A marketing plan is a one-page document that outlines your job search strategy. It is one of the most powerful tools that you can create in your job search arsenal.

If you are looking for a job it is your job to sell yourself. That’s right, you are the product and no product on the market today succeeds without a good marketing plan. Creating a Marketing Plan provides you with great clarity in your search and it helps others see how they can help you.  A marketing plan is a one-page document that outlines your job search strategy.  It is one of the most powerful tools that you can create in your job search arsenal. 

Your Marketing Plan serves many purposes. It can be used as a cheat sheet or script during phone interviews and it makes a great conversation starter for networking meetings and informational interviews. Your resume may seem redundant and serve little value in meetings with people that already know you. However, sending them your Marketing Plan communicates exactly what you are looking for and the value you can add to an organization.  It makes a strong impression, helps you get the most out of meetings, and it puts the people you meet with in a better position to help you. 

A marketing plan helps you stand out from the pack in networking meetings and demonstrates to others that you have a plan for your search.  And that is important because most people do not have a plan.  Whereas a resume talks about your past experience, a marketing plan talk about your future and the value you will provide to your next employer.

What to include in a personal marketing plan

As you begin to compose your own personal marketing plan, there is certain information that you should definitely include to obtain the best possible results. Such information includes:

• Your professional objective. Who are you, and what type of industry are you looking to work in? One or two sentences including this information is a great way to start off your personal marketing plan.

• Target positions. This information is a follow-up to your professional objective. Provide some bullet points (three to five at most) that give further detail about your goals and the types of positions you are interested in attaining.  Use your future title such as Director of Finance or Sales Manager.

• Positioning statement. This statement provides further information as to who you are and the type of value that you provide. It is a space to talk about the factors and characteristics that make you unique. This is where you start to separate yourself from the pack.

• Skills. Include some of the value-added skills that you have performed in previous roles. Pick four major competencies, each of which should have three or four bullet points that support it.

• Target market. Include the geographic location you prefer to find work in, the types of industries, the size of the organization you’re looking for and a list of your target companies.

Distributing this document is simple – send confirmation emails to your contacts the day before you met with them and attach your marketing plan. Explain that you are using this document to help better position yourself in the job market and show off your character and skills, and that you’d be interested in their opinion.

This marketing plan is just one more way to be proactive in your job search. Start putting yours together today!