Using Social Media to Find a Job

Be Social

Want to advance your career?  Be social.  MATRIX Director of Western Recruiting Justin Thomason tells you why.  “Companies are investing heavily in social media.  They are using social media to track employee sentiment, position their employment brand, and most importantly, craft their overall talent acquisition strategy.  Technology professionals continue to be some of the hardest to attract and social media has emerged as the best way to find, network, and build relationships with you, the passive candidate.  That’s right, some of the most innovative, technically advanced companies in the world are spending millions to create social media strategies to attract IT talent just like you.

For any technology professional this is great news.  Add a few minutes of your time each week, sprinkle in a little strategy, and you will have a credible, powerful social media presence which empowers great career opportunities to find you.  LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook (they are commonly referred to as the Big 3 in the social media community) all offer unique benefits to building your social media presence.  And in the mind of employers, all three offer unique opportunities to position their employment brand and recruit directly from their targeted demographic.

So what do you do?

Become LinkedIn

Well most of you have taken the first step.  According to a recent survey, roughly 75% of IT professionals have a LinkedIn profile.  That’s a great start.  In addition to employer’s ability to search the LinkedIn network for individual profiles, the majority of leading tech companies now create corporate profiles and corporate sponsored groups.  Simply follow the corporate profile and join the groups of companies you are interested in, and you just drastically increased your visibility to a potential employer.  However, as the saying goes, “Content is King”.  Make sure your LinkedIn profile is relevant, attractive, and searchable.

Follow the Tweets

Twitter is also continuing to advance as a recruitment strategy for leading tech companies.  Developers and corporate recruiters alike are now using Twitter as an image and employment branding strategy.  Without you knowing it, reading tweets about free lunches, free swag, and bring your dog to work days are convincing you that this is a company where you want to work.  And of course, they will tell you about their career opportunities.  If certain companies excite you, follow their recruiters and techies on Twitter to stay abreast of the latest happenings and most critical positions they are trying to fill." 

More Advice from Our Bloggers

How to Optimize LinkedIn for Job Search


I was recently interviewed for an article, How to get the most out of LinkedIn, on MSN/Careerbuilder, that posted earlier this month.  The article is very well written, by Alina Dizik, and I highly recommend it to job seekers, or anyone else wanting to get the most from Linkedin.  Below I have posted her original questions, and my answers, in full, for your reading pleasure.  Enjoy.
http://blog.matrixresources.com/blog/how-optimize-linkedin-job-search

Using Twitter to Find a Job - A Real Life Example


In previous posts I have told you how you can build great relationships via Twitter. Also, Craig Fisher wrote about the "cool kids" that are using Twitter and other social media outlets to network. Now, I want to give you a real example of how Ben McCormack, a new MATRIX consultant, used Twitter to find a job. I spoke with Ben a few days ago, and asked him to walk me through the job-search process he used on Twitter.
http://blog.matrixresources.com/blog/using-twitter-find-job-real-life-example

Wanting to Advance Your Career? Be Social.


How do you ensure life changing career opportunities don’t pass you by?  You could post your resume on Monster or Dice.  But honestly, unless you are unemployed or your project is ending in the coming weeks, who wants to be inundated with hundreds, yes hundreds, of phone calls from recruiters?   A relationship with a local recruiter is still critical, but there is more that you can do to advance your career.  It starts with your professional social media presence.
http://blog.matrixresources.com/blog/wanting-advance-your-career-be-social

Resume and Linked-in Profile Optimization


Do you ever find that submitting your resume to an online application is like dropping it into a black hole?  Maybe your resume isn't getting the attention it should. Your odds of getting an interview go way up when a recruiter or hiring manager can find your resume easily online.  Especially if they can find what they are looking for in it quickly and easily.
http://blog.matrixresources.com/blog/resume-and-linked-in-optimization

What Does Your LinkedIn Profile Say About You?


I have been a proponent and a big fan of LinkedIn (LI) before it became popular. Over the years the LI platform has evolved and improved.  I am still on LinkedIn.com daily,  have met a lot of business contacts there, introduced many great people to other great people, and have also grown my first level connections network to just under 7,000.
http://blog.matrixresources.com/blog/what-does-your-linkedin-profile-say-about-y...

Word Up! Wasssup! Tweetup?


 Twitter and other social media sites are a powerful tool for today's job seekers, but there is no substitute for one-on-one networking. Get out there! Find your local Tweetups (or organize your own) and shake some hands, smile, and put a real face with an avatar.
http://blog.matrixresources.com/blog/word-wasssup-tweetup