StormStaff

The effects of social media over the last year are undeniable and will definitely continue to effect job seeking in 2010. What could that mean for your professional career? As you reflect over 2009, consider your social networking pages and how they point towards your future growth.

Let’s break down the year in numbers and see how the growth of social media can give you insight into job seeking for 2010!

A lesson in opportunity: 1,382%

Twitter grew 1,382% year-over-year in February and hasn’t shown signs of slowing since. Twitter can play a significant role in expanding your job seeking efforts and benefits of having a Twitter account are almost innumerable. How can you use your Twitter account to expand your job seeking opportunities in 2010?

-          Connect and build relationships with other professionals in your industry by retweeting and engaging in conversations.

-          Use your own knowledge to give yourself exposure and credibility. Twitter gives you an opportunity to demonstrate your expertise and share information quick.

-          Remember to edit any spam or remove “bad” followers!

-          Look for job postings on company and individual recruiter’s Twitter pages. At StormStaff, we post our job openings on our Twitter page every hour on the hour. Our followers can get a direct feed of the very latest job openings simply by clicking on our page.

A lesson in privacy: 350 million

Facebook now has more than 350 million active users and 50% of these users log on to Facebook on any given day. As the largest social networking platform, Facebook can definitely help in your job seeking efforts in the upcoming year! With so many active users, it has never been so important to maintain your privacy on the social networking site. How can you maintain your privacy on Facebook?

-          According to Facebook statistics, more than 3.5 billion pieces of content (web links, news stories, blog posts, notes, photo albums, etc.) are shared each week. As a job seeker, you should review your privacy settings and make sure content being placed is not harmful to you.

-          If you choose to keep your Facebook profile public, remember to turn on the privacy options that disable the ability for people to tag you in pictures and videos you may not want on your page.

-          Remember, just because you don’t post anything incriminating doesn’t mean it won’t show up on your page.

A lesson in networking: 50 million

LinkedIn reached 50 million professionals worldwide in October, which translated to roughly one new member per second. LinkedIn is a professional network where individuals can connect and network.  A LinkedIn profile is the ultimate professional networking tool. People use the site to create and manage their online professional identities, reconnect with former colleagues and develop new relationships. How can you use LinkedIn for your job search in 2010?

-          Your LinkedIn account can act as a combination of a resume, cover letter, list of references and a database of your network. Include employment history, education and industry. Review your resume and copy/paste relevant information into your profile.

-          Connect with other members and build your network by using the search features. Browse through alumni groups and former employer groups for possible connections.

-          Use your account to find job openings. Several companies and recruiters post open jobs directly on group pages so consider joining groups for companies and industries of interest and check them regularly.

-          The Answers section of LinkedIn is a good way to showcase your expertise. Respond to questions and ask questions to get valuable feedback from other professionals.