Social Networking for Job Seekers

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Social Networking for Job Seekers Mike Buhmann Reference Librarian Skokie Public Library

description

A guide for job seekers on how to best use various social networking tools to help in finding a job. Covers the topic of personal branding and how to best to present yourself online.

Transcript of Social Networking for Job Seekers

Page 1: Social Networking for Job Seekers

Social Networking for Job Seekers

Mike BuhmannReference LibrarianSkokie Public Library

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For an effective job search you need to decide on a direction. Reflect & survey your interests and skills

For Help?• Pick up a book like “What Color is Your Parachute”• Follow a program like what’s offered in “Careers

College” (see databases.skokielibrary.info)• See a career counselor• Sit and think about your future

Social Media for Job Searching

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Social Media -What Is It? 3 Definitions

Social Media for Job Searching

• Websites based on user participation and user-generated content

• Any form of online publication that allows users to engage in multi-directional conversations

• The use of technology combined with social interaction to create or co-create value

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What Is It?

Social Media for Job Searching

youtu.be/1pahLo5TTy4

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How Can It Help a Job Search?

Social Media for Job Searching

• Helps in developing and promoting your personal brand

• Allows you to influence how online content about you appears to a potential employer

• Provides a resource to network with friends, colleagues, industry leaders & connectors; to connect far beyond what you can achieve via face-to-face networking

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How Can It Help?

Social Media for Job Searching

youtu.be/MmnG_biH-iQ

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Types of Social Media• Social Networks (LinkedIn, Facebook,

Google+)• Microblogging (Twitter)• Blogs & Forums (Blogger, WordPress)• Social Bookmarking/News (Delcious, Digg,

Reddit)• Media Sharing (Flickr, YouTube)• Wiki’s (Wikipedia)• Rating/Review sites (Amazon, Angie’s List)

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Personal Branding

Social Media for Job Searching

• People marketing themselves and their careers as brands

• Thinking of yourself as a brand and using ideas based on business marketing & advertising to best display your assets to potential employers

• An old idea first introduced in 1937 in the book “Think and Grow Rich” but has taken on new life with the advent of the internet and social media

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youtu.be/0a0Vm0zHFh0

Personal Branding

Social Media for Job Searching

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1. What is your vision & purpose

2. What are your values & passions

3. What are your top goals in this year, next year and in five years

4. What 3 or 4 adjectives best describe the value you offer

5. What words do you use to define your personality

6. What are your core skills

Personal Branding

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7. What are your strengths & weaknesses

8. Who is your target audience (Where do you fit in as far as industry & niche area of expertise)

9. Who is your competition and what differentiates you from them

10.What does your competition typically have to offer

11.What value do you bring to the table that no one else does

Personal Branding

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In-person brand elementsHow people perceive your brand when they meet you in person is based on the following elements:• The way you act • The way you talk• The way you dress• Who you think you are

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Online brand elementsThe purpose of online brand elements is to show people who don’t really know you or have never met you in person who you really are. Your online brand elements manifest themselves in

• The way you act online The state of your LinkedIn profile, your blog, your Facebook timeline or the first pages of a Google search of your name

• The way you talk online What are your postings like, do they add value are they silly, are you aware of your audience

• The way you present yourself How do your pages look, what pictures do you have and what does it communicate to others

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Social Networking – Why Do It?• Useful to reconnect with friends,

acquaintances & contacts from previous jobs

• Recruiters & many organizations use social media sites such as LinkedIn to find & check on potential employees

• Helps you control what can be found about you on a Google search

• Many, many people are using social networking tools, especially Facebook

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Social Networking – Negatives• Tempting to create profiles on sites

and do nothing with them, this does not help your personal brand

• Social networks invite you to engage in games and behavior which could hurt your image, be careful what you post

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Professional Networking• At a minimum, all job seekers

should have a LinkedIn Account

• Strong job searching features built in

• Networking is one of the best ways to get a job and LinkedIn focuses on online networking

