Social Media Job Success

The Lay of the Land

If you believe the papers, finding a job today is only a bit easier than climbing
Mt Everest naked. The number of jobs cut from the economy is huge. The sheer
number of people who wants jobs is also huge with the Bureau of Labor
Statistics estimating a whopping 12.5 million people are unemployed and
looking for work.

That means you have some competition out there.

Companies with jobs aren't sure how to best look for new applicants. Which
job site should they post on? Should they continue to run ads in the paper?
Should they use social media? Does anyone over 18 even use social media?

As a former hiring manager, I can also tell you from experience that most
people are pretty lousy at applying for a position.

As a job seeker, how do you stand out above the pile of resumes?

One time I received a resume with a cover letter that literally opened with
“I have a 180 IQ. I am a super genius.”

I nearly blew hot coffee out my nose from laughing so hard.

Yes, this guy stood out, but unfortunately the rest of his resume didn't even put
him on the short list for what I was looking for.

How do you get noticed and get hired, and how do you do it in the least amount
of time?

Meanwhile, the media is running horror stories about how finding a job is next
to impossible. People who used to make six figure salaries are sweeping up for
gas stations just to pay for their cell phone.

Lots of people are confused about what it takes to find a job and many even
think it's not even worth the effort.

How To Use Social Networking and Web 2.0 To Find Your Next Job Page 1
Dave Saunders web20igoblog.com
The good news is that while there are a lot of layoffs happening with
companies big and small, people are also getting hired from coast to coast.

Social Media Is the Solution

An entire movement is underway on the Internet and it's known as Social
Media or Web 2.0. The chief characteristic of social media is that you have
equal access to the creation of content. Contrast this to a few years ago where
you needed technical expertise to create web pages and interaction between
the page's content and a person visiting the site was next to nothing.

Social media brings people together online and has led to the creation of online
“villages” numbering in the 100s of millions of people for some of the most
popular sites.

Search engines love social media. They add just about anything from a social
media site to the search listings. That includes anything you create, be it your
resume, a video, or a blog post. As more of this content is created, the more
others can virtually know you based on the way are you seen online, the way
you interact with others and the trail you leave from your online activities.

This might sound like a Orwellian nightmare to some, but if you learn to
harness this freedom, as have so many others, you can find yourself being
found by your next employer, referred to the ideal job by a friend or an online
acquaintance or you can more proactively park yourself right in front of a
hiring manager you uncovered through your online network.

The Social Media Edge For Finding a Job

By using social media and web 2.0 tools, you gain an advantage over others.
You can match yourself to a great job by using these tools to seek out the
people who are looking for you.

Social media gives you two benefits:

1. It connects you to people with greater ease than running out to every
mixer and socializing with other job‐seekers, many of whom have that
vacant look of the walking dead.

2. It lets you create an online portfolio of value which pulls people into you.
This can lead to referrals, direct job offers and validation when a hiring
manager “Googles You;” an increasingly common practice.

Should You Be Looking For A Job?
Ok, this may sound like a dumb question, but the answer may not be obvious
to everyone.

You may think the job situation is so bad there isn't any point in spending your
last dollars on gas just to go get rejected. Again, now is the time to pull up your
sleeves and turn your own economy around. It may take days, weeks or even
months, but you'll find something a lot faster when you're taking action.

If you are employed, you may think holding onto your current job for dear life is
a great survival strategy. Maybe it is if survival is good enough for you.
However, this is a time of “reconfiguration” and could be your best opportunity
to increase your income by moving into a new position.

When you look at the combination of the current economic situation and the
emergence of new social media technology on the Internet, you realize you're
in the middle of a “perfect storm” when it comes to finding a new job.

• Companies need to survive and are looking for top hires who will bring
in VALUE.

• Social media has created a new opportunity to stand out and get noticed
by recruiters, hiring managers and even friends and acquaintances.
These people are either hiring, or (more likely) know someone who is.

What this means to you is that anyone who knows how to harness the new
tools for networking online have an advantage over those who don't.

There's still a vast ocean of people simply submitting their resumes through
plain vanilla job seeking websites.

