How to use social media to find a job

How to use social media to find a job

Social media is by nature random. That’s why you, along with coworkers, your mom and even your cat-loving recluse aunt, may find yourself posting memes on Facebook, tweeting nothing-in-particulars, and endorsing every imaginable skill of your LinkedIn contacts. There’s nothing wrong with any of that. But if you want to use social media to find a job, it’s better to be more deliberate. Here are some steps to take.

Target your search :  Posting a Facebook status saying, “I want a job. Who can help me?” will get you nowhere. Not only are you being far too vague, but you are choosing the wrong channel for such a plea.  Instead of using Facebook, which emphasizes friends, it’s better to focus your job hunting on LinkedIn, which is purely professional. Create a LinkedIn account, if you don’t have one already, and make sure you have optimized it. (See “What To Say On LinkedIn When You’ve Been Laid Off.”)

Then use the site to its fullest by connecting with contacts. LinkedIn helps you do that by asking to connect to your email and Facebook accounts to match any of your friends who are also on LinkedIn. This is the key for LinkedIn success: transitioning useful contacts from your recreational social circles into your professional circles.

Create a Google+ profile and design it in a similar fashion. Only after you have used these two professional sources should you direct your job-hunting efforts to Facebook and Twitter.