By Vickie Elmer
Special to The Washington Post
Sunday, October 26, 2008

Sometimes a roadside billboard with a professional photo and a brief résumé seems as if it would be the right tool to find the perfect job. Or maybe you would choose a colorful online ad that says "Hire me today," or send out someone wearing sandwich boards that tout your credentials.

With an uncertain economy and more competition for the best openings, job seekers are smart to harness advertising and marketing techniques to sell themselves and their talents.

That doesn't require a big outlay for television spots or a direct marketing blitz. Three Washington area advertising and marketing gurus suggest using tools such as word-of-mouth promotions, developing your LinkedIn profile and cleaning up your online persona before you start seriously looking.

Colleen Dermody, vice president at Witeck-Combs Communications, thinks word-of-mouth promotions are golden. "You get people talking about you, but in a good way," she said. "Testimonials are such good ways to sell yourself."

But it takes a plan to get the right people talking about you, and they need to be armed with a few "nuggets" -- basic facts about your experience, your dream job and who you really want to work for. They are short and memorable, not long and detailed like your résumé.

Some other suggestions:

· Social networking matters. So show up on Facebook and, especially, LinkedIn. "It's the de facto résumé for business professionals," said Michael Bassik, a vice president for interactive media at MSHC Partners in the District, whose LinkedIn profile has 470 contacts. Use it to highlight your accomplishments and experience and to establish or enhance your expertise.

His firm checks candidates' social network pages against their résumés and looks at the tone and appropriateness of comments on Facebook and LinkedIn. "Would your activities on social media embarrass your future employer or your clients?" he said.

· Know yourself; build your brand. Understand what unique value and persona you bring. Google yourself; it's especially valuable to see the top 10 things that turn up, Bassik said. If you don't like some of them, set them to private if they're on a personal blog or profile.

With every blog post and every photo you upload, you are creating a picture of yourself. "You have to be aware of the image that you're creating. You are in the process of branding yourself," said Marilyn E. Finnemore, chief executive of Mind & Media in Alexandria, which works with government agencies and others on recruitment and public information campaigns.

She and Bassik both suggest starting a personal blog or contributing to others' blogs, thus showing your talent and expertise. But write about solutions, and be positive and authoritative in what you write. "Be conscious and mindful what you put your name on," said Finnemore. "The words you use are a reflection of your personality."

· Know your target. Use the Internet and other tools to research potential employers. Only then do you craft your initial contact or message to the hiring manager. Targeted marketing pays off. Finnemore tells of a woman her firm hired recently. "She wowed us. Her cover letter indicated she understood our values, what we stood for, what we did," she said. So did her résumé and her PowerPoint presentation showing her communications philosophies.

· Give back. Volunteering can help your network and your reputation. It also can help with job leads -- the corporate sponsors of a fundraiser may have openings. And it's especially effective for introverts who don't want to advertise their skills, Dermody said.

· Keep going. Smart firms advertise and work on brand-building all the time. So it's important that your latest blog posts aren't nine months old and your online résumé is not out of date. You're going to master the art of selling yourself by continuing on with it -- even when your current job is taking 70 hours a week.

Enlist clients, co-workers and friends to make some of the sales pitches, too. "There are so many ways you can get yourself out there," Dermody said.