Your skills, education, experience, and unique personality make you an asset in your field — but how do you make that clear to potential employers?

Quick answer: With your resume branding statement. Your resume branding statement summarizes everything that makes you the right candidate for the role.

A well-written personal branding statement grips recruiters’ attention and makes you stand out from the pile of other candidates with similar experience.

In this article, we’ll explore what a resume branding statement is, how to write one, and when and when not to include it. We’ll also provide important resume branding tips to keep in mind, examples, and a template to help you write your own resume branding statement!

What is a resume branding statement?

Think of your resume branding statement as your personal sales pitch. Candidates often put it at the top of their resumes — under their contact information, above their experience section.

Your resume branding statement is the first impression employers will get from you and, in this competitive job market, a memorable first impression is crucial.

For example:

Dependable and resourceful office administrator with typing speed of 65 wpm, and 8 years of experience improving sales and customer satisfaction. Seeking to expand career and join a new team in pharmaceutical sales.

What to include in your resume branding statement

Summarizing all your skills, experience, and strengths into a few lines may seem like a daunting task. To simplify things, here’s what you need to include in your resume branding statement:

• Your professional title: Include your title, which should be the same as the position you are applying for, helping recruiters picture you in the role they are trying to fill.
• Skills: Obviously, you aren’t going to fit them all here; just choose 2 or 3 of your skills that are most relevant to the job you are applying for.
• Strengths: Use strengths as you would use adjectives when describing yourself in your branding statement.
• Rewards: If you were given any rewards within the field you are applying for, incorporate them into your resume branding statement.
• Accomplishments: Use your resume branding statement to highlight any significant accomplishments that make you stand out.
• Amount of experience: If you’re an experienced professional in the field you are applying for, make that clear in your resume branding statement.
• Career goals: Will the role help with your career goals? If so, put that into your resume branding statement to let recruiters know your commitment to the field.

Tips for writing an eye-catching resume branding statement

• Make it succinct: Your resume branding statement should be no more than 50 words.
• Put it at the top of your resume: Your resume branding statement should go right below your contact information and before your work experience.
• Match your branding statement to the company’s mission: Browse the company’s website to find the skills and values the company you’re interested in wants to find in their candidates.
• Use the right keywords: Pay attention to the language used in the job description to describe the ideal candidate, and use some of those keywords in your resume branding statement. Our Targeted Resume tool will analyze the job description and identify important keywords and skills in no time. Try it out!
• Ask yourself what image you want to project: Think of your unique personal attributes, skills, achievements, values, and career goals that set you apart from other candidates.
• Avoid repetition: Do not list accomplishments, traits, and skills you’ve already included in other parts of the resume in your branding statement.
• Use quantifiers: Provide proof of your success with quantifiable results.
• Avoid buzzwords: Keep it real. Don't sound like you’re ‘too good to be true.’
• Your branding statement may not need a title: A branding statement is pretty self-explanatory so no title is necessary. That being said, you could use the title of Branding Statement at the beginning if you wish.
• Proofread:  Make sure that your resume branding statement is well-written, grammatically correct, free of mistakes, and conveying exactly what you want it to.
• Check your resume: Use our free resume scanner, Score My Resume, which assesses your resume against certain criteria and provides tips to improve it.

Driven marketer with excellent written and verbal communication skills, and 22 years of experience improving consumer reach by 60%. Seeking to become an industry leader within ResumeWorded’s management team.

When to include a branding statement in your resume

It’s important to note that resume branding statements aren’t a must. Here’s when a resume statement should definitely be a part of a resume:

If you’re changing careers

If you’re applying for a job in a new field, a branding statement can be a quick way to kick off your resume by telling recruiters why you are great for the role, even if it is different from your previous work.

Creative and organized consultant seeking to help companies with their waste management in order to maximize their profits.

Senior-level hires

If you’re already a seasoned professional within the field you’re applying for, use a branding statement to make that clear at the beginning of your resume.

Justice-oriented family lawyer with strong problem-solving skills ready to put my 25 years of legal expertise to work as a partner of your firm.

You’re applying for a job that requires a specific skillset

Sometimes job descriptions mention specific skills and achievements as part of the requirements. Use your resume branding statement to make it clear that you are the right candidate for the role.

Sales-oriented and outgoing realtor with 6 years of experience and a proven track-record helping people find homes in their desired neighborhoods. Hoping to grow my career with a new team of realtors and brokers.

Extensive experience

If you have 20 years of experience or over in the field you are applying for, you would make an asset to the company.

Compassionate and knowledgeable mental health nurse with 30 years of experience with case management helping clients achieve their best outcomes. Seeking a role in the criminal justice system to help former inmates reintegrate into their communities.

When NOT to include a resume branding statement

Your brand is already in-line with the job you are applying for

If your work experience and educational background are both in line with the job you’re applying for, it’s already implied that you have what recruiters are looking for.
In this case, a resume branding statement may seem redundant.

You’re a student or recent graduate

If you’re in school or recently finished your education, you likely don’t have a lot of work experience and a resume branding statement may not help your case. Highlight relevant coursework and/or internships instead. Check out our post The Proper Way to Include an Internship on a Resume.

Resume branding statement template

To help you get started, we’ve created a template that you can easily copy, paste and insert into your own resume.

[Strength] and [strength] [professional title], with [number] years of experience in [skill/accomplishment]. Seeking to accomplish [career goals].

Resume branding statement examples

Mid-level job seeker resume branding statement:

Research analyst with methodological approach to projects and 5 years of research writing experience. Hoping to improve research skills with new projects at Resume Branded University.

Senior-level job seeker resume branding statement:

Patient and knowledgeable physics teacher with 23 years of experience helping high school students connect with science in new ways. Looking to teach higher-level students at Somewhere University.

Experienced/Senior-Level job seeker resume branding statement:

Financial Analyst with 27 years of experience applying organizational and leadership skills to support the needs of the firm’s clients and staff. Seeking to take career to the next level with a managerial role at Anywhere Bank.

Key takeaways for crafting your branding statement for your resume

• Emphasize your skills, achievements, and career goals in a way that sets you apart from other applicants.
• Avoid buzzwords and cliches in your resume branding statement.
• Focus on specific and measurable accomplishments and use active language and examples that show how you’ve used your abilities.
• Tie your unique personality traits into your resume branding statement.
• Incorporate the skills and keywords that are in the job description and on the company’s website to align with the job you’re applying for.

Good luck!