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Showing posts with label Social Networking. Show all posts

Networking Resurrection: Time to Reconnect

The Myth of the Social Media Sabbatical

So you took a break from social media because you believed it was draining your life energy. Noble? Maybe. Effective? Hardly. The idea that disappearing from social platforms will magically restore your mental clarity is laughable. Your absence didn't pause reality. While you stepped away, life kept happening, people kept advancing, and conversations continued without you. And guess what? Your competition didn't sleep either. They're still connecting, building, and taking the opportunities you politely declined. The harsh truth is you didn't regain your energy; you just lost your momentum.

Events Aren't Dead, Your Strategy Is

Networking events aren't pointless; your strategy probably is. I get it. Awkward handshakes, shallow small talk, and bad coffee seem like punishment, not opportunities. But the truth is, you're just doing it wrong. Networking isn't about exchanging pleasantries or collecting business cards you'll toss later. It's about strategic engagement. Show up prepared. Know exactly who you want to meet and precisely why they should care about meeting you. Ditch the generic elevator pitch. Replace it with something real. Ask meaningful questions. Make the conversation memorable. Master this, and you won't dread events—you'll dominate them.

Social Media: A Game You're Losing by Default

If you're still treating social media as optional, you're actively choosing irrelevance. Social platforms aren't about vanity metrics; they're battlefields for attention and influence. They're arenas where your voice matters, your ideas spread, and your reputation builds. Ignore this at your peril. Every moment you're not present, someone else is occupying your potential space. Stop being invisible. Start participating intentionally. Post regularly, comment insightfully, engage genuinely. Your visibility isn't optional anymore; it's mandatory. Embrace the game or keep sitting on the bench, wondering why opportunities keep passing you by.

The Power Move: Reconnect and Reinvent

Reconnecting isn't admitting defeat; it's a strategic comeback. It takes courage and strength to re-engage with platforms and people you've neglected. Own your absence without apology. Then shift the narrative. You're not just returning; you're reinventing. Clarify who you are now, what you're about today, and why it matters. Make your reintroduction compelling and impossible to ignore. People love a comeback story, especially when it's bold and purposeful. Reclaim your narrative, restart your momentum, and reestablish your dominance. Remember, your future won't wait until you're comfortable. It's happening right now.

Become a Twitter Power User to Enhance Your Brand | Personal Branding Blog - Dan Schawbel

With the many benefits of Twitter, it’s no wonder so many people are using it as part of their personal branding strategy. Not only can you market yourself and your expertise, but also you can connect with others you may have never had an opportunity to meet to in real life.

Although you probably already have an account (if you don’t, sign up for one at www.twitter.com), are you considered a “power user?”

Zappos Booms with the Help of Social Media | Brand-Yourself.com Blog

Social media is a powerful weapon for everyone, people and businesses alike. Though some use it to the point of their eventual demise, others put it to work to create the ultimate brand. Zappos has been the picture of perfection for years now. With happy customers and happy, motivated employees, they’re clearly doing something right.

Head of the Pack

Zappos was one of the first companies to create a Twitter aggregation page, which pulls up any mention of the company in this one place. There are tons of new mentions daily, and hardly any seem to be negative. The CEO, Tony Hsieh, realized that to create a brand in this day and age, you can’t merely advertise on TV and get by solely on word of mouth. You need to accept the modern times, embrace them, and use them to your advantage. Anyone can blog about your company or take to their Twitter about their reactions to your brand, putting their personal opinions out there for the world to see. Zappos’ CEO says the company is very active on Twitter to allow followers and customers to get an inside look into the company’s culture. They truly strive to make connections with people, rather than merely promote, promote, promote.

Movie Stars

Zappos has mastered the idea of being social via social media. As a company, they not only keep their customers informed and happy, but they take the time to have some fun. Seriously, working for Zappos must be one of the most fun, coolest jobs. Have you seen their YouTube channel? It’s full of random videos of hilarity. Not only do they update regularly—they clearly have a lot of fun making these videos and making a good, lively name for Zappos—but they incorporate current trends in the media and entertainment, and make goofy videos with “tips” for work and everyday life. Their videos can really make anyone want to be part of that enthusiastic group!

