Penang, 10 January 2022- Personal branding is essential, particularly for young social media users, because it can help them make a good first impression, stand out from the saturated crowd and establish credibility for better job opportunities. As part of preparing Malaysian youth for the industry and in facing cybervetting from future employers, NETHICS, a social cause campaign by the final year Persuasive Communication students of the School of Communication, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), had organised a workshop on the 9th of January 2022 called WorkSpace. NETHICS is a social cause campaign that focuses on advocating the right social media etiquette, nurturing a practice of professional personal branding online and in curbing cyber harassment issues among youth.
WorkSpace was conducted online via the Cisco Webex platform from 10.00am to 12.30pm to share the importance of personal branding as well as tips on how to improve your online identity through websites and social media platforms such as LinkedIn. This free workshop was attended by 110 participants.
As said by NETHICS Project Director, Larissa Lorelle Christian, “You want to constantly put your best self forward and on social media it’s easy to have this go the opposite way. This is where WorkSpace comes in. A workshop all in hope to build yourself a strong social resume. Branding should not stop you from being who you are but it will enhance who you are.”
The invited speakers for WorkSpace were marketing specialists Miss Krista Goon, the co-founder of website design agency, Redbox Studio and Miss Khushboo Nangalia, the founder of a digital marketing agency, BEYOND99.
Miss Krista started off the session with her segment entitled “Building a memorable personable brand for 2022 and beyond”. One of the first steps in building a personal brand is identifying what you would like to be known for. She highlighted that it is vital to gain certain experiences or opportunities and showcase them on your online profiles. As mentioned by her “You want to be remembered and valued for your unique skills or capabilities”. In sharing talents that are uniquely yours, your profiles will become memorable and stand out to potential employers.
The workshop continued with Miss Khushboo’s sharing on how to properly present yourself on LinkedIn, with tips suited specifically for youth. An astonishing 800,000 students in Malaysia are on LinkedIn. One must ask, why is it necessary for students to be on a website that mostly caters to working adults? Miss Khushboo answered this question brilliantly in her session by stating that these students are learning, gaining inspiration and forming relationships with individuals who have already succeeded in the industry. She shared useful technical tips such as the importance of a good profile picture and banner in order to stand out. “But more than anything, in building one’s personal brand, being yourself is the most important,” stressed Miss Khushboo. It is important that you do not lose sight of your true self when building your online brand.
WorkSpace was a very insightful and educational session. Participants as well as the NETHICS team learnt a lot from these two experienced speakers. NETHICS encourages the youth of Malaysia to build their personal brand through social media for better career opportunities.
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