Why You Should Have a Personal Website

Looking for a job in 2016 can be complicated. You need a resume, but you should showcase your skills online, as well. In addition to a LinkedIn profile, a personal website is a great way to showcase your skills and achievements to potential employers and help you stand out from the competition. Here are some of the best reasons to have a personal website.

A personal website helps you easily display your professional achievements with more space than on a resume. It’s basically an easily accessible online portfolio. You can link to design, writing, or other projects you’ve done so employers and interviews can see your work firsthand. You can also describe your soft skills, like good communication or teamwork, in greater detail. Unlike a resume, you can take as much space as you want to demonstrate your talents and strengths.

You also get a chance to showcase your personality on a personal website. Resumes are typically pretty bland—black fonts on one white piece of paper—and LinkedIn’s uniform layout doesn’t allow for much personalization. A personal website lets you show employers your own style. If you know coding or web design, it’s a chance to showcase those skills. If not, there are plenty of easy platforms to host your site with minimal design effort.

They also increase your online visibility. Since hiring managers and employers are likely to do an online search for your name, a personal website with your name (especially if it’s in the URL) popping up will impress employers and allow you to tell your story with your site. 

At the end of the day, a personal website will help you stand out from the crowd. They’re a simple and effective way to communicate who you are as a person and a professional, but very few people actually have them. You’ll look like you are really taking your career, and your next career move, very seriously.

Last Updated on September 30, 2016 by Voca_GC