Here is Why You Should Maintain Your Personal Brand on Instagram

Yesterday i had a coffee with my neighbor - a handsome Brazilian male model. As the conversation went on, being someone who "struggles" with social media and digital marketing for a living, I of course, wanted to know how many Instagram followers does he have.

Image courtesy: tanuha2001 / Shutterstock.com

Maiko, 34, seemed very eager to talk about the topic of social media, and to what degree it affects his life. He did have 8000 followers on Instagram, which, he said, is "very few". (Needless to say, that's about 25 times more than i have on my Instagram account!)

Maiko shared with me two important points: one, he said, for models it's much easier to gain followers by posting perfect shots from photoshoots; two, he desperately needed to get more followers, and he HATED the idea behind it.

Maiko' showed me an account of his fellow model friend (@chico_lachowski), who is being followed by 850 thousands of people! The guy gets his jobs right from Instagram. More than that, not having a big Instagram following for a model these days can drastically alter his prospects of getting modeling gigs. Because, if no one likes you on Instagram, chances are, no one will like you in a commercial/runaway walk or an ad gig that you are banking on! This is the kind of mind set people have today.

While my friend said he finds it very superficial, and he feels stupid every time he takes a selfie and shares it with the rest of the world, for Maiko this is the way to maintain his name in the industry.

But is Instagram only good for models?

Once in a while i check the job market to see where i stand against the competition, and guest What! The next level positions have a "strong (proven) ability to gain followers" as a part of the job description!

And of course, let's no forget about Rihanna recently finding a girl for her music video on Instagram using the Discover tool. Sanam is the artist based in Seattle (on NYC now, as her account states) whose appealing and unique Instagram personality attracted a superstar and pushed the artist's career onto the next level.

As the conclusion, i won't "discover America" by saying it's crucially important to keep your online presence intact. And what you have on your Instagram, represents who you are as a brand. Yes, a brand, because all of us are "brands" in a way. And your Instagram account could be the key selling point in getting you / your brand from point A to point B or even C in your career path. 

5 Tips for success at a job interview!

Photo via Flazingo.com/creative commons.
Author: flazingo_photos
Original: http://bit.ly/1MQfQrO

1. Read the job description!

You may think this is a banality - wrong! Reading word-to-word what is written in the job description is extremely important and saves you from asking unnecessary questions.

It also helps to ...

2. have an understanding of everything listed in the job description!

Is there something you are not familiar with or have a vague understanding? Google it before the interview! Rarely people are 100% qualified for the position they apply for however, they must project a general understanding of its characteristics. It is also useful to read other job listings with the same position title you are interested in. See if they list any different requirements (set of skills, programs) to perform this job in the most efficient manner possible.

3. Can do attitude.

Ya ya ya....We all know that. However, it's crucially important you communicate this to your potential employer. Be honest about things you aren't an expert in BUT reassure that you can become an expert. Because there's nothing impossible, and you are very interested in advancing your skills in this field.

4. Get your questions ready!

Asking (SMART) questions shows that you are generally interested and want to understand if you can fit in.

 Questions such as:

- What kind of qualities are you looking in the candidate? 

- Can you give me an approximate day-to-day list of activities of someone in that position?

- How do you evaluate the job progress?

- What is the evaluation process for the applicants?

And many more. Forbes has listed some examples that look helpful!

TAKE NOTES! 

From my personal experience - it totally worked! Write down things you think are important such as names, who would be your supervisor, or information that you weren't familiar with (particular program applications etc.) so you can what? - Google it and become familiar!

5. Get ready for their questions!

One of the most important ones is Why do you want to work for this company.

This isn't about the money or status. You've got to sell them that you believe in the idea, mission, practices or whatever it is that that company does, and you want to be part of this.