It’s All About the Interactions

Tony and the rest of the Zappos crew realize actual human interaction is really important to running a successful business. The whole point of social media is to be social, so Zappos gets an A for their repeated and numerous attempts to really connect with their customers. They encourage people to write about them, good and bad, as long as it’s constructive and honest. They’re now offering tours of the Las Vegas headquarters, attracting college students and business owners alike. With contests like the free clothes giveaway for registering and starting up random conversations about anything in their Facebook fan page, their interactive spirit draws more and more loyal followers to the company daily.

Zappos Gets an A in Social Media

Everyone could learn a thing or two from Zappos’ social media interactions and campaigns. In a variety of mediums, the company comes across as personable, fun and really happy. Their main focus is their customers, interacting with them and keeping them satisfied. Besides all the social media basics, all the employees thoroughly enjoy what they do. They like interacting on social media, they have fun talking to and helping customers, and they love providing some entertainment in their Facebook fan page and YouTube channel. All in all, Zappos is a company of pros when it comes to social media, and everyone can take a page from their book.

via blog.brand-yourself.com

Posted via email from AndyWergedal

Zappos Booms with the Help of Social Media | Brand-Yourself.com Blog

Head of the Pack

Movie Stars

It’s All About the Interactions

Zappos Gets an A in Social Media

via blog.brand-yourself.com

Posted via email from AndyWergedal

Social Networking for Executives - Secrets of the Job Hunt Career Podcast

Social networking has become deeply rooted in the vast majority of everyday life. People use it for entertainment, communication and now increasingly more for work. Yet, there are many people who don’t want to either invest the time or don’t know how to set up profiles and use these different sites. It is not a passing fad that will be gone in a few months—it’s here to stay, so why not make the most of it?

Initially it may seem absurd, but social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook are actually an ideal way to take the employee screening process a step forward. It is a way to get a glimpse into the lives of employee’s or potential employee’s lives. These personal pages are often rife with information. Just note that employers using social networking sites as a screening tool must be cautious. This technique is fairly new, and the legal issues surrounding it are evolving slowly. Until the legal rules regarding this practice are solidified, it is definitely always wise to err on the side of caution.

To stay legal while using networking sites and personal blogs for screening, it is mandatory that the business stay in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act, or FCRA. This act does not prohibit this type of screening, but is does require the employer to disclose to the employee or potential employee when information gathering using this method results in a negative employment decision.

Creating a set of company rules regarding social network screening is also very necessary. It will give those with the power to hire and fire something concrete to go by. If not, it will be very hard to keep all actions legal. It is also highly recommended that this person not be the one doing the research. This information needs to be gathered, and any non relevant data should be censored, as is does not pertain to the business. These words of caution should not be a deterrent from using this method. As long as the employer stays smart about it, social network screening is an invaluable tool.

Social networking can also be used to create an online presence for a company. It is not an uncommon practice for businesses to have their own page on popular networking sites. Blogs and Vlogs (video blogs) are also very common. It is a great way to communicate with Internet savvy customers. As this customer base is likely online as much as possible, an easy way to interject your business into their lives is through what they love: social activities on the Internet.

Use social sites such as MySpace to create a page for your business. It is a great promotional tool. Give your customers, both current and potential, an inside glimpse into your business’ world. Let them meet the people behind the scenes. Done correctly, this technique will bring a contemporary vibe to your company. Drive customers to your site offering promotions to those who choose to be your online “friend.” It creates a type of personal relationship with the customer. Into day’s market, an online presence is expected.

via secretsofthejobhunt.com

Posted via email from AndyWergedal

Open Networking: What’s Your Verdict? | Career Rocketeer - Career Search and Personal Branding Blog

When I joined LinkedIn during my job search, I did not yet have a large network of first-degree or second-degree contacts within my chosen industry and found it very challenging to reach any potential career stakeholders. I turned to open networking as sort of an experiment to see how it would serve me in my job search efforts by joining a couple LinkedIn groups for LIONs (a.k.a. LinkedIn Open Networkers).

As I gained more first-degree contacts, I gained more messaging access to them and their connections. As a result, I was able to set up a number of informational interviews, one of which led to an official interview and later the job offer for my current employment.

Therefore, I am very much a supporter of open networking; however, I realize that like all things, there are two sides which I believe should both be heard and considered.

To get the discussion going, I have reached out to several thought leaders to share their arguments for and against open networking.

