Quit rejecting social media: Your career may depend on it - Women's Agenda

Quit rejecting social media: Your career may depend on it

If you’re not using social media effectively, you might be missing out on new opportunities for your career, especially when you consider the fact many employers use social networks to source talent while hiring managers are increasingly checking up on social media profiles.

Social media is a set of tools that create conversations, connections and sharing of information. It’s networking on steroids and it’s a serious connector.

It’s about communication and it’s about being social. There are three main reasons social media can help your career:

Reputation. By offering platforms to actively manage and build your reputation.
Positioning. By allowing you to become the go-to source in your niche
Profile. By ensuring you’re easily findable – for the right reasons

Which platform?

There are many platforms to choose from including Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, blogging, Pinterest and Google+. So which are right for you? Don’t feel the need to be on all of them because different social networking sites fill different niches.

If you are new to social media then pick the platform that resonates most with you. Have a think about which is the most popular in your industry. 

Pick one or two platforms and commit to learning them. Set goals on how often you update and interact on them – the more, often the better.

The goal of social media is to create connections, so don’t just use the connections you already have. Figure out who you need to know to land the job or board position and make that connection. Whether it’s by getting them to follow you on Twitter, retweeting their tweets or growing your LinkedIn network.

Make social media work for your career

Pick your name carefully. It won’t do your career much good if your profile name is ‘hotbabe22’. Your profiles need to be your own name.

Actively build your reputation. Reputation is the new currency and it’s all about building trust. So start building your online reputation. Start a YouTube channel offering tips. Write guest articles on blogs your influencers read. Offer free, amazing content on your website or blog. On social networking sites offer helpful information, share interesting links and content, and interact with people. Soon, you’ll hear yourself be talked about as “great to work with,” “very authentic” and “recommended.”

Give people a reason to talk. People won’t share your content if it isn’t useful or interesting. So good content, interesting visuals, and relevant information are critical.

Listen to your excuses. If the first thing that comes to mind when you think social media is “I don’t have time”, recognise that as an excuse. Don’t let “lack of time” be a social media deal breaker. Watch others, start slowly, ask for help, have no fear, find a mentor, use Google to get useful tips and see your end goal – it’s a marathon not a sprint.

And finally: Watch others, start slowly, ask for help, have no fear, find a mentor, use google to get useful tips, see the end goal – it’s a marathon not a sprint.

×

Stay Smart! Get Savvy!

Get Women’s Agenda in your inbox