Social Media Job Search

If you have not checked this out on LinkedIn lately, it is time…

March 9, 2020 By Katherine Burik

I’ve been using social media since the mid-2000s at least.

I can’t remember how I got started, but today I have accounts I use regularly on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.I cobbled together the basic minimum to get started years ago, then barreled ahead with content and conversations. I never really considered whether these social media accounts reflected my personal and professional brand in any sort of consistent fashion. Well, maybe I looked more seriously at my personal LinkedIn profile but that is about it.

It is time to take a step back and consider my brand and the persona I present in these social media platforms.

Our brands are reflected in the content we share, of course, but the social media platforms offer a place to lay out your brand in a purposeful fashion in the About sections. Each platform offers this place to describe yourself, although some have other names for this section. Each platform has different rules for the length. Are you taking advantage of this space?

I looked at six places: LinkedIn personal and company profiles, Facebook personal and company pages, Twitter and Instagram. I was all over the place. This lack of focus and consistency undermines the hard work we put in to establish my personal and professional brand at The Interview Doctor. We must fix this situation!

I started with the LinkedIn personal profile since this is where I spend most of my time. The first three lines of the About section are the most important. These lines will be visible on just about every platform: mobile, desktop, laptop and tablet.

This is the beginning of my profile About section:

Like Don Quixote, I tilt at the job search process so companies and candidates can make a better talent match. Connect with me at Katherine@InterviewDoc.com or 330-495-2337 to improve your odds. I can’t wait to hear your story!

On the plus side, my contact information is visible, along with a bit of personal energy. I am not sure I like the first line though. I thought I was being clever to reflect my personal frustration with the job search process in the opening lines with that reference to Don Quixote. I discovered that this is sort of an inside joke since many (most?) people have no idea what this reference means.

Wouldn’t it be better to open with keywords so people will really know what I do, rather than share my frustration through an obscure reference?

Here is what I came up with:

Your goal is finding a career that gives you a spring in your step. Our goal is helping you make that happen. Stop sending resumes to black holes disguised as job postings. Learn a better way to find that job you love! Connect with me at Katherine@InterviewDoc.com to improve your odds. I can’t wait to hear your story!

I retained the contact information and the personal energy. I replaced Don Quixote with a statement about what I do and how I can help. Plus, it is chocked full of my keywords like “career,” “job,” “resumes,” and “story.” I accomplish two things in one paragraph!

I used this philosophy and approach to update all the places in LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram where I have the opportunity to describe myself and my business. Now they are consistent across the board. Don Quixote is gone, which makes me a little sad, but I strengthened my brand and increased my keywords.

What do you think of these changes?

Have you looked at your About sections in a while to see how you represent yourself, your brand, and your offering? Maybe it’s time!

Learn more about using LinkedIn and other tools to find a job – check out The Interview Doctor’s free training, 5 Tips to Kick off a Successful Job Search or Career Transition.

Do You Want to be Found on LinkedIn?

October 16, 2018 By Marta Goertzen

Put your contact information to work for you in LinkedIn.

Dear Interview Doctor,

My friend and I are having a debate. Do I include my contact information visibly in my LinkedIn profile or only have it listed in the contact section visible to my first level connections? Which is better?

Foggy about Visibility in Cleveland

Dear Foggy,

It depends. Do you want to be found or not?

If you are in a job search or even just want to grow your career, what is the downside to giving recruiters and networkers a way to contact you? Make it easy and people will reach out with opportunities. Make it hard and they will move on to the next person. Your choice.

You are not obligated to share your contact information. Some people are very concerned about their privacy. The default is that your email address and phone number are visible in the Contact section, visible to your first level connections.

There are several places you can put your contact information so it can be visible.

In the body of your LinkedIn Profile Summary. I like to say something like, “Connect with me at Katherine@Interviewdoc.com to continue the conversation.”
In the top of the LinkedIn Profile Summary. Some folks recommend putting it at the top of your summary so your email address can be visible in the first 3 lines of the summary on the mobile app. The first line of the summary could sound like this, “I am passionate about improving the job search process so you can make a better career match. Let’s talk about your career needs at Katherine@Interviewdoc.com.”