FOR OPEN NETWORKING:

“As an ardent proponent of "Open Networking," I encourage it constantly in my work with clients and companies. According to research by Mark Granovetter cited in Herminia Ibarra's excellent book "Working Identity" (page 120), over 80% of job leads come from people outside of our key contact list (the numbers are 17% from strong ties, 55% from weak ties and 28% from weakest ties). By the use of Open Networking, the LinkedIn individual increases the opportunity for serendipity. I recently had a client who, through keeping his network open, made contact with a previously unknown individual in Washington State who was able to connect him with an employment opportunity he had discovered in Northeast Philadelphia. He had NO idea of who this person was, yet through LinkedIn was able to identify that this person had a strong connection to a position he had found here on the East Coast!” - Barry Davis

“I advise job seekers to become open networkers on LinkedIn because it increases their reach across the site. Without many connections, job seekers are limited to using InMail or group messages to contact other LinkedIn members in reference to their job searches. Open networking allows job hunters to reach out to recruiters and hiring managers to find out about openings or to follow up on posted positions. As a LinkedIn member, I had a person who was my first level connection ask me to forward a note to a hiring manager who was a connection of mine. I didn’t personally know the person who requested the favor, but I passed on the note without having to give a personal endorsement of the person. Most LinkedIn members are willing to help. As long as people reciprocate and are willing to help each other, being an open networker can benefit everyone.” - Cheryl Palmer

“I am an executive recruiter in Manhattan, and have been one for close to seven years. I have been using LinkedIn since July 2007. As of this moment, I have just shy of 10,000 contacts. I would guess that of those 10,000, I am personally acquainted with 100. The rest are perfect strangers. However, LinkedIn is my primary source for announcing job openings. It has never failed me. Period. End of discussion. I find candidates through LinkedIn. I have placed people who I have found through LinkedIn. There are, to the best of my knowledge, no downsides to using LinkedIn as an open networker. Some people have raised concerns. The first seems to be that as an open networker, you are associating yourself with strangers. My response is that everyone knows that the vast majority of contacts are strangers. You will not be held responsible for your contacts. That said, if a contact has a strange picture I will look at his or her profile and decide whether or not to keep them. I am looking for highly professional individuals. By definition, “highly professional individuals” do not post provocative photos or content on their profiles. So the people I delete are not the people who I would ever want as candidates.” - Bruce Hurwitz

AGAINST OPEN NETWORKING:

"Being a LinkedIn Open Networker is not a good idea. Why? Because who you publicly allow into your network reflects back on who you are. What does it say about you if you are linked to someone who posts inappropriate status updates? Who has conducted themselves in a "manner unbecoming" in the workplace? Who has been at the heart of a scandal of any sort? It does not say good things to a potential employer! In fact, I would think it would lead a recruiter to question your judgment. One of your top priorities during a job hunt should be to protect and put forth a positive, professional persona online and connecting with "just anyone" can easily throw that off-track. I'm not saying you need to have met, in person, everyone you connect with; however, you should have some knowledge of who they are, what they do, their reputation, etc.” - Robin Ferrier

“If every LinkedIn user connected indiscriminately, the system would completely stop working, and people would abandon the platform. Can you think of any positive reason that people would check into a system where millions of people "connected" to thousands of other people that they had no relationship with? (and "connect" in this fashion is not the same as a twitter connection - they are separate platforms)” - Steve Tylock

“The problem of being a Linkedin Open Networker is not the practice of encouraging connections that are unfamiliar. It is the unstructured nature of your resulting contacts and their lack of usefulness to your most important connections. The bell curve of members on LinkedIn is skewed toward service providers. As a LION, your connections will emulate that demographic and anyone who is connected to you will have their search results diluted by your unwieldy connections. This may result in your most important connections considering the removal of your profile as a direct connection. I am a proponent of being a LIHON, A Linkedin Handpicked Open Networker or a member that uses the ability to send messages for free to group members to handpick the most powerful connections, with or without a direct business experience. This will enhance the power of your profile and increase your credibility as a valuable Linkedin member.” - Brian Callahan

“Personally, the whole concept of “open networking” is something I oppose. Now don’t get me wrong, every once in a while I will make a LinkedIn connection with someone outside of my network, but usually that’s done with a specific purpose and within a relevant context for the person whom I’m reaching out to. The more people you add to your network – whether it’s LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter – the less attention you can focus on building relationships with each person in your network. I’m a believer that less is more. Rather than have thousands of meaningless connections, have a stronger, smaller network that knows you and will go to bat for you.” - Mario Schulzke

What are your thoughts? Are you for or against open networking? Why?

