4 Ways To Land A Sweet Job Using Social Media

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4 Ways To Land A Sweet Job Using Social Media

So you’re probably wondering – why can’t I find a job then? Well, it’s easier said than done, that’s for sure. But with the help of social media, finding a good job is starting to become quite a bit easier and certainly more effective than scouring through the spam filled classified ads (print and online). Remember back in the day, when networking was key to landing that sweet dream gig – well it still is, but now that people prefer networking online, you’ll have to dive head-first into social media and social networking to stand a chance at beating out your competition.

Below, we’ll explore five social media-rific ways to greatly enhance your employment prospects. These are the types of places that recruiters are searching through daily, so pay close attention if you want the edge.

How To Land a Job Using Social Media Outlets Linkedin.com

One of the hottest job profiling sites available today, Linkedin is on top of any savvy recruiters list. What does this mean for you? Simple – get on it! 2009 is half way over, and if you don’t have a Linkedin.com profile by now, it’s high time to get one. It only takes about an hour of your time to set everything up, and the user-interface is very easy to understand (yet somewhat cluttered).

Here are a few things you need to do when establishing a Linkedin profile:

Register for a free account here Upload a good photo of yourself Connect with former colleagues, friends, and mentors Complete your profile to the best of your ability (adding education background, former jobs, experience, etc… Ask trusted colleagues and friends for recommendations (this is done by sending a recommendation request – very easy) Get involved in active discussions that revolve around your field – in other words, network with those that you might want to work with Lastly, maintain and update your profile as needed – don’t leave outdated information on it

Facebook.com

Lately, I’ve seen a number of successful employment connections on Facebook taking place. I’m going to assume that you understand that Facebook is one of the most popular social networking sites (and most popular regular sites) in the world. With hundreds of millions of users, it’s a networking paradise.

Not only do you connect with old friends and associates on Facebook, but you can also connect to the people who work at companies that YOU want to work at. There are a few ways this can work – first, assuming you have a somewhat active Facebook acc0unt, with a few dozen friends or so, you could simply publish a message saying “Currently looking for a job, does anyone know of any openings anywhere?” You would be highly surprised if you knew how often that the simple act of asking worked. Everyone wants to be a hero and help someone land a job, so if one of your friends or acquaintences can hook you up, you better believe they will (so that they can later brag about it on their FB profile, which is fine!).

On the flip side, lets say you’re serious about working at IBM. Your chances of landing employment with a company like that are greatly enhanced if you’re referred by a current employee (preferably with some “pull”). With that being the case, just use good old Google, and start searching for active IBM employees – they shouldn’t be too hard to find. (I just did a quick search and found an IBM employee Facebook group – jackpot!)

Once you discover a few ranking members of the company you so wish to work at, connect with them! You can start small (don’t go in and ask for a job on the first contact) and say something like “Hello, my name is blah blah and I’m interested in your field of work. If you have a moment, would you mind answering a few questions? Thank you!” From there, who knows what kind of relationship you can develop if you play your cards right.

Facebook job hunting tips:

Accept friend requests even if you aren’t really that close of friends – you never know who they may know! Join employment groups and/or groups that have active employees of a company you’re interested in working at. Do not post objectionable material, even if you think it’s funny. Recruiters are nerdy and could be turned off by a bad joke. Take a night and start searching for old friends and colleagues, and send them friend requests. It takes just one person to change your situation. Don’t upload albums full of spring break ‘99 photos from Miami Beach. Keep the photos family friendly, and have at least one good self portrait.

YouTube Video Resume

If you’re the type who is REALLY searching for a job and you like to put yourself out there, not much can top a digital video resume hosted on YouTube. There are thousands of them available on YouTube at the time of this writing, and I’d be willing to bet that plenty of them are finding jobs as we speak. Nothing says “Hey, look at me” more than a well put together video resume.

Let me warn you, there are some good ones, outstanding ones, and some that are just downright embarrassing to watch. I won’t go through all the proper video etiquette, but this video will, watch it.

Here are a five examples of video resumes that you can currently find on YouTube – perhaps they will give you an idea for your own promotional video:

Video Resume 1 (best one) Video Resume 2 Video Resume 3 (worst one)

A few suggestions if you’re going to produce and upload a good video resume:

Hire someone to do it for you (a freelance video editor/producer) if you can afford it. (Do a Google search for “video resume services”) If you do it yourself, use a good camera, and most of all, invest in a good quality microphone. When uploading to YouTube, make sure you include the keywords “video resume” and also some geographical keywords. Don’t get defensive if people leave derogatory comments, mark them as spam or delete them if you can – if not, just ignore them, as it’s inevitable. Include a link to your video resume on your personal blog, Facebook, email resume, and anywhere else you can.

Twitter.com

Last, but certainly not least is Twitter. Twitter, the most talked about social media platform at the current time, is HOT. Everyone is on Twitter (and if they’re not, they will be soon). Finding a job on Twitter is similar in some respects to finding one on Facebook. It’s all about getting in touch and networking with the right people.

If you don’t have a Twitter account, sign up here. The sooner you do, the faster you can augment your employment search and expand your possibilities.

A few tips for networking on Twitter

Locate the “search” box and type in your city name and the word “jobs” or “employment”. There are hundreds of Twitter streams that constantly update with available jobs in specific areas. Start following people that mention the field of work you’re interested in – to do this, again in the search box type in your line of work (e.g. “Nursing”) and it will show a list of the most recent tweets that mention this term. Follow the people that posted tweets with that term. More importantly, once you follow them, start some dialogue with them – again, it only takes one person to change your entire situation for the better, and that person could be a totally random twitter stranger! Follow everyone back that follows you (except for spam accounts, you’ll recognize them). Typically I wouldn’t follow EVERYONE back unless I was interested in them, but if you’re looking for a job, it’s best to connect with as many people as possible. Don’t overdo it – keep your tweets (the messages you send) smart and at least somewhat professional. Don’t assume someone is as friendly as you at first, until you get to know them. You never know if that person is a CEO or boss of a potential company you want to work at. Don’t get in any pissing matches! There are some people on Twitter that like to start random arguments to see if they can get you wound up. Sometimes it’s funny, but if you happen to run into someone like this, the best thing to do is block them. Explore these Twitter tips and tools to get a better grasp on Twitter and start Twittering more effectively.

Now get out there and start promoting yourself!

If you have any experiences you’d like to share about landing a job using social media, I’d absolutely love to hear it. Please leave your story in the comments below. Thanks!

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