How to Use A Personal Website For Your Job Search

By

Professor Theodore Henderson

“The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to show us how badly we want something.”

—Randy Pausch

If you’re looking for work these days, you might need more than just a paper résumé. A personal website for job search has long been used by graphic designers and other creative people. The tendency is now becoming more widespread beyond these groups.

This is due to at least two factors. With the rise of remote and hybrid work, online conversations are becoming increasingly crucial. Simultaneously, basic templates make it possible for anybody to create a professional-looking site without attending coding camp or art school.

Impress your prospective employer with a fantastic display of your exceptional qualifications. Learn how to design and market your own personal website for job search.

Additional posts on this topic you may find interesting are How To Set Career Goals And Achieve Them and 14 Micro Changes to Propel Your Career.  Keep in mind that the tips and strategies in this post on building a personal website for job search are just as relevant for entrepreneurs, freelancers, and consultants.

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How to Create a Personal Website for Job Search

Is a Personal Website Required for Everyone?

As a veteran business and career coach, I, along with many of my coaching peers, agree that a personal website may significantly improve your job hunt or career prospects.

Having a website may assist potential employers in realizing that you are educated about contemporary technologies. In addition, a potential employer with immediately gain an additional level of experience with you. It broadens their knowledge of your abilities and personality.

In fact, having a personal website or portfolio is required for some professions. This is true if you are a freelancer, independent contractor, self-employed, or have a profession where displaying your work is vital. For example, suppose you are an architect, photographer, fashion designer, hair or makeup artist, digital marketing consultant, landscaping business, etc. You may then show a portfolio of your finest work. In that case, having your own site is essential.

The following are some significant statistics on business websites.  However remember two things.  First, if you put up a website for job search it is a business website.  You are your product.  Second, human behaviour will not change when people interact with your personal website.  So So keep these statistics in mind when you create your personal website for job Search

Making Your Own Personal Website for Job Search:

1. Improve your introduction. Hiring managers want to know what sort of employee you’d be without spending a lot of time reading. Begin with a complete overview that captures your personality and key accomplishments in a few lines.

It might be enticing to devote the majority of your time and effort to make your website seem fantastic. While appearances are essential, your primary focus should be on making your personal introduction unique. Almost every recruiting manager I spoke with indicated they pay special attention to this area.

This can be something brief and targeted that simply outlines the sorts of roles you have held.

Whatever path you pick, keep it brief. No more than 3 or 4 well-written paragraphs. Human resources and hiring managers have no interest in spending an entire day reading about you. And if you’re not sure where to begin, start with the fundamentals.

2. Emphasize visuals. Photos, symbols, and formatting enhance the visual appeal of your website. Take images and look for free stock photos online. Even infographics may be made simple using tools such as Google Charts.

3. Include a photograph of yourself. If you do not want to hire a professional photographer, use natural light and a neutral background. Wear something traditional in dark or neutral solid hues and a smile.  I do recommend that if possible in lieu of a professional get a friend with a decent eye to take the photos for you instead of going it alone, if possible.

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4. Submit work samples. Depending on your industry, you may include articles you’ve authored or case studies of successful initiatives. Testimonials are also helpful since what others say about you might be more convincing than what you say about yourself.

Perhaps, you have a few examples of excellent projects from former or present employment, internships, schools, or even personal projects. If you don’t, it’s fine to discuss something you’re proud of, even if it was just for personal purposes

Also don’t be afraid to share a project that wasn’t fully or partially successful.  If you put high quality work into it then share it.  There is almost always validation in great work.

5. Make use of tabs. What if your job requires you to work in many areas, or you have a side hustle? You may still utilize a single website with different parts for each place of employment or line of work.

Be sure all important pages are easy to reach from the navigation menu.

6. Verify your contact details. How would you like people to contact you? Instead of putting your mobile phone number or home address online, consider utilizing a contact form.  This will also protect you better from spammer bots while showing professionalism to the people who want to reach you.

7. Be genuine. Allow your personality to show through while remaining professional. Mention any voluntary activities or intriguing interests you have. Finding the right balance is difficult. There are several methods to let your individuality come through without being unprofessional. You might employ distinctive colors or unique pictures that are representative of who you are or your own “brand”.

