Laura Gainor will be presenting to the UWM AdClub on Wednesday, November 17th. Gainor will speak about how she utilized social media to get hired at Comet Branding and how to develop your personal brand to stand out in the competitive job market.

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+ pr

2. comet marketing + public relations evolved
Laura Gainor
Social Media Strategist
November 17, 2010
Presenting: UWM AdClub
HOW TO: Stand Out in the Competitive Job Market

3. PERSONAL BRANDING |
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Chapter 1: About Laura Gainor
Chapter 2: How I got hired at Comet Branding
Chapter 3: Timeline of results
Chapter 4: How to stand out in the competitive job market
Chapter 5: Questions?

4. PERSONAL BRANDING | About Laura Gainor
comet marketing + public relations evolved
About Laura Gainor
• UWM Graduate! Bachelors Degrees in
Fine Arts - Photography & Journalism-Advertising.
• Former UWM AdClub officer.
• Social Media Strategist for Comet Branding
• Professional background in creative photography &
design, client services management, and personal &
business branding strategies.
After landing my job at Comet, by showcasing my expertise
using various social media tools, I discuss tips and
strategies on how to create a successful brand through
social media and stand out in the competitive job market.

5. PERSONAL BRANDING |
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Chapter 1: About Laura Gainor
Chapter 2: How I got hired at Comet Branding
Chapter 3: Timeline of Results
Chapter 4: How to stand out in the competitive job market
Chapter 5: Questions?

6. PERSONAL BRANDING | How I Got Hired at Comet Branding
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Faced with a challenge:
How do I network and find a job when living in a
different city?

7. PERSONAL BRANDING | How I Got Hired at Comet Branding
comet marketing + public relations evolved
The Gainors
moving to
Milwaukee
02/01/10
Used Twitter
to network
Quickly found
MKE social media
professionals
Followed
daily
conversations
Joined in on
the
conversations
Got a feel
for the MKE
social media
culture
Continued
using social
media tools
SquarePik
launched
02/11/10
Comet Tweeted
they were
hiring!
02/11/10
Developed
idea to creatively
grab attention.
Created
large Comet
logo poster
02/11/10
Produced
introductory
YouTube video
02/11/10
Trip to
Milwaukee
02/12/10
#LauraGainorToMilwaukee
strategy created
All of this occurred over a very short period of time:
We found out we were moving to Milwaukee on February 1, 2010
First trip to Milwaukee to find a home on February 12, 2010

8. PERSONAL BRANDING | How I Got Hired at Comet Branding
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Toured Milwaukee with the Comet Branding Logo Poster.
February 12 - 14, 2010
Used Foursquare, SquarePik, Twitter, YouTube & TwitVid, capturing photos and videos of my Comet Logo
tour through Milwaukee
Pushed content to @CometBranding through Twitter.

9. PERSONAL BRANDING | How I Got Hired at Comet Branding
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Laura Gainor Utilizing Social Media
SlideShare Presentation Created on
Monday, February 15, 2010
Click HERE to view the full presentation.

10. comet marketing + public relations evolved
PERSONAL BRANDING | How I Got Hired at Comet Branding
The purpose of the SlideShare presentation:
• Told the full story of #LauraGainorToMilwaukee.
• Turned a standard resume into a story that incorporated my life experiences, social media and my
creative talents.
• Served as a means to demonstrate my specialties, instead of solely writing them on paper.
• Provided Comet Branding the opportunity to see my personality through photos and videos.
• Showed real-time feedback from Comet Branding.
• Published the presentation on SlideShare to share with other professionals on how to brand
themselves and get the attention of a potential employer.
• Promoted Comet Branding.

11. PERSONAL BRANDING |
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Chapter 1: About Laura Gainor
Chapter 2: How I got hired at Comet Branding
Chapter 3: Timeline of Results
Chapter 4: How to stand out in the competitive job market
Chapter 5: Questions?

12. PERSONAL BRANDING | Timeline of Results
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Immediate response to the
#LauraGainorToMilwaukee
Twitter activity.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Link to the SlideShare Presentation: “Laura Gainor Utilizing Social Media”
Tweeted to @AlKrueger & @SaraMeaney
Monday, February 15, 2010
Email was not sent. Paper resume was not sent.
Just a tweet including this link:
http://www.slideshare.net/LauraGainor/laura-gainor-utilizing-social-media

13. PERSONAL BRANDING | Timeline of Results
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Skype Interview with
Comet Branding Partners
Al Krueger & Sara Meaney
Friday, February 19, 2010Skype interview scheduled on the
same day through Twitter direct messages.
Monday, February 15, 2010

14. PERSONAL BRANDING | Timeline of Results
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Gainor Road Trip Moving
from Charlotte to Milwaukee
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Started Unpacking in our New Home
in Milwaukee.
Friday, February 26, 2010
In-Person Interview at Comet
with Al Krueger & Sara Meaney.
Monday, March 1, 2010

15. PERSONAL BRANDING | Timeline of Results
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Immediately following the in-person interview,
having lunch @Water_Buffalo, I was offered the
job as PR + Social Media Strategist
Monday, March 1, 2010
Hired 10 days after the initial Skype interview
After only meeting once in-person, I was hired the same day.

16. PERSONAL BRANDING | Timeline of Results
comet marketing + public relations evolved
My first day at Comet Branding
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
1.5 days after being offered the job.
20 days after seeing @CometBranding’s Tweet about the position.

17. PERSONAL BRANDING | Timeline of Results
comet marketing + public relations evolved
SlideShare featured my
presentation in
their March Newsletter
Number of presentation views jumped to over 20,000.
Today the presentation has over 40,000 views.