Has it hurt you or helped you?

Tell us your verdict!

Author:

Chris Perry, MBA is a Gen Y brand and marketing "generator," a career search and personal branding expert and the founder of Career Rocketeer and Launchpad.

via careerrocketeer.com

Posted via web from AndyWergedal

Using Social Networks to Job Hunt - Career advice blog - Position Ignition - taking you to the next step in your career

It’s a nice idea: getting a new job, or at least an interview, from the comfort of your own home by using Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. In reality, it’s not as simple as it seems and there are a few things to bear in mind if you’re going to make social networking sites part of your job search. Here are five tips for getting a new job through social networking.

1) Review your online reputation

It’s all very well planning to woo potential new employers and contacts through your tweets, Facebook updates and LinkedIn recommendations, but don’t forget that employers can see all your status updates, photos, videos and groups. Unless you lock your social networking profiles, potential employers can view them even if you don’t initially contact them through Facebook or Twitter. All they have to do is Google your name and some of the first results that come up will be for your profiles on LinkedIn and other such sites. So if you want a new job, it’s time to remove the inappropriate Facebook pictures and to stop using Twitter to moan about your current employer. Even if you don’t want a new job right this minute, it’s worth changing your online habits anyway if you a) will potentially be job hunting in the future and b) your current employer wouldn’t be impressed if they checked your Facebook page as it is now. That said, it’s just as possible to make a positive impression online as it is to leave a negative one. If you’re looking for a new job in tourism because you’re interested in travel & culture, make sure you actually list these as your interests so potential employers can see why you’d be suited to the industry.

2) Know where to look

As open and accessible as social networking sites are, potential employers aren’t going to come flocking to you just because you tweet, “I’m looking for a job in tourism, please contact me if you can help”. You’ll have to find them, because it’s unlikely that they’ll find you. Twitter has various types of applications that can help you seek out potential employers and useful contacts. Directories such as Twellow can help you find people in your chosen field; keyword trackers like Monitter can identify who’s using phrases specific to your industry; and you can use apps such as Twitscoop to track trends and events related to your desired job. On both Facebook and LinkedIn you can join groups discussing your career interests, with the latter also having a Q&A function where you ask and answer the questions that will draw you into a network of potentially useful contacts.

3) Communicate with the relevant players

Once you’ve found contacts that could be useful to you, don’t just ask them if they know of any vacancies going and then leave it at that. It’s important to build up an online relationship with the relevant players so that even if they don’t know of anything that would suit you straight away, they’ll remember you if something comes up further down the line. By all means speak with them about your job search, your skills and your industry of choice; just make sure not to make it all about you. What makes a relationship, both offline and online, is the mutual understanding that it’s about give and take. Reply to your contacts’ tweets asking for help and contribute to the discussions they start. Not only does it show that you’re willing to give, but it also showcases your expert knowledge of their particular industry or field.

4) Be willing to learn

Although it is important to show that you have both interest in and knowledge of your chosen industry, it’s also important to demonstrate your willingness to learn and to build up your skills. Ask industry players for advice about your job search, use group discussions to clarify points you’re uncertain of, and listen in on others’ conversations and discussions. You can also use social networking to build up your experience and skill set offline. Even if you ask someone if they know of any paid positions coming up and they don’t, you can press them for information on volunteering or work experience opportunities. If you’ve actually set out to gain some voluntary work experience before looking for a paid job, connect with the voluntary sector experts that can sort you out with opportunities suited to your desired career path.

5) Don’t limit yourself

As useful as social networking is in getting a new job, don’t rely on it as your only method of networking and job hunting. Integrate it with both offline and other online strategies such as looking at relevant companies’ websites, attending industry events and using your existing contacts. At Position Ignition we have a variety of ideas for making your job search work for you, so feel free to contact us, be it through Twitter, LinkedIn or a more conventional method!