Be sure to include your personal website (if you have one), your consulting website, your personal portfolio or other social media sites in your Contact section found in the top section of your LinkedIn profile. Access the edit function by clicking on the little blue pencil in the upper right hand corner of that top section next to your picture.

How do you prefer to share your contact information? Do you share? I would love to hear your opinions on this interesting topic. In the meantime, check out The Interview Doctor’s LinkedIn Tip Sheet for more ideas about how to use LinkedIn to advance your career.

Talent Search Tips for Tech Teams

October 10, 2017 By Marta Goertzen

I love all things “process”.

Life is a wonderful, exciting process with doors opening and closing along the way. I love how adventures unfold by plan and by happenstance.

The Greek term Telesis refers to “progress that is intelligently planned and directed; the attainment of desired ends by the application of intelligent human effort to the means.”
Finding a job is a process (Telesis – get is!) of intelligently planning and directing the desired end of making a great match! You have to put yourself in the path of the folks you want to meet. This is true for both companies and candidates. I keep saying this because the parallels are so obvious to me. No more obvious than in tech these days.

Here is how these ideas came together for me recently.

I read a USA Today article, Ageism is forcing many to look outside Silicon Valley but tech hubs offer little respite”. Tech companies complained it was hard to find workers. Tech employees and job seekers complained it was hard to find a job.

How can there be such a discrepancy? The USA Today article suggests some of this problem is ageism, a preference among tech companies for younger candidates which amounts to a rejection of older candidates. The EEOC is getting into the mix with an investigation of Google for age discrimination.

At the same time, WilsonHCG, a global talent headhunter, published an infographic, “Overcoming the tech talent gap”, that indicates that tech companies need to improve their talent acquisition strategies. They attribute the tech talent problem to poor quality of recruiters and not looking in the right places.

The answer to this complex problem lies in improving the job search process!

Companies: Identify the skills you need then go look for them in as many different packages as you can find them. If your need for talent is real, then seriously consider all candidates.

This requires a competency based sourcing process and an open minded consideration of all qualified candidates. It also requires proactively searching for candidates like headhunters do, not just slapping a job description out there on a job board and hoping that the right talent was thinking about you this morning.

Candidates: Stop hiding. Put yourself in front of companies who are seeking talent like you.

I spent many hours today reviewing LinkedIn profiles while accepting four dozen invitations. I can tell you that most people are not highlighting their knowledge, skills and abilities in a way that attracts attention or even adequately describes strengths. That is a shame. Don’t be that person.

Update your social media profiles to reflect keywords companies search for and to include the competencies that demonstrate you can perform the job you want.

If you are older, especially if you are an older tech worker, the burden is on you to demonstrate to hiring managers that you can fit in with tech savvy young people, that you have the energy to keep up and that your knowledge is relevant. Otherwise you will be disregarded.

Stop complaining and get to work NOW.

Don’t settle for a mediocre career that you don’t want! Check out The Interview Doctor’s LinkedIn Career Advancement Tips to begin optimizing your profile for the modern era. LinkedIn offers many ways to find the ideal job or career for you! Get your FREE copy today.

Are You a Career Dinosaur?

August 29, 2017 By Marta Goertzen

Are you staying ahead of the crowd in your career and your career field?

The other day I had coffee with a friend, Paul, who used to be in recruiting. Now he is VP Sales for a wonderful background check service, PreTrax. I was curious why he left executive search. His story struck me.

Paul said twenty years ago he predicted that artificial intelligence would replace the headhunter so he planned his next career.

Let that sink in a minute.

A couple of things about this statement are startling.

Artificial intelligence will replace the recruiter? Twenty years ago? Wow. I didn’t see that coming. And yet here we are.