18. PERSONAL BRANDING | Timeline of Results
comet marketing + public relations evolved
The Milwaukee Business
Journal featured my story.
Monday, March 15, 2010
“Online Efforts Make Job Hunter Stand Out”
Read the full Milwaukee Business Journal Article
HERE.

19. PERSONAL BRANDING | Timeline of Results
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Featured in PRWeek’s
2010 Career Guide
September 2010
“Job Hunting on Social Media”
Read the full PRWeek Career Guide 2010 article
HERE.

20. PERSONAL BRANDING |
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Chapter 1: About Laura Gainor
Chapter 2: How I got hired at Comet Branding
Chapter 3: Timeline of Results
Chapter 4: How to stand out in the competitive job market
Chapter 5: Questions?

21. PERSONAL BRANDING | How to Stand Out In the Competitive Job Market
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Social Media is changing the competition within today’s job market.
It has become very competitive and the standards are very high to show
your potential employer why you would be a great addition to the team.
How are you making yourself stand out?

22. PERSONAL BRANDING | How to Stand Out In the Competitive Job Market
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Traditional Paper Resume
vs.
Don’t make your potential employer guess what you do.
Show them what you’re capable of doing for their company.
Virtual Resume

23. PERSONAL BRANDING | How to Stand Out In the Competitive Job Market
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Develop Your Personal Brand using Social Media

24. Google yourself.
• It’s the first place potential employers go
to find more information about you.
• What are the top search results for your
name?
• What content is on those links?
• Social Media channels give you the
opportunity to create your brand on Google.
• Top results are typically your social media
channels.
• Be aware of the content you’re publishing
on these channels.
PERSONAL BRANDING | How to Stand Out In the Competitive Job Market
comet marketing + public relations evolved

25. Choosing a name for your social media channels.
• Website Domain
• Twitter Profile
• Facebook Profile
• YouTube/Vimeo Channel Profiles
• LinkedIn Profile
Choose unique URLs for all of your social media
channels and keep them consistent.
LinkedIn.com/in/LauraGainor
Facebook.com/Laura.Gainor
Twitter.com/LauraGainor
PERSONAL BRANDING | How to Stand Out In the Competitive Job Market
comet marketing + public relations evolved
The first important step is to choose
the correct name to represent
yourself throughout all of your social
media channels.
Example:
@LauraGainor vs. @LMG12

26. PERSONAL BRANDING | How to Stand Out In the Competitive Job Market
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Engage in conversations.
• Twitter is one of the best ways to
network and meet new people.
• Utilize Twitter platforms, such as
Hootsuite, to follow industry keywords,
organizations you’re interested in, and
companies. Engage in conversations on
these topics.
• Make it a point each day to engage in a
Twitter conversation with someone
other than posting information.
• Expand your network. Find/Follow
people of interest to you.

27. Your brand identity. Logo and personal photo.
• Your profile photo is your personal branding logo.
• First impression.
• Use the same photo on all of your social media channels.
• People share your photo to present you to others. So make sure it’s how you want to represent
yourself.
• Use a good quality photo. Avoid using blurry or pixellated photos.
• Don’t be stiff in the photo. Show a little of your personality, but not too much.
PERSONAL BRANDING | How to Stand Out In the Competitive Job Market
comet marketing + public relations evolved
@JasonKintzler @JakeDavidRohde @ToryJohnson

28. Share videos to personally introduce yourself.
• Setup your personal YouTube/Vimeo channels and use them as an opportunity to introduce
yourself to the community, a potential employer, and the world.
• Videos give you the opportunity to be genuine and show your true self.
• You don’t need to create a fancy video. Post regular content with you talking about topics you are
passionate about, and that would be appealing to your target employer.
PERSONAL BRANDING | How to Stand Out In the Competitive Job Market
comet marketing + public relations evolved

29. What is your message?
• Know your message. Know your audience. Stay consistent throughout.
• Don’t be afraid of Twitter. It’s an excellent source for current events and networking.
One of the first questions when starting to create your personal brand is, What do I tweet about?
• You do not want to be a salesperson on Twitter.
• Engage in conversations. Don’t just tell people about you.
• Don’t tweet, just to tweet. Have a little substance.
• People will recognize what you talk about and will want to follow you.
PERSONAL BRANDING | How to Stand Out In the Competitive Job Market
comet marketing + public relations evolved

30. Think of your personal brand as a business.
• What are your goals with social media?
• Promote yourself as a brand. Customize your profiles. Design a Custom Twitter Background
• Keep track of results. How many people have you connected with each week?
• What have you learned that you feel could benefit others?
•Publish content regularly.
PERSONAL BRANDING | How to Stand Out In the Competitive Job Market
comet marketing + public relations evolved

31. Get creative. Play with social media.
• Every day new social media tools are being created,
opening up creative opportunities to find ways to utilize
them for your personal branding.
• Spend 10 minutes each day browsing blogs, such as
Mashable and TechCrunch.
• Use Twitter to see what your network is talking about.
•Play. It’s very important to not be hesitant on
experimenting with new social media tools.
PERSONAL BRANDING | How to Stand Out In the Competitive Job Market
comet marketing + public relations evolved
@Stickybits
@MicrosoftTag

32. Most importantly...
be yourself!
PERSONAL BRANDING | How to Stand Out In the Competitive Job Market
comet marketing + public relations evolved

33. THANK YOU |
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Thank you for the opportunity to talk with you.
#IAmUWM
Connect with me.
www.CometBranding.com
www.LauraGainor.com
@LauraGainor

34. QUESTIONS? |
comet marketing + public relations evolved
Questions?