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For more information or help with your career challenges contact: enquiries@positionignition.com

Position Ignition Career Blog: www.positionignition.com/blog

via positionignition.com

Posted via web from AndyWergedal

An Author’s Plan for Social Media Efforts

Here’s a freebie: if I were an author looking to get the most out of the social web (and I am), I’d do something along the lines of what I’m about to share. Your mileage may vary, but here’s a decent approximation of the things I’d do. Please feel free to share liberally. Just link back to An Author’s Plan for Social Media Efforts, please.

An Author’s Plan for Social Media

Set up a URL for the book, and/or maybe one for your name. Need help finding a URL? I use Ajaxwhois.com for simple effort in searching.
Set up a blog. If you want it free and super fast, WordPress or Tumblr. I’d recommend getting hosting like Bloghost.me.
On the blog, write about interesting things that pertain to the book, but don’t just promote the book over and over again. In fact, blow people away by promoting their blogs and their books, if they’re related a bit.
Start an email newsletter. It’s amazing how much MORE responsive email lists are than any other online medium.
Have a blog post that’s a list of all the places one might buy your book. I did this for both Trust Agents and building blocks.)
Consider recording a video trailer for your book. Here’s one from Scott Sigler (YouTube), for his horror thriller, Contagious.
Build a Facebook fan page for the book or for bonus points, build one around the topic the book covers, and only lightly promote the book via the page.
Join Twitter under your name, not your book’s name, and use Twitter Search to find people who talk about the subjects your book covers.
When people talk about your book, good or bad, thank them with a reply. Connect to people frequently. It’s amazing how many authors I rave about on Twitter and how few actually respond. Mind you, the BIGGEST authors always respond (paradox?)
Use Google Blogsearch and Alltop to find the people who’d likely write about the subject matter your book covers. Get commenting on their blog posts but NOT mentioning your book. Get to know them. Leave USEFUL comments, with no blatant URL back to your book.
Work with your publisher for a blogger outreach project. See if you can do a giveaway project with a few bloggers (here’s a book giveaway project I did for Donald Miller’s A Million Miles in a Thousand Years book).
Offer to write guest posts on blogs that make sense as places where potential buyers might be. Do everything you can to make the post match the content of the person’s site and not your goals. But do link to your book.
Ask around for radio or TV contacts via the social web and LinkedIn. You never know.
Come up with interesting reasons to get people to buy bulk orders. If you’re a speaker, waive your fee (or part of it) in exchange for sales of hundreds of books. (And spread those purchases around to more than one bookselling company.) In those giveaways, do something to promote links back to your site and/or your post. Giveaways are one time: Google Juice is much longer lasting.
Whenever someone writes a review on their blog, thank them with a comment, and maybe 1 tweet, but don’t drown them in tweets pointing people to the review. It just never comes off as useful.
Ask gently for Amazon and other distribution site reviews. They certainly do help the buying process. And don’t ask often.
Do everything you can to be gracious and thankful to your readers. Your audience is so much more important than you in this equation, as there are more of them than there are of you.
Start showing up at face to face events, where it makes sense, including tweetups. If there’s not a local tweetup, start one.
And with all things, treat people like you’d want them to treat your parents (provided you had a great relationship with at least one of them).

This sounds like a lot of steps. It is. But this is how people are finding success. Should this be the publicist’s job? Not even a little bit. The publicist has his or her own methodology. The author will always be the best advocate for his or her own work. Never put your marketing success in the hands of someone else. Always bring your best efforts into the mix and you’ll find your best reward on your time and effort.

You might have found other ways to be successful with various online and social media tools. By all means, please share with us here. What’s your experience been with promoting your work using the social web?

Chris Brogan is the New York Times bestselling author of the NEW book, Social Media 101. He is president of New Marketing Labs, LLC, and blogs at [chrisbrogan.com].

via chrisbrogan.com

Posted via web from AndyWergedal

The Facebook Blog

It’s always best to get some news straight from the horse mouth. The information may not be unbiased, but it is relevant because you get to hear it first on the official Facebook blog. The blog archive is categorized around topics. Right on top, Facebook Fairytales is a fun read.

Facebook Help Center

Lately, the web has been full of chatter on Facebook’s new privacy controls. The Help Center is the best place to find out what’s it all about and how to apply it for your profile. There’s a full page on Facebook security. As is normal, when we sign up, the help section gets a visit only if there is a snag somewhere. But in this case, looking at help before you have to shout for it is worthwhile.

