Do you know that most recruitment agencies and employers today are utilizing social media platforms to source the right employees and candidates? This fact implies that social media has to be a mandatory part of your job searching strategies.
Social networking sites have become an essential arena to advertise your resume and skillsets. Gone are the days when you would schedule meetings in person with the job recruiters and pay them for getting a suitable job for you. Social media is actually a more convenient approach to job search. Because every office and house essentially has an internet subscription. I got my first job via LinkedIn and I subscribed to one of the Frontier Internet plans solely for this purpose.
You too will be convinced that using an internet forum means more approach ability and access.
Why is Social Media Useful?
Social media forums allow you to establish a social brand. It facilitates you to network with people on these online platforms. You can identify various relevant openings and then turn the leads into actual job opportunities.
Only those employers and companies to whom you have sent your resume directly can see it. Or, your resume is sent by a recruitment website or a paid recruiter. If you choose to use social media forums in your job search, you can easily enhance the visibility of your resume. Your professional profile will have better exposure to the wider world.
Putting your professional experience and skillsets into a public domain allows you to have better chances of network with professionals from various employment sectors.
Benefits of Using Social Media in Job Search
Check out the benefits of utilizing social media for your job search.
- You can readily apply for the advertised roles.
- You get to have greater visibility to the employers and recruiters who are trying to source the right candidates.
- You can easily build your own network on social networking sites.
- With your own network, you get to engage with a much wider audience across various social channels.
- You get the opportunity to create a positive PR.
- You can do so by presenting endorsements, testimonials, and presentations to showcase your work and expertise.
- You can directly speak to headhunters, recruiters, and potential employers across various channels with consistent engagement.
Let’s talk about some major social media forums.
LinkedIn is mandatory for your job search efforts. It is the most prominent platform to facilitate job search. Recruiters and employers approach suitable prospective employees directly on LinkedIn. If you are actively searching for a job, it is essential to have an updated LinkedIn profile. Filling this profile is more like writing an online resume. However, you will benefit from the innovative features of LinkedIn such as Endorsements.
Also, companies use positive feedback from their customers to lure other prospective buyers. Using this very idea, the said networking site allows you to add personal testimonials too. You can ask your colleagues, customers, managers, suppliers, or even friends to jot down a few appreciative words about your work and capabilities. These words by other people will be taken as an indication of authenticity and credibility.
We would still not consider LinkedIn a replacement to a conventional resume. But it is evident that is the forum has become highly useful in the job search. Consider the fact that professionals and recruiters, even if you have approached them in person, will verify your resume details on LinkedIn. And you don’t want to give an impression of being technologically outdated.
Facebook has 2.41 billion active users currently. You simply cannot miss out on such a gigantic audience. This platform allows you to create your personal profile, add users and friends to your network, and exchange messages and call in its community framework. You can organize events and join groups too.
You may consider Facebook as an informal medium to be used by organizations for commercial reasons. but the trends are changing. Companies and recruiters are using it more and more to stay updated with various trends, testimonials, reviews, and so on. Some companies are even recruiting via Facebook. Take advantage of these blurred boundaries between professional and personal info on the said forum. Its informal nature allows better interaction, communication, and exchange of pertinent info to both, companies and professionals.
Just consider the fact that your current, past, and prospective employers are present on social media forums. And they are sensitive to your presence. Don’t share any info that you think could be a problem.
Twitter community is expanding by the day. Businesses are using it to promote their services and expertise. They are also using it to entice users to visit their site. Present yourself as a professional. You can follow relevant companies and topics. Retweet often to grab their attention. You can also share your own tweets to show your interest in various fields. Begin with an appropriate bio, a decent photo, and a linked resume. You can also link your LinkedIn site or profile.
Conclusion
Using the right strategies can help you land the right job opportunity for yourself. Ensure that all your profiles on various forums indicate the fact that you are looking for a job. Also, enlighten them about the roles you are interested in. Using keywords is a great idea to facilitate the search for recruiters.
Also, make sure you follow the relevant individuals and companies of your niche. For instance, I was looking for a job of call center rep. And I made sure that I follow all the relevant pages from all the top digital providers. I even followed pages like FiOS Internet only plans, which were not even directly related to the main provider. But all this drill helped me land a nice job opportunity.
Don’t be reluctant to initiate conversations with suitable individuals and companies. It would be wise to keep your personal and professional updates on separate accounts.
Good luck!
