Making Social Media less “Social” and more “Professional” for Your Job Search

We all hear how Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, Blogging (blah, blah, blah) all get you your job faster, right? So… how’s that working out for you?

Now we’re assuming here that your Facebook page doesn’t show you test driving a beer bong, you don’t have multiple misspellings on your LinkedIn profile, and Google doesn’t turn up a namesake of yours on the terrorist watch-list.

LinkedIn: Don’t just create an account, make it stand out with a professional looking photo and a well-stated but succinct description of your value to an employer (they won’t care what you’ve done if they don’t think it will help them). Avoid overused LinkedIn buzzwords (Google them), but do use industry specific jargon. For more, look at Rebecca Henniger’s article - http://bit.ly/13H1pyn.

Facebook: Make sure your privacy settings are for “Friends Only” if you have anything that you wouldn’t want a prospective employer to see. Better yet, get help scanning and monitoring appropriate postings and photos on your wall. You can download a tool - www.Reppler.com – to monitor and report across your social networks.  There’s also a new app on Facebook by the “Social Jobs Partnership” that pulls together other job listings. It may offer an additional resource worth considering beyond Indeed.com and SimplyHired.com. For more Facebook ideas, refer to an article by David Nicola of SmartRecruiters - http://bit.ly/1dZfRY8.

Twitter:  Join discussions in industries where you’d like to work. Research a chat topic, then post a comment or pose another question (not, however, “where can I find a flippin job!”). You should also “Follow” key executives at your target companies. For more, visit – http://on.mash.to/169iBcr.