Social media is a great way to connect with family, friends and co-workers. But it is also a great way to connect with recruiters. LinkedIn might seem as an obvious choice when you are looking for your next career step, however Facebook and Twitter have also a great potential to connect you with employers. Whichever platform you choose, in this article you can find 5 tips to help you succeed with your job search on social media, and you can also check out these Top Strategies for Successful Job Search that will help you to get hired.
According to recent statistics, about 87% of recruiters use the platform to connect with their potential hires. More that 57 million companies have a profile, and 3 people get hired every minute on LinkedIn. Although these statistics are very impressive, there are over 40 million people searching for jobs on LinkedIn every week, which implies there is a lot of competition. Follow these 5 simple steps to make your LinkedIn profile stand out to recruiters and increase your chances to get hired:
#1 Upload professional profile photo
Try to upload a photo of yourself looking professional and friendly. Avoid uploading personal pictures (e.g. photos from your last vacation) or pictures with other people.
#2 Craft your profile and make it relevant to the jobs you are looking for
Think about your profile as your online resume that everybody can see. Add relevant work experiences and as many relevant skills as possible. Although, keep it realistic and make sure that skills listed in your profile actually correspond with skills you actually have. You can always revamp your skills with an online course that will bring you closer to your dream career.
#3 Short profile summary leaves great impression
Keep it short and to the point. Mention the highlights of your career so far to give recruiters a better idea about your background, and indicate what your future career goals are and what you are aspiring to.
#4 Follow companies and people you look up to
This helps you to stay informed about the trends in the industry, and what your favourite companies are up to. If you are looking to get hired for a particular role, you can also view profiles of people with similar job titles to see what skills and experience helped them to get hired.
#5 Make the most out of LinkedIn’s features
This includes features such as letting recruiters know you are open to new opportunities, or notifications within the job search to get alerts about newly listed roles matching your search criteria. But it is also important to Understand LinkedIn Job Search Algorithm. The algorithm matches sections of your profile, such as previous experience, education and skills to the criteria set by recruiters.
About 4 years ago, Facebook launched its own job search feature. With more than 2.7 billion Facebook users online worldwide, it is no surprise that the app appeals to recruiters. Here are the 5 tips on how to improve your chances to get hired on Facebook:
# 1 Make sure your public profile is presentable
Make a great first impression! Select appropriate profile photo that emphasizes your interests Include your education and work experience in your public profile.
# 2 Pay attention to what you share
Try to avoid getting involved in discussions on controversial and divisive topics. This does not apply only to your public posts, but also to your comments on someone else’s content, and to the content and articles you share.
# 3 Use Facebook Jobs feature
Click on the Jobs Bookmark in the menu and start scrolling through jobs available in your area.
# 4 Personalize your job search
This feature allows you to filter job posts by location, industry and job title. You can also create alerts and receive notification every time a new job is posted.
# 5 Create your CV on Facebook
Creating your CV on Facebook is faster and easier than ever. Facebook will automatically upload your name and contact details, work experience, education and skills from your profile. But don’t worry, you can always add or edit your CV manually.
Twitter is known for being a dynamic microblogging platform, but many people do not consider it useful when it comes to job searches. Unlike LinkedIn or Facebook, it does not have a dedicated job search feature. However, there are about 500 million tweets sent each day worldwide, and about 145 million daily users, which makes it a great networking tool.
#1 Enhance your public profile
Try to make your Twitter profile more professional by uploading appropriate profile picture, and by sharing your interests, accomplishments and career aspirations in a short 180 character bio.
#2 Get to know your employers
Grow your network and follow companies of your interest. Some companies have dedicated Twitter accounts for careers and talent solutions, and tweet about the jobs that are looking to fill. It is also a good idea to engage with the company’s content via comments, likes and shares.
#3 Network
Try to build your own network and increase your credibility. In your tweets, you can give people helpful tips or share industry news or useful links. Be active, interact with your followers and be quick to answer their questions and comments.
#4 Use search bar with relevant keywords
Make the most out of the search box. There are many ways of doing this, but the key is to choose keywords relevant to your job search. You can follow this simple example: “(jobs OR career OR hiring) (job title 1 OR job title 2) Location”
#5 Take advantage of hashtags
Recruiters include hashtags in their job listings, so they can be matched with jobseekers searching for specific keywords or hashtags. The top hashtags for job seekers include #nowhiring #jobsearch #recruiting.
Whether you are a recent graduate looking for your first job or you have been recently laid off, there are numbers of online courses to help you with job search and kick-starting your new career – from developing Job Search Strategy to Mastering in Job Interviews.