To me, this is the ultimate humiliation. These job sites make me think of some
Charles Dickens novel where some poor schlep crushes his hat in his hand,
begging for a few pennies.

I don't care if you've been unemployed for years. Someone out there needs
you.

You're doing them a favor by letting them hire you. The value you bring to that
company‐‐and I don't care if it's behind a fast food counter‐‐is that the
application of your skills and ability to learn makes your employer more money
than you cost.

You equal profit to your employer.

The Pitfall: thinking that social media, by itself is going to magically make you
stand out, get noticed and get hired.

Behind all the wizbang features any social media site offers, you'll find people.

Behind every company, big and small, you'll find people.

Your number one asset when it comes to finding your new job is your ability to
build relationships with people, and work through them to connect to other
people until you find the one who wants what you have to offer.

Your mission is to build your network and build your visibility so others can
see who you are and what you're up to.

Social Media Mindset
Think of a giant cocktail party and you should have an idea of how social medial
works. Different social media sites represent a different atmosphere, but all
social media sites represent gatherings of real people.

As with any party, you can participate in a variety of ways.

• You can hide behind the punch bowl.
• You can talk to the same three people you always talk to.
• You can grab the first person that makes eye‐contact and hijack them as
you talk endlessly (about yourself) for the entire evening.

Or

• You can use the opportunity to connect to many people and enjoy each
conversation by interacting and being interested in what others have to
say.

In case you've missed it, the several other times I've mentioned it, social media
is about people.

This report is not an exhaustive how‐to guide for how to set up all your social
media accounts, where to click. There are plenty of resources to help you learn
all that. This report is a blue print of the activities which you will use to create
a presence online and get yourself in front of, or referred to, the hiring
managers in charge of the job you want.
Job Finding Social Media Blueprint

Create Content
Create profiles on each of the sites listed in this report, check out what others
are doing and start creating your own content. Online activity lets you find
others and let's you be found. Every time you create a profile, a blog, or
comment on someone else's content, you create “virtual real estate” pointing
people at you and the value to bring to the world (or more specifically, an
employer).

Build Your Network
What's the point of networking groups? To build a network. Expanding your
network is a benefit to you and it's a benefit to those in your network. As you
help others gain access to people in your network, they open their network to
you.

When it comes to online activity, don't get hung up on the term “friend.” In the
world of social media, a friend is a contact.

More contacts means a bigger network.

Build Your Brand
Your personal brand is represented by the relationships formed between you
and each person that encounters you.

This means that each person who read your blog, creates their own impression
of who you are and what you're about from that virtual meeting. Before you
start creating content, you may want to take a moment to decide what you
stand for. As you create content, be consistent. Not everyone will like you.
That's just the way it is. Consistency at least keeps you in trust with those who
do.

Your Social Media Properties

LinkedIn.com

One of the things you're really going to love about using LinkedIn.com is the
rich opportunity for networking with people you know, the people they know
and meeting new people from around the world.

When setting up your free LinkedIn account, fill out everything completely.
There are sections that allow you to mention your awards, groups you belong
to and all the stuff that makes you more than a sum total of your work
experience. Filling out this information allows you to be found.

I've been approached by people simply because they were looking for people in
their area with SEO experience and who were also members of Toastmasters.

Another important field in your LinkedIn Profile is the summary field. This big
text box allows you to describe yourself, what you're looking for and give the
person reading your profile a feel for who you are. Use the summary field to
the fullest. Also include links to your VisualCV and other resources to allow
people to join your network. The creates opportunities for referrals by
increasing your own visibility.

LinkedIn is also the home to a large social community. Click the Answers link at
the top of the window and find people asking questions which are in your
areas of interest. Be helpful and answer the questions. This creates more
exposure for you, leaves a trail, strengthens your brand and creates more
opportunities to grow your network.

Finally, use the widgets provided by LinkedIn and share a PowerPoint
presentation explaining the value to can bring to a company that hires you.
Link in your blog too. Doing so will automatically pull your new blog posts into
your LinkedIn content.

