How to Build Your Professional Brand

Last updated February 26, 2026

In this article

• What is a professional brand?
• Start by creating a brag sheet 
• Work on your elevator pitch
• Personal brand and social media 
• Why your professional brand matters

For early career professionals and job-seekers, knowing how to articulate your professional journey to employers can help you stand out. Having a strong professional brand can help you identify the right professional opportunities and make stronger career moves. In this article, we’ll show you how to build and showcase your professional brand. 

What is a professional brand?

A professional (or personal) brand is the story you tell about yourself to potential employers and other working professionals. It communicates your values, skills, professional interests, and what you bring to a new job or opportunity. It can show up on your resume, LinkedIn profile, job applications, and even in conversations with your network or mentors. Spending time thinking about how to tell your story in a professional context is important. Doing so will allow you to intentionally shape the story you tell employers so they can see how the opportunity you’re going for fits with your overall career trajectory and goals. When you are thoughtful and intentional about how you tell your story, it can help employers understand why you are the right fit for the position you’re applying for.

Start by creating a brag sheet 

You might be thinking: How does one even know what their personal brand is? Getting to this will take some self-reflection around your values, goals, and skills. A great starting point is creating your own brag sheet. Most often, brag sheets are used to help references give job or college recommendations, but they’re useful for anyone beginning their career journey. A brag sheet is similar to a resume; it’s a place where you can list all of your accomplishments, work and academic experience, leadership skills, extracurricular activities, and employment or volunteer history. Taking a moment to create a brag sheet can help you reflect on your accomplishments and what’s necessary to highlight to employers. 

Work on your elevator pitch

After reflecting on your personal and professional experiences, you can start translating them into an “elevator pitch.” An elevator pitch is a short summary that explains who you are to a prospective employer or professional. It’s historically called an elevator pitch because it should be quick enough to say during the duration of an elevator ride. Elevator pitches are often used at networking events and job interviews. To help shape your pitch, consider these questions:

• Who are you?
• Why are you talking to them?
• What are you interested in?
• Why are you qualified?
• How can they help you?

Here is an example of how to structure your pitch: 

“Hi, I’m [name], a marketing major at Scholar University and an early-career marketing professional. I found your company on LinkedIn and reached out because your work in [their field] aligns with the roles I’m exploring. I’m building skills in branding, digital marketing, and consumer behavior in my courses and I am preparing for a summer 2026 marketing internship. I’d really appreciate it if you had 15-20 minutes for an informal informational interview. I’d love to hear about your experience breaking into the marketing industry. Let me know if you have the capacity.”

Personal brand and social media 

When building your professional brand, it’s important to consider your social media presence. You’ll want to make sure any public profiles align with the story you’d tell to employers and members of your network in person to remain consistent. Many employers search applicants’ names online as part of the hiring process, so anything that’s public online, including your personal social media accounts, may be considered as part of your application. Take a look at your social media and consider removing anything that might hurt your credibility. Additionally, on professional networking sites like LinkedIn, take a moment to update your headline, summary, and experience to match your professional brand. Be sure to highlight coursework, projects, clubs, part-time jobs, or achievements that represent who you are professionally.

Why your professional brand matters

Knowing how to build your professional brand matters because the job market, internships, and college applications are competitive. When you have a clear brand, you make it easier for employers, professors, and mentors to understand what you want, what you believe, and how you can contribute.

Do you have any questions about building your personal brand? Connect with a Get Schooled Advisor.

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