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Aspects of LinkedIn• Each participant creates a profile,

similar to an online resume

• Connect with friends, colleagues & professionals

• Post updates of activities & newsworthy items for your connections to read

• Participate in groups to enhance reputation and to meet new connections

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Why Use It?• Like face-to-face networking, LinkedIn

does not provide quick results, but with continued use it offers a chance to develop professional relationships that often lead to job offers

• LinkedIn is the default professional networking tool used by more & more people. Easy to find people you know

• Increasingly used by hiring managers & recruiters to find clients

• Allows control over what potential employers can find about you via search engines

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Tips• Create a professional profile with industry

keywords, a memorable headline & summary and a professional photo

• Connect with colleagues & key people in your industry

• Follow companies & organizations you are interested in to get updates

• Join relevant professional groups and participate in conversations

• Post industry related/professional updates often and comment on your connection’s updates

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Facebook What is it?• Social networking site to connect with

friends, relatives, acquaintances

• Easy to communicate with people you never could have stayed in touch with before

• Participants can share “updates” of photos, videos & personal information with friends

• Able to “Like” and “Comment” on your friend’s updates

• Join Groups to find and interact with new people

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Facebook – Job SearchFacebook is a site for interacting with friends yet can be beneficial in a job search

• Network to get advice & support from your friends

• Post status updates related to your job search so friends know your situation

• Join & be active in Groups, this offers another chance to network and meet new people

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Facebook – Job Search Precautions• Be careful what you post, stay away from

controversial postings or things that put you in a bad light

• Be careful what you “Like” and “Share”, this shows your interests so try & keep from liking controversial or detrimental material (Steer clear of politics & religion during a job search)

• Keep things private – If you are friends with coworkers, and colleagues

add them to a list then limit the list– Limit what others can see on your public profile– Check what apps are accessing your profile

information

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Twitter – What is It?• Twitter is a service for friends, family, and

coworkers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent messages. People write short updates, "Tweets" of 140 characters or fewer. These messages are posted to your profile, sent to your followers, and are searchable on Twitter search

• You can follow people, people can follow you, and direct messages can be sent to individuals with Twitter Accounts. Private messages can be sent to people who follow you.

• Pictures can be posted and other people’s messages can be retweeted

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Twitter – Getting Started• Create a twitter handle, use your name

@mbuhmann

• Create your profile with your name, location & photo. Use a consistent photo across all your social media, a pithy 160 character bio with keywords that promote your expertise

• Start by finding and following others: businesses, people you know, celebrities, news sources

• Check your timeline to see what’s being posted

• Build a voice by retweeting and replying to posts

Social Media for Job Searching

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Twitter – Job SearchWhat is It?

Social Media for Job Searching

youtu.be/ddO9idmax0o

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Twitter – Why Use It? • Easy to follow and connect to people you

do not know, don’t need approval to follow

• Writing not so important, most people can communicate easily with short messages

• Growing a community is relatively easy with a little effort

• Great way to share ideas & information to demonstrate expertise to a wide audience

Social Media for Job Searching

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Twitter – Expert Positioning• Choose a focus and build credibility by sending

out relevant & useful content (takes time)

• Comment on news & industry trends

• Be retweetable; send content that your followers will want to share, this expands your visibility

• Don’t just push your content. Retweet other items from people you admire with a relevant comment

• Add #hashtags (e.g. #libraries) to get more notice (visit hashtags.org to find tags & a guide to using Twitter)

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Twitter – Finding People• Create subject related lists of people &

follow top players in Industries, retweet best tweets, this is a sign of respect

• If people don’t follow you, you can communicate with them by asking a question via an @ and their name in a message

• Find people to follow on these sites – Wefollow.com – Search.twitter.com (Twitter’s advanced

search)– www.twellow.com (Twitter yellow pages)

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Twitter – Cons

• Easy to be overly casual which can be detrimental if you’re not careful

• Posts tend to be ephemeral unless someone is online at the same time as you or the post includes someone’s name

• Yet, with a Google search, negative posts can be found

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Google+ - What is It?