Increased visibility, with less effort, is a good thing.
VisualCV.com

Founded in early 2008, VisualCV.com provides a simple way to create, manage
and share multi‐media resumes.

Here's a cool example from venture capitalist and author, Guy Kawasaki.

VisualCV has been adding new social features to improve the ability to share
resources and connections.

Creativity is the real benefit with VisualCV. Instead a mentioning a sales award
you won, you can include a picture of you receiving it at your sales conference.
Don't just talk about your skills as a speaker. Add a video showing you in front
of an audience.

With VisualCV you can make more than one VisualCV (resume) per account so
you can customize them according to the jobs to which you apply. VisualCVs
can be shared openly and even indexed by the search engines or you can make
them private and only people you invite can gain access.

You should make at least one VisualCV public. This puts information about you
on the Internet that you control. When someone Google's your name, they'll
find your VisualCV along with your other online properties.

VisualCV.com is also host to a highly‐detailed guide to creating a great looking
resume called the Insider's Guide to VisualCV. Read it.


Facebook.com

Though you might want to skip Facebook because you think it's just for college
kids, Facebook may actually be your best source of networking with your
professional peers. Today Facebook sports a massive network of nearly 240
million users.

When you log into your account at Facebook.com, the first thing you see is
called the News Feed. This feed is the recent activity of all of your “friends”
connected to your Facebook profile. Similarly, your friends see your recent
activities when they log in as well.

Use this to your advantage. Share pictures of your work. Change your “status”
regularly to let others know what you're up to.

Don't limit your updates to pure work. Just as with “real life,” your friends like
to know you do things other than work. Of course, it may not be supportive to
your aims to share pictures from your last drinking binge or your naked streak
party in college.

Leave comments for your friends too. As they share their lives through the
network, comment on the picture of the homemade Irish Soda bread a friend
made for St Patrick's Day.

As with LinkedIn, you can import your blog into Facebook Notes. Each time
you post a blog, it will be created as a note and will also show up in the news
feed of your friends.

WordPress.com

Blogs are the corner stone of social media. A blog is your prime property for
sharing your life and connecting it to what you love to do.

Create value with your blog. Take what you love to do and share it by writing
articles on your blog. Be conversational and write from the heart.

Here are a few things you can blog about.

• How to information
• Lists of resources
• Round‐ups of other experts in your field
• News items and your take
• The “White Elephant” that others ignore

Your blog reinforces your expertise in your field. Add to it on a regular basis.
One of the most common failures of blogging is to loose interest and stop
posting updates after only a couple of weeks.

Twitter.com

For some (ok, most) Twitter starts out as one of the most confusing
experiences and then becomes an addiction. Messages on Twitter are limited
to a mere 140 characters and as you follow more people, the more activity you
witness.

The key to Twitter is to not treat it like CNN. You don't need to keep up with
every single thing that's going on. Check in, say hi, engage others and move on.
Do this a few times a day and develop an online presence and create new
relationships online.

You can share updates about your other site updates through Twitter as well.
For example, when you update your blog or create a YouTube video, share a
message on Twitter along with the link to the content. Don't expect millions of
hits but as people get to know, like and trust you online, more people will check
out your content and your circle of influence will grow.

YouTube.com

You're probably aware of the fact that YouTube is one of the hottest properties
on the Internet. What you may not be aware of is how darn easy it is to make
your own videos and share them with others.

For equipment, pick up a Flip Video camera. It is the best selling video camera,
costs less than $200 and is dead‐simple to use. After you shoot a video, plug the
camera directly into your computer and upload the video to YouTube.

It really is that simple.

What do you make videos of? Not a boring reading of your resume. Instead
create demonstration videos of you doing what you do best. Create teaching
videos of you imparting your knowledge. This content positions you as an
expert and is also a great way for people to get to know you online.

Follow me online

To get some ideas of the types of content you can create online, follow me on
these sites.

Blog: http://www.davesaunders.net/blog
Facebook: http://www.davesaunders.net/facebook.html
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/davesaunders
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/nemock
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/nemock

More resources: http://www.web20iGoBlog.com


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