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Using email is essential for job seekers in today’s competitive market, but that does not mean that all job seekers are maximizing their use of email.
To present yourself in the best possible light, here are two tips that all job seekers should follow to maximize their personal brand:
- Get a ‘real’ email address
- Add an email signature to all outgoing emails
1. GET A REAL EMAIL ADDRESS
One of the worst mistakes you can make when you email your resume and cover letter to a prospective employer is to have a less-than-professional email address. For example, emails such as partygirl85, qt_pie, justinb_fan or love2liftweights do not set the professional tone you want for your job search.
While you may not want to completely ditch your current email address, many job seekers set up a separate email account specifically for the job hunting.
Suggestions for your professional email address include:
- firstname.lastname
- flastname
- firstnamelastname
If you are looking for a new email service, here is a recent comparison of the top five email services by PC Magazine. Finally, do not forget to add your new email address to your resume and update your online profiles with your new address.
2. ADD AN EMAIL SIGNATURE
The second tip is that you should create an email signature or tagline that is automatically added to bottom of every outgoing email. There are several good reasons and benefits that you will get from an email signature:
- provides alternative ways for someone to contact you
- builds up your personal brand by showcasing external links to LinkedIn or social media accounts
- identifies you as someone who is serious about their job search
The email signature should include your full name and phone number at a minimum. Another good ideas is to add links to your key social media accounts such as your LinkedIn profile, professional Twitter account, personal blog or portfolio. Providing this additional information will ensure that any recruiter you contact will always have your contact information available without having to search for it.
Here are two example email signatures that you could use for a template:
________________________________
Firstname Lastname
Cell – xxx-xxx-xxxx
LinkedIn – http://www.linkedin.com/in/firstnamelastname
Twitter – http://www.twitter.com/firstnamelastname
Blog – http://www.blogurl.com (optional)
________________________________
Firstname Lastname
Cell – xxx-xxx-xxxx | LinkedIn – http://www.linkedin.com/in/firstnamelastname | Blog – http://www.blogurl.com
For tips on setting up your email signature, go to the help section of your email program or Google “setting up your email signature” to find articles or videos to provide you additional “how-to” tips.
AppleOne Blog 
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