Regardless of what career path you are on, knowing social media can greatly enhance your job prospects and your success on the job.
Imagine this scenario:
A company that produces widgets has an opening for an entry-level systems engineer position. Two candidates – Joan and Rose – have identical qualifications except that Joan is active on Twitter and Facebook and has her own blog while Rose only has a Facebook page to connect with her college friends.
The president of the widget company is interested in using social media to attract business for the company’s newest widgets. It could be a real advantage to the company if the president hires Joan with the understanding that, besides during systems engineering work, she will tweet about the new widgets and write occasional blog post about what the company is doing.
Given the competitive job market, it seems very short-sighted to work hard to have good job qualifications and then lose out on a new job because you aren’t social media savvy. And by savvy, I don’t just mean that you read about the uses of social media. I mean that you can demonstrate on the web that you effectively participate on social media.
Now before you jump on to Twitter or start blogging, you should spend some time learning how to use Twitter effectively and deciding what kind of blog you want.
For a step-by-step guide to setting up an effective Twitter profile (which is what people frequently use to decide if they want to follow you on Twitter), you can get my company’s free report at http://www.MillerMosaicPowerof3.com
If you plan to commit to blogging at least three times a week and to growing your blog readership, you should consider a self-hosted blog (for example, using WordPress.org software) rather than a free hosted blog (such as at www.wordpress.com or www.blogger.com).
Bottom line? If you don’t use social media at all or only use MySpace or Facebook to stay in touch with friends, it would be a good idea to invest in your future career by spending time learning about and participating in the top social media sites.
Phyllis Zimbler Miller (@ZimblerMiller on Twitter) has an M.B.A. from The Wharton School and is the co-founder of the social media marketing company Miller Mosaic Power Marketing. Phyllis and her business partner Yael K. Miller are writing a new blog series — “How to Use Social Media to Get Your Dream Job” — at http://ebranding.me/resources/curriculum/mmpm/
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Last Updated: February 11, 2012
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{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
Very nice and informative site, i think a lot of hard work had been done to achieve this, well keep it up, i appreciate it.
Social Media can be use in different manners. However for students it can help alot.
However students should know the right usage of social media. Social Meida is not just for Chating and dating. It can give you alot.
You’re absolutely spot-on!
I too believe that facebook, myspcae, twitter and youtube are not just only for making friends and staying contact with them, but, you can easily build a better career with the help of these social networking sites!
Its always necessary for a company or an individual to grasp the world of Social Media tightly, and make an excelling future in it.
Thanks for the lovely read!
My pleasure friend! Social Media is really helpful for companies.
Social Media has a lot of uses..I think just being aware with all its uses will be very helpful not just for student but for those who wants to excel in whatever field they want to indulge:)nice post….
the information given is definitely good to know. We all need this kind of informative article to know more about social media. Thanks. We all appreciate it
Thank you to everyone who has left such nice comments about my blog post. I do hope this post inspires people to strategically build their online presence.
Also, the third post in the “How to Use Social Media to Get Your Dream Job” blog series came out today — see all three post links at http://budurl.com/dreamjobseries
Regards,
Phyllis
I know people who have got jobs due to their online skills. Some even listed how many followers they had on twitter on their cv.
That’s funny! Listing follower count in a CV! Very funny! I think they are trying to show their popularity.
Kervin –
Actually I think it is a great idea to list the number of your Twitter followers on your resume. This shows you are actively involved and not just “saying” you use Twitter.
Phyllis
With facebook hitting half a billion social sites are the way forward. I like that you let the reader now the he/she needs to be social media savey. Keep up the good work…
Yes this is a great article! I feel students should have best knowledge on social media site. Where they can provide information to any one and share information from others. I fell students are just using social media sites for chatting with friends and uploading images.
I totally agree with this article. Social media is becoming more and more important. Everyone should recognise that.
Thanks again for all these nice comments.
Here’s the link to download a brand-new FREE social media tips booklet with 70 tips from 14 contributors — HOW TO USE SOCIAL MEDIA TO INCREASE YOUR BUSINESS — http://www.millermosaicllc.com/tips-booklet
Hope you enjoy all the great information in this tips booklet!
I will download it for sure!
Yes for them to be aware, be updated and to be able to cooperate with the society itself..