Last week’s Facebook Friday’s focus was on getting Facebook fired. This week, let’s concentrate on the relationship between Facebook and getting hired.
To begin, I would like to come completely clean and admit that I have looked up potential job applicants’ Facebook profiles. Once in a while I lurk okay? I am not alone; a lot of employers and hiring managers do it. In fact, the results of a recent careerbuilder.com study found that almost half of employers utilize social media sites to assist in the screening of applicants. And of one third of those employers found reasons not to hire a particular applicant. These findings may be initially surprising but when you think of some of the stuff you have seen on Facebook – the party pics, the vicious rants about coworkers and bosses, and the joining of groups such as Drugs and Piss! – it becomes a little more clear as to how a prospective employer might consider it prudent to perform a social media search.
So that is the bad news. The good news, if you choose, you can actually increase your chances of employment through social media sites such as Facebook. How? Here are my top 12 tips to promote yourself on Facebook:
1. If you are unemployed, include in your status updates that you are actively searching for a position.
2. Include a link to your LinkedIn profile under the web addresses section of your profile info.
3. Start a group that reflects the interests shared by both you and your potential employers.
4. Join groups that reflect your career, community, and attitudinal interests.
5. Utilize your profile info section to the fullest. Make sure to write about career, community, and volunteer interests. Do not be afraid to promote yourself.
6. Look for typos and grammatical errors before posting anything.
7. Instead of using Facebook as a platform to complain or whine about issues, make sure your updates express your positive attitude and unique character.
8. Use Facebook as a resource to find events in your area with networking potential
9. Just as your potential employer is searching your profile, why not search for theirs? See if you can find any shared common interests, or if there is a company FB page that you can discuss.
10. If you have a professional blog, post links to your blog entries on Facebook.
11. Post links to industry related articles and news.
12. Instead of posting party pics, post photos of you volunteering, engaging in public speaking and events, spending time with your family, or at least doing something interesting that does not include you holding a beer and cigarette while wearing a wife beater.
Facebook can be a little tricky when trying to balance social, work, and family personas. If you are about to embark on a job search and are a little worried about what your potential employers might find on the net, simply scan through your social media profiles. Remove any potentially hazardous comments, photos, and video links. Remove your tags from other people’s photos. Let your friends know that you are searching (offline if you do not want present employers to know that you are hoping to move up and out) so that they may be a little more reserved in the comments and info that they put on your wall. And lastly, for heaven’s sake, do not write or post anything that might end up on a site like CollegeHumor.com.
photo: www.clynetic.com