Social Media for the Jobseeker

Baylor University Career Advancement Network Fort Worth Workshop

http://www.flickr.com/photos/herculie/2370039001/

Social Media is simply people having online conversations.

Different types of social media users

http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/SocialMediaMarketingReport2011.pdf

Let's look at some social media tools

Twitter = microblogging

● 140 character micro-blog to share/find information

● Ginormous chat where you determine who you follow and follows you

● Messaging that is public, archived, and searchable

http://www.flickr.com/photos/handles/2748048479/

Twitter lingo● Tweet = Twitter updates are called “tweets”

● Follow = signing up to receive updates makes you a follower --> follow and interact with people who can help in your job search or career advancement

● Reply or @reply = to respond to others, use @username, a good way to build community

● Direct Message or DM = A private (direct) tweet. Do not reappear in the public tweetstream. Can only be shared between people following each other.

● Retweet or RT = retweet is to share someone else's Twitter update with your followers (good etiquette)

How Twitter works

Follow people you are interested in such as people who...● list jobs on Twitter● work for or own companies you are interested in● are experts/thought-leaders in your field/industry● can help you get a job

People tend to follow back when you engage them in conversation or have interesting things to share. You can “engage” with both your followers and the people you follow by:

● Sharing their work with a retweet (RT @username...)● Asking questions with an @reply

"Listorious has the best Twitter people search on the web so you can find anyone by topic, region or profession -- powered by data from the tens of thousands of list curators."

search.twitter.com is a simple, yet powerful monitoring tool for jobseekers and professionals

Twitter & Professional Growth

● referrals● community● networking● knowledge● serendipity

#Hashtags

This is a way to group or label tweets by keyword. Very useful for events and groups. Good way to search on Twitter.

● #Jobs● #Texas● #Industry

Grow your network by participating in “Tweetchats” using a common hashtag.

Monitter

Some tips...1. Connect - Twitter is a place to learn, listen and then connect

with people who can offer you work or advice.2. Influencers - Find out who the influences are in your industry

and see if they are on Twitter. If they are, follow them.3. Common Sense - Don’t Tweet anything that you would not

want to see on the front page of a newspaper or wildly famous website or read to your mom.

Statistics suggest nearly all of you have a socialnetworking profile. Consider...● Reviewing your profile● Removing questionable material● How others view your posts● Updating your privacy settings ● Yourself warned

Engagement● Ask for Help and Advice ● OK to ask “who do you know

at..” ● Provide valuable, useful,

helpful posts ● Have a blog? ● Conversations – It’s a two-way

street ● Video and Photos● Optimize bio with industry

keywords● Focus, Goals, Services,

Expertise

http://www.flickr.com/photos/petergerdes/2905280530/

Grow and leverage your network in your job search and career advancement.

Blogging

web-authoring tool that allows you to share information about yourself, your expertise, interests and passions, and even examples of your work in the form of written word, video, photos, audio, etc.

http://www.onlinemba.com/linkedin/

http://www.onlinemba.com/linkedin/

LinkedIn● Remarkable search engine forming a network you can leverage.● Optimize your professional headline describing yourself as the

job you want or how you can help● Profile summary in 1st person - tell your story● Groups - the company you keep says something about you● Give/Get Recommendations - heavily ranked and weighted

Bypass the HR department and Temp Agencies by finding THE person who can get you the job!

Kay Luo, Director of Corporate Communications at LinkedIn "The main reason that companies are using LinkedIn is to find passive job candidates. Another reason why companies are using LinkedIn, is because referrals from their employees are highly valued because they typically have a higher success rate (hence the popular "employee referral bonuses"). LinkedIn helps companies leverage the networks of their employees." http://jobsearch.about.com/od/networking/a/linkedin.htm

Advice from HR professionals

● LinkedIn is a professional forum to network with not only recruiters but others in your field. Keep it professional.

● Recommendations – make sure to have at least 3-5● Photo – A must have. It makes you more marketable and gives

people a sense of who they are dealing with. A professional picture is preferred.

● Groups – Target groups that interest you and are in your field. Signup for the updates so you can learn more about what is going on around you and stay up to date with industry trends.

● Give details – Do not just list the title of your company and the years you worked there. Give details on what you did in the role. Results make you stand out, and apart from the crowd

LinkedIn job search advice

● Connect with former employers, employees, fellow co-workers and other people who know your work

● Get recommendations from former employers● Find every company you would like to work for, who are

1st and 2nd degree connections?● Search your industry for 1st and 2nd degree

connections ● In addition to applying for a job listed on LinkedIn,

request a referral to the poster. Research for personalization.

● Search for people like you and see where they are working. This may give you an idea of who is hiring people like you.

Connect and Interact, Online and Offline - Business cards and handshakes are much needed but tweets and LinkedIn connections can’t be ignored. The job search landscape has changed with emerging social media platforms. Utilize them. Interaction offline is critical, but in this day and age it’s not sufficient.

Online and Offline Resume - When it comes to employment, there is only one thing that can give a peak into the potential candidate’s skills and experience. Create a resume, dust it off every once in a while. Make sure your resume doesn’t just stay in paper and ink form. Use networking sites such as LinkedIn where you can use your profile as an online resume...Get on the web and build one out as soon as possible if you haven’t already.

Social media platforms like blogs, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.are great mediums where you can share your expertise, ideas and help others; thereby building your personal brand, expanding your digital footprint and letting more people know about your skills and talents.

http://www.slideshare.net/LinkedInExpert/social-media-201-for-jobseekers http://www.slideshare.net/gregallbright/using-linkedin-to-find-a-job http://www.linkedin-makeover.com/2011/03/27/the-value-of-being-linkedin-infographic/ http://www.chrisbrogan.com/power-up-your-linkedin-profile/ http://mashable.com/2011/06/11/social-media-recruiting http://mashable.com/2011/05/28/online-resume/ http://linkedintelligence.com/smart-ways-to-use-linkedin/ http://www.askdavetaylor.com/what_are_best_practices_for_a_linkedin_job_search.html http://chuckhemann.com/whether-you-like-it-or-not-the-resume-still-m http://www.cornonthejob.com/ http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/social-media-marketing-industry-report-2011/ http://www.forrester.com http://www.buzzom.com/2011/06/10-new-ways-you-can-use-twitter-for-business/

Sources and Resources

ContactRichie Escovedo E-mail: richie.escovedo@gmail.comTwitter: @vedoBlog: http://nextcommunications.blogspot.com/LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/rescovedoSlideshare: http://www.slideshare.net/rescovedo