How to Use Social Networking to Find a Job

By The Twirlit Team on September 29th, 2009

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We’ve all heard those stories about people who’ve gotten fired over inappropriate (read: just plain stupid) status updates on their Facebook or Twitter accounts — you know, the ones where they admit to smoking pot at work or call their boss a nasty name. Certainly, used as a forum for airing out your grievances or flaunting your lack of a work ethic (not to mention some questionable personal habits), social media can be a career killer (especially if you were silly enough to “friend” your boss). However, like the medium they call home (the Internet), social networking sites can be a powerful tool if used correctly. It’s not quite as easy, but it is entirely possible to network yourself into a job instead of out of one.

Create a Professional Online Profile

The first trick to professional social networking is to create a professional online profile. No more funny nicknames alluding to your promiscuity or your fondness for illegal substances, and no more drunken pics of you at your friend’s bachelorette party. Use your given name and post photos of yourself (and only you) in business attire. Also, make sure that any details included in your profile relate to your professional life and accomplishments.

 Cultivate a Professional Network

The second key to professional social networking is to cultivate a professional network. It might be funny to hear what that burnout from the back of your 10^th-grade math class is doing now, but odds are he isn’t going to help you find a job (unless of course he’s straightened up into a tie-wearing MBA graduate). Limit your “friends” to colleagues, clients, suppliers, and other business contacts — the kind of people who might be looking to hire or could at least recommend you.

 Use Professional Social Networks

Of course, maybe what you really like about Facebook is the opportunity to find out about that 10^th-grade burnout (that’s certainly part of the draw for me!). That’s all well and good, as long as you set your profile to private and keep your colleagues and especially your bosses off your friends list. There are numerous other social networking sites dedicated to more professional ends, so you should explore creating a professional profile on these. LinkedIn is perhaps the best known, but other choices include Ecademy, MEETin.org, and Networking for Professionals. These latter three sites have the added advantage of fostering traditional networking opportunities through various offline initiatives and events.

Don’t shy away from online networking for fear that it will hurt your career. As more and more hiring managers and recruiters look to the Internet as part of their searches, odds are that not having an online profile will soon be just as detrimental as having a bad one. Use social networking sites carefully, and they may just be the ticket to your next great gig.