For most of us, social media is a big part of life these days. It should, at least, be a part of your career. While social media can certainly be distracting and time-consuming, it is, more often than not, beneficial to career advancement.
Social media has made networking faster and more effective than ever. 92 percent of companies use social media for recruiting and 73 percent of new hires are recruited through social media. With numbers like that, it’s easy to see why people are turning to social media for career advancement opportunities. Social media provides worldwide connectivity and free advertising. Getting the chance to interview for a renowned brand or for a position in another country is easier than ever.
LinkedIn for Job Hunting
LinkedIn is the number one choice among organizations looking for new employees through social media. The site has over 433 million members, with two new members added each second.
With LinkedIn, you can showcase your experience and abilities to prospective employers and search for and apply for positions, as well as connect with former and current employers and colleagues. These types of connections can speak on your past performance and future potential, by endorsing you for certain skills. LinkedIn is also a source of abundant material on almost every industry. You can even publish something yourself. This is another way to show off your knowledge and communication skills.
LinkedIn can be a very powerful tool, if used correctly. If you’re job hunting, announce your job search on LinkedIn, post updates at least three times a week, share articles and links through commentary and ask for references.
Don’t Be Afraid to Use Facebook!
Don’t be afraid to use other types of social media while job hunting. Facebook may not come to mind first as a job search resource, but it can be a very good one. You can get a lot of good leads by announcing your job search on Facebook. The average person has 155 Facebook friends. This is a great pool of potential resources. You can also join a Facebook group. Many cities or communities have a group for community members to communicate about job postings and other items of interest. Search Facebook for these groups. They can be very helpful.
While Facebook can really help you on your job search, it’s a good idea to keep your personal and professional lives separate. Keep your Facebook profile private. And, never say anything on social media you wouldn’t want your employer to find out, particularly if your profile isn’t private.
If you do decide to connect with colleagues and employers on Facebook, you can take advantage of Facebook’s list feature. You can divide your Facebook friends up into lists—personal, professional, and so forth. When you post updates, you can specify which lists see—and don’t see—the update.
You Can Find Valuable Information, Too
Social media is a goldmine of information. You can find out what’s going on with a company you’re interested in. You may even want to follow them on social media. Besides providing you with information about the company, this shows your interest. It will make you stand out.
Once your interview is confirmed, you can also use social media to find out all you can about the hiring manager via his or her LinkedIn or other public social media profiles. This will give you some valuable insight into his or her needs and interests and give you a head start on the interview.
Make It Easy
Include your social media information (LinkedIn and any other public social media accounts you want to provide, but remember to leave Facebook private) on your resume. Prospective employers are going to look anyway, so you might as well make it easy for them!
Social media is a big part of professional networking, and it’s only going to get bigger. These tips will help you out on your journey. If you’re job hunting, contact TalentBridge today. Our recruiting specialists can connect you with positions than can help you to achieve all your career goals.