How Social Media Can Help Your Job Search

Your social media profile is a great way to highlight your job skills, experience, and professionalism in a way that your potential employer will appreciate.  This is also a great way to show a potential employer about the volunteer and community service work that you do.

Your LinkedIn profile is your professional profile. As the go-to network for both job seekers and hiring managers, your top priority should be perfecting your LinkedIn profile.   

1. A picture is helpful.  You want to make sure it’s a professional-looking photo and in a professional setting i.e. not a selfie.

• Your summary should be up to date and feature the experience and skills you want to highlight to get a new position.  It’s simple to update your summary and it should be done consistently, so people know where you are currently in your career and what motivates you to wake up each morning! If you aren’t doing something you enjoy waking up for each morning, make sure your contact information is listed in your summary so recruiters can contact you easily.  A summary that is too wordy, and too full of personal detail is something I would recommend avoiding. Keep it short, sweet, and informative about your expertise.

• Your job history should be current. Maybe you updated it when you created your profile or with your last job/career change, but that was 5-7 years ago, refresh your position history and update your responsibilities.  You can also list projects you’ve worked on, if applicable.  The more details you have about each position and job responsibilities, the better since recruiters and hiring managers often run search for keywords in the job description or responsibilities.

Be smart about your personal profile photos, cover images, and content you’re posting.  Make sure your public profile on these social media outlets is something you’d be okay with your employer seeing. You never know who might be looking at your online presence.

While LinkedIn continues to be the premier social media outlet for career connection and professional profiles, your personal profiles make a difference in your job hunt.  Use these suggestions and you’ll be one step closer to getting hired!