Finding a job is incredibly competitive. It’s a good idea to utilise as many channels as possible to build up your professional profile, both on and offline. This article explores how you can use social media to get a job, by seeing yourself as a brand that you need to market and advertise in order to stand out from the competition, raising your ‘brand awareness’ and convincing employers to hire you.
Use professional pictures
Having a professional profile picture and cover photo means employers are able to put a face to your name. Ensure the pictures are appropriate and show you in a professional light.
Include relevant information
In your Twitter bio, be sure to include information on your location, what you do and something to reflect your personality.
Include a link to your LinkedIn
LinkedIn is like your online CV. By including your LinkedIn profile in your Twitter bio, you are making it easy for potential employers to find out more about you, your work history and your skills and expertise.
Follow
Start following companies and employers you’d be interested in working for to keep up to date with their activity. You can also follow influencers in your industry who post interesting and thought-provoking content in order to stay on top of industry news.
Interact
Interact with the content from influencers and thought-leaders by joining the discussion and contributing thoughtful insights to get your name noticed. By retweeting, commenting and liking tweets, the owners may begin to notice you, follow you and may even return the favour of retweeting, commenting and liking your tweets.
Engage
Once you’ve started to build up your own following, start posting your own content that will be of interest to people in your industry – spark debate and show your followers why you are worth following. You could even tag other people and companies in your tweets to engage a wider audience.
Discover more about using Twitter to develop your online brand.
Use professional pictures
As with Twitter, it’s important that employers are able to put a face to your name. As LinkedIn is a professional networking site, make sure the picture you use reflects you in a professional light.
Build a profile
Build up your profile with your past jobs, work experience, volunteering and academic achievements. Make sure to write a timeline of your education to show employers what you have studied and where your interests lie.
Keep descriptions concise – highlighting your achievements and the skills you’ve gained succinctly. You should also try to include words that are used regularly in the job adverts you’re interested in, as this makes it easier for employers to identify whether you are the right fit for the role. For example, if there are specific skills which you have that are consistently required across the jobs you’re applying for – then use the same wording in your profile.
LinkedIn has a function where you can list your skills and it allows colleagues to endorse you, so make sure to include skills you know you demonstrated in your past jobs.
LinkedIn also allows you to attach your professional CV to your profile. Whilst you are looking for a role, it may be a good idea to attach an up to date CV if you wish. This will allow you to write more content and expand on points that you have summarised in your LinkedIn profile.
Connect
Connect to past colleagues and friends by getting in touch and letting them know you’re seeking a new role. They may be able to refer you to others in their network, enabling you to build your connections and expand your own network. They may also begin to endorse your skills, helping build your credibility as a professional in your field.
Interact
Follow companies and interact with posts and shares from them as well as your connections. LinkedIn has a function that allows you to keep up to date with specific topics and industries that interest you, so share and comment on these posts to join the conversation, making others aware of you.
Engage
Share and post your own content that is relevant to your industry and will interest those in your network. This will encourage them to share and comment on your posts, helping you become seen as a thought leader and grow your network.
Learn more about how to use LinkedIn to develop your online brand.
Social media is an important tool to help you get a job and build your professional network – find out how to improve your social media presence while job hunting.
Last updated on 24 May 2024
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