Tweet. Blog. Build an online personal brand. Most professionals seeking work in the digital media landscape have often heard that advice.
As many things are, it’s often easier said than done.
What should I tweet or blog about? How should I shine myself up online for potential employers? What’s the one mistake I shouldn’t make (and have I already made it?!?). All are questions that many marketing students and professionals face in searching for a job.
On Monday, Vitamin IMC hosted its first ever social media panel to discuss the essentials and benefits of using social media to connect to a career in communications. Lucky for our audience, we were bestowed with expert advice from some seasoned pros.
We were fortunate to have Blagica Bottigliero, Emmy-winning blogger and member of the Edelman Digital team, Johnny Schroepfer, Medill IMC student, and Gini Dietrich, founder and CEO of Arment Dietrich, share insights and tips on how to use social media tools to build a personal brand and find a killer job.
“What social media has done is completely flatten out the globe,” said Dietrich, referring to the ability to talk to anyone on Twitter, including CEOs and popular industry figures.
A key point in using social media for the job search is that you get out of it what you put into it. Bottigliero advised that job seekers should put twice as much time into their search as they do studying or with other media such as TV or texting.
Job seekers should also be wary of over-spamming new online contacts or being completely self-promotional.
“The last thing they want to know is all about you,” said Schropefer. “Its about communication and interaction. It’s two ways.”
Key Takeaways…
On building a personal brand:
- Own your own domain name and use your actual name to come up more often in searches.
- Clean up any online information about you that doesn’t look professional (ahem, Facebook party photos from college). And yes, recruiters actually look for unprofessional antics and flag those applicants.
- Go to namechk.com. This site allows you to see where your name is registered on any social media site, and where it isn’t. Make sure you own your name on all relevant sites.
On Twitter:
- Keep interactions relevant. Don’t clog someone’s stream with a surplus of @replies.
- Drive people to your LinkedIn page or website. Twitter isn’t the ultimate answer to connect with people in your job search.
On Blogging:
- Write about what you’re passionate about – people find you valuable if you have a niche and offer information generalists can’t.
- Try not to be negative on your blog; nobody wants to hire someone who complains.
If there’s one thing our audience learned, it was to start the digital conversation now and to make ourselves known to potential employers in an authentic way. Relationships rule. Take the time to research, relate and impress.
As Gini Dietrich told us, “If I receive a resume from someone who has not taken time to connect with my company on social media, I won’t even look at it.”
How’s that for inspiration?
