and reach a wider number of potential employers.
Consider joining forums and specialist groups where you can share your knowledge and interact with other people in your field. There are plenty of social media groups like this on LinkedIn. You can also follow relevant people in your industry on social media and attend in-person or online events whenever they take place.
One of the best ways to make sure you know the right people to enhance your personal brand is to work with a specialist recruitment team. Your recruitment team will help you get your personal brand in front of the right potential employers while offering guidance and advice on everything from your CV to your interview techniques.
Step 5: Regularly Optimise your Brand Assets
Just as a professional business has a logo and a website to help attract possible customers, your personal brand should have valuable assets too. For instance, your CV and cover letter are some of the most crucial assets you have. Make sure your CV is up to date with all the right, relevant information about your accounting skills.
Whenever you apply for a new role, remember to update your cover letter and make it relevant to the position in question. Other assets you might want to think about include your headshot for your social media profiles and even your own personal website.
The more professional and carefully cultivated your brand assets look, the more likely they will attract people who want to work with you.
What’s Next?
Working with a professional recruitment company with expertise in the accounting industry will help you refine your personal brand and get it in front of the right employers. Rebus Recruitment can help you make the most of your personal brand this year.
Find out what we can do to enhance your brand today by contacting us via email or on 01282 930 930.
Thanks
Rachel Mitson
About Rebus Financial Recruitment
Rebus Financial Recruitment provides a specialist and focused recruitment service to its customers, which historically range from various organisations, including SMEs, to large PLCs.
We strive to offer both the client and candidate a seamless recruitment experience. Using our expertise, we get to the heart of employer and employee needs, and, in doing so, we match the two perfectly. To find out more, get in contact with one of our team today, or you can call us on 01282 930930.
