Ten Years on, Michael Owen's Personal Brochure Has Moved from Ridicule to Trailblazer

It’s been ten years since Michael Owen, the former Liverpool, Real Madrid and England footballer, received collective sniggers after his management team created a ‘glossy prospectus’ to help secure their client a move from Newcastle.

The 32-page presentation by Wasserman, included a host of facts and figures, along with professional medical reports and even a page outlining his ‘brand values’, which simply listed adjectives including “clean and fresh”, “cool” and “devoted”.

Whilst Owen received ridicule from some quarters, looking back his approach could be considered trailblazing in terms of taking a creative approach to finding a new employment.

In fact, he certainly had the last laugh as he went on to secure a move to Manchester United, wining the Premier League the following season.

Regardless of whether you work in an office job, are self-employed, a freelancer or indeed a footballer looking for work, personal branding and trying to stand out from the crowd has never been more important when it comes to securing your next opportunity.

According to Transfermarkt, there are hundreds of ‘free agent’ footballers who are currently without a club following the expiration of their contracts this summer – with high-profile stars including the likes of Daniel Sturridge, Andy Carroll, Danny Welbeck and Gary Cahill, all currently ‘club-less’.

The uncertainty and lack of security when coming to the end of any job can be terrifying, and a lot can change in that time in the world of networking and job interviews.

With that in mind, we thought we’d take inspiration from Michael Owen and have created some templates for footballers – or indeed anyone else – who might be looking securing themselves a new employer.

Jon’s top tips:

1. Don’t rely solely on word of mouth: The main benefit of print marketing is that it’s something concrete you can hold in your hand – it’s tangible and people always pay more attention to advertising they can touch. Handing out flyers, or including leaflet distribution as part of your next marketing campaign, is sure to get your message read. Even if it’s for a few seconds – which is all you need!
2. Stand-out: don’t stick to the traditional method – everyone will send a CV with Times New Roman black and white print. Be different and ensure you reflect your own personality to grab the attention of your audience, whether that’s sleek and professional or bold and colourful.
3. Take help from the professionals: no idea about design? No problem! Use our free business card design tool. Once you’re happy with your design, our team of print experts are on hand to check your design against our rigorous unique design 10-point check process, ensuring your print looks as sharp off the pitch as you do on the pitch!
4. Transfer Deadline Day: We know that speed is sometimes of the essence, especially with only a few weeks now until the start of the new season. That’s why we offer a super-fast turnaround online printing service from our Yorkshire-based facility – to help path the way for success.