
Joshua Waldman is an entrepreneur and consultant who guides job seekers in their online search for the perfect job. In his book “Job Searching with Social Media for Dummies,” he demonstrates how to harness the power of social media and create the ideal “digital elevator pitch.” He also warns against common mistakes on social networks. Waldman shared his advice during a free career webinar presented by Bentley University’s Alumni Career Services department.
Removing the Link Brick
With the popularity of social networking sites, it’s surprising to learn that most job seekers don’t use these tools to their full potential. As Waldman explains, by way of an embarrassing story about first-time home ownership, people often don’t see what’s right in front of them.
He and his wife thought they had a broken dryer. After dealing with wet clothes, having to hang everything up all around the house, he reluctantly called a repairman. After about a minute, the repairman knew what the problem was.
“To my horror, he removes the lint drawer and peels back a lint brick the size of my boot,” recalls Waldman. “With a look of pity, he hands me the $50 bill for his time, and he leaves me to stew in my humiliation. I missed something so completely obvious. A lot of times, we just miss those things.”
Taking Advantage of Social Media to Get a Job
Waldman goes on to explain that there’s a similar situation going on with people using social networks to find employment. There are many people online using sites like LinkedIn, but most aren’t taking full advantage of all the resources right in front of them.
A few small changes can make a big impact in terms of your career aspirations.
“When you apply what you know around social media in a more holistic and strategic way, you’ll find that you’re separating yourself very easily from the crowd — by just applying a couple of strategies.”
Use #socialmedia strategically to separate from the crowd. @JoshuaWaldman #preparedu #careertips
TWEET THIS
But how do you remove that lint brick?
Here are nine social media mistakes Waldman sees job seekers make regularly. Fix them with some easy strategies and he guarantees that you’ll supercharge your job search.
- Using Only One Social Media Channel
When people think of social media and job-hunting, they usually think of LinkedIn. And they would be right. It’s hugely important to your search. 87 percent of recruiters use LinkedIn, according to a recent survey.
But don’t forget about platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Many people believe that Facebook and Twitter aren’t professional, but employers still use them to find and vet candidates. According to the same survey, about half of recruiters rely on those channels. There’s even evidence showing that Facebook is responsible for 8 million more hires than LinkedIn, says Waldman. And some savvy recruiters are also scouring newer platforms like Snapchat and Vimeo.
Maximize all of your options.
Polish your profile. #Recruiters are addicted to #LinkedIn. @JoshuaWaldman #preparedu #careertips
TWEET THIS
- Having an Inconsistent Personal Brand
As Waldman sees it, personal branding is the key to getting hired. “What happens a lot of times with job seekers is that they hear about LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, even blogging, and they immediately just fill in all the empty spaces and very casually write about themselves,” he shares.
That’s a mistake. It needs to be consistent across all of your social media platforms. It’s very hard to do this correctly when you haven’t taken time to first think about and plan your core message.
Instead, ask yourself what you want your personal brand to be. What do you want someone to remember about you? And interweave that message throughout.
To learn more about branding, follow this advice on how to build a personal brand.
Personal branding is the key to getting hired. @JoshuaWaldman #preparedu #careertips #jobsearch
TWEET THIS
- Leaving an Incomplete Profile
The competition for jobs online is fierce (200 million profiles on LinkedIn, 1 billion users on Facebook and 20 million people on Twitter). Studies have found that recruiters will spend about 3 seconds on a profile in the search results before clicking into it or moving on.
They look for visual cues to find the best matches for their positions. Even if they want to learn more and click into your profile, they’ll only give you another 10-20 seconds.
Make sure all of your profiles are 100 percent complete, clean and professional.
- Using a Job Title as Your Headline
Your current job title may be the default profile headline on LinkedIn, but did you know that you can change it? Add additional keywords and things you want to highlight. Use your branding message discusses earlier.
- Being Unfocused and Rambling in Your Profile Summary
Your summary is often the star of your LinkedIn profile. A bad one can sink your job search before it starts. Waldman suggests being clear and concise.
Follow his 4-question framework, answering each question with at least one sentence. Then combine it into a paragraph. The key is to keep it brief — remember that 20-second time limit!
How to Write a Strong LinkedIn Profile Summary:
- Who Are You? This is about YOU. “I’m a --, specializing in --”.
- What Do You Do? This is about THEM (your target company). What problem do you solve?
- Why Are You the Best? Name one of your biggest successes — the more specific, the better.
- What Do You Want? Discuss what kind of job you want, with a call to action. “I’m looking for --, contact me”.
- Avoiding Additional Tools
You can make your social media profiles much more attractive and dynamic by adding the additional bells and whistles built into them. For example, on LinkedIn you can write blog posts that showcase your expertise or attach your top presentation. Optimize your profiles as much as possible.
- Using an Inappropriate Photo
Never underestimate the importance of your photo on social media. Including a picture with your profile conveys a professional appearance and enhances trust. Using a bad image, a casual one or even none at all could actually hurt your career growth. Invest in a quality headshot from a photographer — it will pull your profiles together.
- Forgetting Your Network
Have a particular company in mind where you want to work? Be proactive and find people (former colleagues, friends, family, acquaintances, classmates, etc.) who work there or know someone who does. Use social media to find new people who work in similar fields. If you’re pursuing a graduate degree, connect with fellow students.
Many organizations reward referrals, which is great for both the job seeker and the person referring them. If someone sends your application to HR, you usually go to the top of the list. Networking is essential, so use all of your networks.
Learn more about the importance of networking and how to go about it in this article on improving your networking efforts.
- Leaving Communications Online
Eventually, of course, these online conversations must move into the physical world. For Waldman, the four most important words you will ever use on social media are: let’s take this offline. Whether it’s for an informational interview or casual networking, suggest a phone call, Skype chat or meeting for a cup of coffee.
Most important thing to say on #socialmedia: “let’s take this offline.” @JoshuaWaldman #preparedu
TWEET THIS
For more of Waldman’s hot tips about harnessing the power of social media in your job search, listen to his recent webinar for Bentley University. And tune in to other informative webinars in Bentley’s Career Speaker Series, sponsored by Alumni Career Services, for more expert career advice.
Julie Stoller is a Boston-based writer who has contributed to Ryan’s Smashing Life, The Depression Army and elsewhere. She publishes a music and creative writing blog at Musings from Boston.