5 Ways to Find Your Dream Job Using Social Media
Looking for a job is a deeply ‘social’ exercise. You need to reach out to as many people as you can, talk about your talents, showcase your degrees and certificates, and bag an interview with the right company.
While it’s easy to use social media for staying in touch with friends and marketing your business, finding a job is slightly more complex. Most social media platforms (besides LinkedIn) simply aren’t designed for formal conversations and serious work-related issues. They’re more casual and friendly, and looking for employers is sometimes difficult.
So, here are the top five tips for job hunting on social media:
Focus on your certificates and accomplishments
There’s always an ‘About Me’ section on every social platform. Use this to your advantage and list every single qualification or degree you have. For example, you could talk about the experiences you gained from training for your forklift training certification and the lessons it taught you. Spend a few words talking about your experience teaching English in Hong Kong, helping your friend with their house interiors, or valuing a company on the stock market. Prove what you are capable of before you reach out to anyone on social media.
Build a network on LinkedIn slowly
LinkedIn is probably your best bet for a job hunt. However, it can be tricky building a network on the site if you don’t already have a ton of contacts within the industry. LinkedIn doesn’t let you reach out to people you don’t know personally, which means there’s a chance you’ll get blocked from meeting a lot of key and influential people because they don’t know you. The trick is to start slow and build a small network first. Expand your network slowly as you get to know more people, before you start outreaching for the recruitment team at a big company.
Reach out to close friends on Facebook
You never know how your personal network might be able to help. Post your qualifications and talk about the kind of job you’re looking for. Your friends and family may not employ you directly, but they could know someone who might be able to help. It’s certainly worth a try.
Make your profile professional
The problem with social media is that it is completely casual. People say things and post pictures they would never want their employers to see. So, if you’re serious about job hunting on social media, spruce up your profile. Clean up all the posts, pictures, and articles you’ve ever shared.
Create expert content
Getting people and employers interested is tricky online. Social media is simply too crowded. Your best bet to stand out from the crowd is to create intelligent and thought-provoking content that employers and experts in the industry would be willing to read. If your job isn’t technical, talk about your experiences and express your views about what’s happening in the industry.
It’s difficult but not impossible to find a job on social media. In order to be successful, it’s vital that you shout about your achievements, clean up your profile, create some meaningful content, and reach out to the right people.