How To Use Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Social Media To Help You Find A Job

Almost a year ago I joined Twitter.com with one question in mind – Can Twitter help our Kaplan University students find a job?

As I learned more about Twitter.com, the next question became – Are lawyers and legal professionals on Twitter?

As time wore on, the next question became – Are hiring managers on Twitter? What about LinkedIn?

After almost a year of being on Twitter.com (and reading MANY books on the topic) and exploring other “Social Media” sites such as LinkedIn and Facebook, I can happily answer YES to all 3 questions.

When I First Started Using Twitter…..
With unemployment approaching staggering highs, I wanted to find a way to share job search tips that people could use quickly and easily and find legal professionals and hiring managers for our Kaplan University students. For a short time, I felt as if I were "Tweeting" in the dark (posts to Twitter.com are called "Tweets"), looking for lawyers that shared an interest in social media sites for the purpose of networking and sharing their insights into the legal field seemed daunting. How do I find them? How does this Twitter thing work? How can we converse with only 140 characters (the key to sharing ideas using Twitter)? But, I kept going in dogged determination always asking "Do Lawyers Tweet?"

Determination Pays Off With Twitter….
My determination paid off! Lawyers, legal professionals, and hiring managers DO “Tweet” and they are networking, talking, and sharing. These "tweets" are vibrant, informative, and interesting as people share insight into their worlds (and available jobs). To make your profile stand out
-Make Sure You Project a Professional Image
-Post Relevant Information Related To Your Field To Establish Your Reputation
You can also locate people with like interests on Twitter by using the “search” feature, hashtags feature (the “#” symbol), and looking at other people’s profiles to see which people they are “following”.

LinkedIn….
After experiencing success with Twitter, I decided to try to locate job opportunities and network on LinkedIn by conducting a “LinkedIn Experiment” over several months. The key “take-aways” include:
-Join Groups
-Utilize the Job Boards
-Create a Marketable Profile/Brand Yourself
-Utilize the Recommendation Feature

For More Details On Using Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Social Media:
What to learn how to use social media? Want to learn more about how to find a job using Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Social Media? CLICK HERE or copy and paste this link – http://khe.acrobat.com/p11992736/ in your web browser. It will open a live webinar presentation that I conducted with our Kaplan University students that provides step by step instructions on how to use these sites and tie everything together with an action plan at the end of the presentation.

Note: I am also happy to announce that this article has also been published in Kaplan University's newsletter for our students.

LinkedIn Experiment Part 4: Branding Yourself Online

What Would You Do If.....

What would you do if you saw a movie with Batman flying though the air - by means of shooting a spider web from his wrists?

What would you do if you saw Spiderman driving - but in the Bat Mobile?

Would it seem out of place? Out of character? Would you think that something is wrong? Of course!

The same applies to your "Online Brand".

Spiderman is consistent. We expect to see him climbing buildings and shooting webs from his wrists. Batman is consistent, we expect to see him with a big "bat cape", while driving the "Bat Mobile" across town.

The same approach applies to your postings on LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook.

When You Create A LinkedIn Profile....

If you create a LinkedIn account for professional reasons, then keep your chats and posts professional and specific to your industry. For example, if you are a legal student and you want to be known as the "go to person" for paralegal "stuff" then you will want to write about - anything related to being a paralegal. Your posts should pertain to things that concern the legal field and you should stay on top of the latest "crime fighting” and/or problem solving techniques that are relevant to being in the paralegal field. This is true for any field as well.

Your posts should not include to much personal information. In the beginning, when you are trying to build and establish your "Online Brand" your post should really focus on your industry. This is not a time to share personal areas and interests. As you build your "Online Brand", you can opt for an 80/20 rule. Eighty percent professional and "brand oriented" content and 20% personal notes and comments on personal interests.

Why?

You Want People To Get To Know You As A Professional...

Because you want people to get to know you as a professional. You want to establish yourself as an industry expert - or at least an enthusiast. You want credibility. This way, when hidden and upcoming job opportunities are available, people will think of the professionals that they know of and think of you - the really smart and professional industry person. Not, the person with "personal issue xyz."

Make sense? Feel free to share. What have you been doing to create and maintain your "Online Brand"?

The Linked In Experiment: Part One

Ever since Thad Greer, Owner of South Florida Management Search held his first seminar with Kaplan University last year called "How To Blog Your Way To A Job" I've become interested in the potential of blogs and social networking sites (Twitter, LinkedIn, and FaceBook). I STRONGLY feel that they can transform a job seekers job search and improve their chances for promotion by expanding their network.

Why is this important? Because statistically, 80% of available jobs are hidden. That's right - 80%! So, what about the jobs you see on sites like Monster.com and Careerbuilder.com? Or your local newspaper? Well, they are the 20% of advertised jobs. Don't take my word for it. There are countless articles on this factoid. One Google search of the term ""Hidden Job Market" and "80 percent"" yields over 800 websites attesting to this fact in Google's search results.

So, I've decided to "put my money where my mouth is" so to speak and start building an online profile. Not for me - but for you! As I discover opportunities, I'm going to post how I found them on this blog once per week. This way, you can follow in my footsteps and start building an online presence, start networking, and start finding hidden opportunities - for yourself!

My first stop - LinkedIn.

I'll post the first of my findings next week. In the meantime, let me know your thoughts. Have you used LinkedIn before? Would you like to know more about it? Do you know of any other sites I should try? Feel free to comment.

How to Make Your Profile Stand Out on Social Networking Sites

This isn't the same job search you conduced years ago. This isn't the same job search that you conducted a few months ago, a few days ago, or a few hours ago. Today is a new day in how to create an effective job search and if you don't know how to harness these new tools in the "new day" job search, you will be frustrated - VERY frustrated.

-Kirsten Grant

Most job seekers know about how important their resume is, but I will say it again. Customize your resume to EVERY job description. Make sure it contains key words that are used in the actual job description along with accomplishments - only relevant information counts.



Now that we have that out of the way, let's talk social networking sites. Social networking sites include sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and MySpace. Although most people think of these sites as a great place to post pictures from personal pursuits, there is a whole sub-culture of serious job seekers that use these sites to find jobs and expand their professional network. Today's article helps you become one of those people:

Make Your On-Line Profile Stand Out With These 3 Tips:

Number One: Remember, It's NOT Personal

Your online profile should only contain professional information about yourself. Things you would want an employer to know that could help "sell" yourself and your experience, background, and potential. Remove information such as age, number of children, religious views, and family pictures.



Number Two: Pictures Are OK

On a resume, a picture is a no-no. On an online profile, it adds a dimension of personalizing your page. If you decide to upload a picture to your profile, make sure the picture is a professional one.



Number Three: Pick a "Niche" to Become an "Expert" In And Always Stay On Topic

Content is king! One of the keys to creating a professional online presence is to make sure that what you write about showcases your knowledge and/or passion on a specific topic. For example, if you wanted to become known as an expert in the legal field, then you wouldn't offer content on cake baking recipes.



So there you go, a great bit of information to help you make a great start. Have additional questions? Feel free to comment.