Can social media really get you a job?

TWEET YOUR WAY TO A GRADUATE JOB

Don’t underestimate what can be achieved with Twitter — I know several people who have found some really priceless relationships using it, myself included. Anyone can sign up and send 10 random tweets, but the secret is investing time in properly engaging with people in the communities most relevant to your job search.

Be yourself Recruiters are looking for people, so a bit of personality is a good thing. Twitter gives you 140 characters to describe yourself in your profile settings. Also, I recommend using the URL field to link to your LinkedIn profile (see next page). Add a profile picture and a 140 character description of yourself, your experience and what you’re looking for now.

Download Tweetdeck For me Twitter doesn’t quite make sense without it. Tweetdeck breaks down the matrix of tweets into columns so they’re easily understood. People mentioning you, Direct Messaging you and your Favourite Lists can all be separated so the conversation is easily managed.

Engage with your audience Status updates that talk to 100,000,000 people but say nothing don’t add value — whereas finding content that interests other people does. Read NMA, Revolution magazine, Mashable or whatever your trade read is – and Tweet interesting things. Set up searches and RT (retweet) other people’s links. Reply to and comment on people’s posts to gain followers and build a network of listeners.

Use Hashtags to reach new peopleThese make you easier to find for anybody who isn’t already following you. Many users have a column in their Twitter app to find interesting tweets. I have a search ‘#socialmedia’ and ‘#digital’, but also ‘#ukjobs’, ‘#jobs’, ‘#web’ and ‘#SMUK’ might be worth a look. If you then tweet and use a hash tag, people who aren’t yet following you will find your tweets and hopefully pick up on your interesting content.

NEXT: WHY YOU SHOULD GET LINKEDIN – FOR LIFE