Checking up on your Social Media Presence

In today’s world, social media profiles are part of the first impression you make to a prospective employer about the type of person you are, both in your personal life, and in the workplace.

If you haven’t already, a good practice to follow is to regularly Google search yourself and see what comes up. What posts, likes and associations are viewable to the public, and which ones are set to private? Are they all things you want an employer to see or know about you?

Avoid posting excessive pictures of yourself at parties or handling drinks, and try to post about scholarly studies or articles, or links to your own work that you’re proud of. Make a goal of posting regularly, around twice per week, with a consistent message across all your social media platforms.

Regardless of the social media site, your profile picture is another component to how you’re marketing yourself in your job search. Ideally, your profile picture should be a recent headshot of how you look now, and on a day to day basis. Find a photo that you feel confident in, that showcases your passion, personality or interests.

Twitter’s “Tweet My Jobs” website is an excellent business and job search tool. It offers tutorials on social networking, recruiting, and the power of your virtual connections and contacts. Following companies that you’re interested in working for can also be a great way to discover leads to available job postings and to stay current on what’s important to the company.

Cleaning up your social media presence may seem daunting, but spending 30 minutes each week following these tips can do wonders for your job search. You can also visit an Employment Ontario site, such as Lutherwood, for a critique of your social media profiles or to attend workshops on social media sites.