By Ilene Rein, Executive Recruiter and Job Search Strategist
This is the age of social media.
As a job seeker, it would be wise for you to realize that social media impacts your career. So how do you as a job seeker optimize these platforms for your personal brand?
Let's take a look at some of the most common social media platforms used by job seekers.
LinkedIn is where you belong! I see job seekers all the time who join every social media platform under the sun and then wonder why they aren't getting anywhere with their job search. If you're one of those people, STOP IT!
When it comes to social media platforms that matter for your career, LinkedIn is number one. At this time, LinkedIn is the only social media platform that is 100 percent dedicated to career development and personal branding. If you are looking for a job, your first stop should be LinkedIn. Check out this video on How To Get Your LinkedIn Profile Noticed By Recruiters.
Twitter can be a valuable tool for job seekers, but not if you use it the way most people do.
Unless you are very famous (or infamous), Twitter is NOT a social network; it's more like an RSS feed for your personal brand. It's also one-way communication - you hear from your followers, but they don't hear from you unless they follow you first.
If you're serious about using Twitter to promote your personal brand, you should consider creating a separate account for professional purposes. This way, you can use Twitter solely for selling yourself and your skills without having to worry about what people think of you in terms of political or cultural views.
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Most people use Facebook as a social networking site, but it can also be a valuable tool for job seekers if you approach it from the B2B perspective.
While Facebook doesn't allow you to have detailed profiles about yourself, you can use your page to promote your personal brand by creating a list of your skills and experience.
You can also use Facebook as a way to "friend" possible employers or recruiters, but for this approach to be effective, you need to make sure that your profile is squeaky clean. In other words, keep any photos or posts that could turn off an employer out of your public-facing profile.
Instagram is a social curation tool that enables users to share photos. While you can use it as a job seeker, most employers and recruiters don't understand how it works or what value they would get from an employee who uses this platform. If you decide to promote your personal brand on Instagram, be sure to keep your public-facing profile clean.
Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn
These three platforms are interconnected because if you use them correctly, it's possible to stay in constant communication with employers or recruiters who are looking for the right employee for the job. What I mean is this:
Let's say you find a great job listing on Twitter. You tweet the employer using the @username function to let them know you are interested. At this point, their first move should be to check out your profile on Twitter and LinkedIn (if possible). If they like what they see there, then it's likely that they will check you out again on Facebook (again, if possible) to make sure that this is someone they want to bring in for an interview.
So what does this mean for you?
It means that if you are serious about getting hired, your profiles on all three platforms must be squeaky clean and complete. You also need to have a very good eye when it comes to not only finding job listings but also staying abreast of conversations that are happening on those platforms that concern hiring decisions.
In addition to LinkedIn, you should also join groups on Facebook and follow companies of interest on Twitter as a way to stay in touch with those who could hire you someday. For more tips and tricks to optimize and speed up your job search, visit and subscribe to my YouTube Channel:
🔴 Ilene Rein is an Executive Recruiter and Job Search Strategist. She teaches job seekers exactly how to market themselves with laser precision to employers using inside secrets from the view of the Recruiter exponentially increasing their chances of getting noticed and hired rapidly!
If you are serious about your job search, schedule a complimentary consultation to speak directly with Ilene to discuss your job search and how to land your dream job in record time: http://talktoilene.careers
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