By Meg Guiseppi

• If they don’t find you there at all, you may be virtually invisible to them.
• If you have a minimal, mediocre presence on LinkedIn, they’re going to wonder whether you know how to navigate the new world of work, which includes being social media savvy.
• If you have a strong and active presence on LinkedIn, and your personal brand is evident, you’ve probably upped your chances of being a candidate of interest.

The job seeker must present a "unique professional value proposition." Your unique value proposition shows how hiring you will benefit an employer because of the unique set of skills and experiences you bring to the job.

Professionals who share identical titles and experience are, after all, not interchangeable.

Identifying and articulating your own unique value proposition requires both self-knowledge and research.

1. Reflect upon (or, if possible, examine) past performance reviews, and identify recurring strengths or themes.
2. Talk with former managers (and if appropriate, direct reports!) to substantiate or grow what was learned.
3. Transform the resulting data into a statement of your unique combination of abilities and experiences that sum up your professional essence, and environments in which those can be best exercised.

Unique value propositions may look like this:

• PMP-certified veteran of pharmaceutical infrastructure transformations always delivered under budget and on time.
• A "Swiss Army knife" of Microsoft technologies from .NET, ASP, and VB to SharePoint to SSRS and SSIS, I enable the best collaboration in large matrix environments.
• I serve up the paired swords that cut through my mid-market client's Gordian knots: managed services and business process outsourcing, driving down recurring costs and increasing profitability for small to medium-sized businesses.