When you apply for a position, you submit your resume. Therefore, republishing the same content in a slightly different format will not be enough for your web presence. It is critical to demonstrate personality.  You want your website to feel like a real representation of who you are so your potential employer can separate you from the competition.

8 Choosing a website provider.  My personal recommendation is to use a simple hosting service such as budget friendly Bluehost, Wix, or SquareSpace.  With Bluehost you will utilize WordPress.  Unlike previously, WordPress is now much easier to use and hosting services such as Bluehost step you through the process effortlessly.

In addition you will need to purchase a domain for which my “go to” provider is Namecheap.

Stay tuned for my step by step guide on how to build a personal website for job search which will be publshed after this post. 

Here are three books to get started if you want additional resources beyond what is on a hosting company website.

Promoting Your Own Website:

1. Become familiar with SEO. How can you get potential employers and other website users to visit your site? Learn and apply the fundamentals of search engine optimization. For instance, look up industry keywords and utilize headings and subheadings. Free SEO courses are available online from respected businesses such as HubSpot. 

If you are going through the effort of building a personal website for job search then learn some of the basics of SEO.  Get familiar with Google’s Keyword Planner.  It  will be worth it.

2. Sign all of your emails. Perhaps you might put your website in your email signature. When applicable, include your headshot for added effect.

3. Produce a newsletter. Traditional newsletters are still an excellent method to remain in contact. Make it engaging and valuable, and provide them a simple option to opt-out whenever they want to.

4. Maintain a regular update schedule. Unlike obsolete resumes that wind up in the rubbish bin, it is simple to maintain your website keep it up to date. Post essential changes as soon as possible, and create a folder for content you may want to add later so you can remember it for future editing sessions.

5. Conduct analytics. Analyzing your data will allow you to assess your efforts and make necessary modifications. Many website designs and hosting providers include analytics to help you track things like unique visitors and traffic sources.  The easiest way to start this process is with Google Analytics.

6. Create your own brand. Consider how your personal website for job search fits with your entire internet presence and professional positioning initiatives. Maintain a constant tone of voice. Audit yourself regularly, including your social media accounts, to ensure that you’re portraying the image you want.

Harvard Business Review published an informative article on personal branding. It lays out a five step approach to creating a personal website for job search, from a strategic point of view.  Below is a short summary.

• Decide on a Destination.  Rebranding is difficult, and if your strategy is ill-conceived, you will wind up confusing yourself and others. Begin by deciding where you wish to focus your efforts. Examine relevant industry trade publications, do informational meetings, and perhaps try out for internships.
• Capitalize on Your Unique Selling Propositions. What is your one-of-a-kind selling proposition? That is what people will remember, and you should use it.
• Develop a Narrative.  It’s unjust, but in order to preserve your personal brand, you must create a cohesive narrative that explains how your history fits into your present.
• Reinstate Yourself.  Making new connections is the simple part after you’ve accepted your rebrand—they’ll take the new you at face value. The more difficult task is reintroducing oneself to your current network.  The reality is that the overwhelming majority of people aren’t paying attention or care about you. That implies their views are likely a few years old even if they knew you well.
• Establish Your Value.  Every art student has a portfolio ready to display at any time. In the corporate sector, it is no different. There’s a big difference between knowing you’ve started a new company and believing you’ll perform a good job for customers. I like you a lot, but until I see evidence of your abilities, I’m hesitant to put my own reputation on the line by referring you.

A personal website for job search might help you find a position faster and more successfully in the future. It’s another tool to help you stand out from the crowd and demonstrate how much you have to offer to potential employers.  If you are thinking if you should maintain a personal career website after landing a new position?  The answer is yes.

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About The Author

Professor Theodore Henderson works with business owners, entrepreneurs, and corporate professionals on their business skills, marketing, and leadership strategies. He is an Amazon best-selling author, a Certified Career Coach, Business Skills & Leadership Coach, and a Certified Social Media Security Professional Powered by CompTIA.

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