Social Media for Job Searching

• Social Networking Site that combines elements of Facebook & Twitter

• Like Facebook you can write lengthy posts and follow people’s updates

• Share links & media with network• Like Twitter you don’t need permission to

follow someone• Create circles of contacts based on a theme

and push content to targeted audience• Easy to set up if you have a gmail account

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Google+ - What is It?

Social Media for Job Searching

youtu.be/3moBvYdWKGc

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Google+ - Job Search

Social Media for Job Searching

• Check profile to make it consistent with other social networking profiles and job worthy

• Create a memorable & professional tagline

• Use the same or similar photo for your profile

• Create circles of people who work in targeted industries, locations or professions. Follow what others are posting or provide content to the group

• Use “Communities” (like LinkedIn Groups) to expand circle of friends

• Find people by using recommendedusers.com

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Blogging - What is it?• Blogs feature a diary-type commentary and links to

articles or websites, usually presented as a list of entries in reverse chronological order. Blogs range from the personal to the political, and can focus on one narrow subject or a whole range of subjects.

• Many blogs focus on a particular topic, such as web design, home staging, sports, or mobile technology. Others are more like personal journals, presenting the author's daily life and thoughts.

• Blogs tend to have a few things in common: – A main content area with articles listed chronologically, newest

on top. Often, the articles are organized into categories. – An archive of older articles. – A way for people to leave comments about the articles. – A list of links to other related sites, sometimes called a

"blogroll". – One or more "feeds" like RSS, Atom or RDF files.

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Blogging (What is it?)

Social Media for Job Searching

youtu.be/NN2I1pWXjXI

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Blogging - Why Do It?

• Easy to Set Up • Demonstrates expertise &

commitment• Allows others to comment and

conversations to develop around topics you choose

• Provides detailed content to link to for other social networking sites

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Blogging (Why Not to Do It?)

Cons• Requires a great deal of time and

commitment to start and maintain• Requires strong writing skills, so if you don’t

write well, avoid blogging• Getting a following requires time and

persistence

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Blogging (Where to Do It?)These are all places where you can start and maintain a blog. All are a little different and offer varying features

Social Media for Job Searching

• WordPress • Blogger • Tumblr • Medium • Svbtle • Quora• Postach.io

• SETT • Ghost • Squarespace • Typepad • Posthaven

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Blogs (Examples)Many different types and themes

Social Media for Job Searching

• The Style Rookie thestylerookie.com teen style blog

• The Thirsty Wench thethirstywench.com beer blog

• Science is Beauty scienceisbeauty.tumblr.com title says it all

• How to Change the World blog.guykawasaki.com entrepreneurial & marketing blog

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Media Sharing (Examples)For people less verbal there are video, photo, audio, & presentation sharing sites

Social Media for Job Searching

• Video – YouTube

• Photos – Flickr, Picassa, Pinterest

• Audio – Clyp, Chirbit

• Presentations - Slideshare

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GlassDoor - What is It?

Social Media for Job Searching

• Job Search site that provides information on employers provided by current & former employees

• Provides information on salaries, interview questions and ratings of various companies posted anonymously by users

• Log in to provide ratings and information on employers you worked for

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MeetUp - What is It?

Social Media for Job Searching

• Meetup allows members to find and join groups unified by a common interest, such as politics, books, games, movies, health, pets, careers or hobbies.

• Users enter their postal code or their city and the topic they want to meet about

• Topic listings are also available for users who only enter a location

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Social Media Strategy

Social Media for Job Searching

1. Decide what direction/profession to pursue. Focus helps build confidence

2. Decide what social media tools to focus on, what works best to reach your target audience

3. Be consistent across tools, use same or similar photos and profiles

4. Build network, develop a strategy to reach those who can help. Takes time

5. Post content & comment on other’s posts

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Social Networking for Job Seekers

Mike BuhmannReference LibrarianSkokie Public Library

Thanks for Coming

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• Don't expect social networking to be a magic career wand

• Do present a consistent, professional profile i social networking bios.

Social Media for Job Searching

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• Don't expect social networking to be a magic career wand

• Do present a consistent, professional profile i social networking bios.

What Is It ?