This morning in my LinkedIn feed I found this advertisement for a recruiting robot. Paul was right!

Paul correctly predicted that a robot using artificial intelligence (AI) would be able to absorb a job description then go into the Internet to places like LinkedIn to find people whose profiles match the keywords describing the ideal candidate. The AI would screen the candidates then forward to the hiring manager the names and contact information of candidates out in the world who match the criteria, thus eliminating the need for a person to take these steps.

No more headhunter soon. Time to find another gig.

Paul planned his second career because he saw into the future that his present career would disappear. He didn’t wait until Ally the Recruiting Robot delivered the termination notice. Paul is happy, healthy and successful in his new career that he chose in his own timeframe.

We can pull a lot of lessons from this story:

Does your social media profile in LinkedIn and other social media platforms allow you to be found by Ally the Recruiting Robot or a real headhunter looking for someone like you? Are you using the right keywords? Do you even know what those keywords are? If not, get on it right now because the future is here.
Are you thinking about your future? What game changers are coming at you down the road that will impact your career? What are you willing to do about it right now to prepare for the future?

Don’t get caught in a dead end career or in a dead end company. Think realistically about your future. Be prepared for the next step before you have to take it. Utilize all your resources including social media platforms to publicize your strengths.

The Interview Doctor can help you get started. Don’t settle for a mediocre career that you don’t want! LinkedIn offers many ways to find the ideal job or career for you! Get your FREE copy of the LinkedIn Career Advancement Tips and find the perfect career today.

Is an Unclear Career Path Holding Up Your Job Search?

August 1, 2017 By Marta Goertzen

If there are a few careers you are interested in transitioning to from your current career, you will need to choose one.

A headline caught my eye in the Cleveland Plain Dealer, “Getting ready for discharge”. “Laura”, leaving the US Army Reserves and a civilian government job to enter the civilian sector, wanted advice on how to structure her resume if she has three different focus areas.

The author, a long-time employment columnist, advised Laura to prepare three different resumes that each focus on one of the areas. She said, “Strategically tailor the content in the way in which it best supports your candidacy today.”

Yes AND…

I get this kind of question all the time. Many people seeking to transition from one thing to another wonder how to package their background to support their search for a different career. It is fine to have several versions of your resume, each tailored strategically to highlight the accomplishments that support your candidacy.

But what about LinkedIn?

You can get a job without a resume but you cannot get a job without a solid social media profile.

Laura wants to work in logistics, human resources and public relations. How will three different resumes help Laura get a job in any of these unrelated fields if she can only have one LinkedIn profile? How do you create one LinkedIn profile that supports three different career paths?

Imagine the LinkedIn headline: “Logistics | Human Resources | Public Relations”. The viewer will wonder how these three very different areas are related. Which does she prefer? How can I utilize her skills in human resources if she really wants to be in logistics?

Think no one will check her LinkedIn profile? Guess again. Your social media profile must support your professional brand. Otherwise you create confusion if your resume is too different from your LinkedIn profile. Hiring managers pass over confusion seeking someone with clear goals and accomplishments that support the target job.

Unfortunately no one will help Laura (or you) decide which path to take. I am not saying that one cannot change careers. Only that if you want to change careers you must describe your past experience in terms that make sense for your new career.

If Laura wants Human Resources, then she must describe all her military and civilian government experience in terms that a Human Resource leader will understand. Want logistics? Then describe her background in terms that a Logistics leader will understand. Otherwise it makes no sense to the hiring manager.

Laura has to pick something. At least narrow it down. This starts with research. To understand what these jobs are like, ask people who actually do those jobs. These conversations will either propel Laura towards one field or have her running screaming away from another.

With clear career goals focused around an understandable career path, Laura can craft a resume and social media (LinkedIn) profile that supports her career goals. THEN she can get the job she wants.

If you are struggling to structure your job search materials (resume or LinkedIn) to support your career goals, check out The Interview Doctor’s How to Avoid the Top Five Resume Mistakes.