Facebook Developers

Get the breaking news here. The information coming out of the Developer news is a bit geeky, but you get to hear about everything that’s happening on the Facebook platform. The page has a few more sections like the Platform Live Status page which is like an update board on errors and cures. The Forum is the discussion board on Facebook apps and plugins. Showcase is the virtual display of how third party sites are implementing Facebook plugins.

Inside Facebook

Inside Facebook takes a specialized look at the Facebook platform and how it is relevant for developers and marketers. It is a niche site for those interested in innovative ways to use social media. The site came up in 2006, so it also has grown up with Facebook (Facebook was launched in 2004). The site gives you reports, metrics, and insights, on how marketers and social entrepreneurs are ‘exploiting’ Facebook. Two its sections – Inside Social Games and App Data catch the trends of games and applications on Facebook (and other social media). Some sections and downloads are open to paid subscribers only.

Did you know that there is an upcoming Facebook service called ‘Questions’? It could be potentially useful. Read about it here – “Facebook Questions” Tapping Into Friends’ Opinions, May be More Fun than Intellectual

Also see more of it here.

Mashable

Mashable is one of the top most social media digests on the web. Among all its other knowledgebase, you will find the Facebook Guide Book. It is as described, a hub of Mashable pages that help you master Facebook. From basic topics for the newbie to more advanced ones for specialized uses, you get it all.

Check out how to send a real gift on Facebook.

All Facebook

All Facebook is an independent blog that is in no way affiliated to Facebook. The blog discusses new applications, general news, and events that happen around Facebook. The only problem I could see with this blog was that I couldn’t find a way to dig into the archives. Except use the search box, maybe.

Searching for some tips, I found How To Develop A Facebook Page That Attracts Millions of Fans

Facebook Login

Again this is a blog that concentrates on Facebook how-tos and news. The blog pages are filed under categories on applications, games, help, tools, tricks, and a few more.

Reclaim Privacy

With all the talk of changes in Facebook’s privacy settings and the firestorm it’s generating, this little easy to use bookmarklet is handy. You can check the level of your privacy settings in three easy steps. The scan reveals the settings which are better off being private rather than public. The scanner will roll out in a couple of weeks time, after an update for Facebook’s new privacy controls. The site could do with a visit if you are concerned about privacy policies on Facebook.

Digg

Why not? It gives me one of the easiest ways to spot the most popular Facebook pages on the web. Search with a Facebook keyword and you get a complete list throw Digg’s filter at. Browsing through the ‘Most Dugg’ Facebook posts, I came across – How to Suck at Facebook – The Oatmeal

MakeUseOf

At the risk of blowing our own trumpet, let me just point out that we have 100+ articles on Facebook. Some of the popular must reads include

And we have a dedicated fan page on Facebook to keep you in the know of what’s trending on our site with articles and giveaways.

The Facebook grapevine does not end here, of course. You can find Facebook news and views in many other media outlets. Take Twitter for real time news. Try a Google Blog Search to see who’s publishing opinion on Facebook. Online newspaper sites like NY Times and Reuters are chock-a-block with Facebook news.

The information glut is overwhelming, isn’t it? Let us know how alert you are about news and alerts about the site where you have parked your social profile.

Image credit: Geek and Poke

via makeuseof.com

Posted via web from AndyWergedal

Chris Perry: 10 Twitter Job Search Don’ts | Brand-Yourself.com Blog

If you search for tips on using Twitter in your job hunt, you will come across a lot of great resources for using this social medium and the plethora of complimentary tools and applications available to create your personal brand and connect with potential employers.

However, while there is a lot of information out there about what you can do on Twitter to advance yourself and your job search, I think it is important to be reminded of what not to do on Twitter, for it doesn’t take much to undo everything you have worked so hard to build.

Here are some Twitter tips from veteran Tweeters for what not to do in your job search and personal branding efforts:

DON’T post anything online that you wouldn’t be happy to show a prospective employer. Many recruiters and managers actively use Twitter and other social media to tune into the buzz and monitor what people think about their company. There was a well-known case where someone interviewed for Cisco and then tweeted about how boring the job would be, and had a tweet back from someone at Cisco saying they were sure that their interviewer would be interested to hear that. This went global very quickly due to the viral nature of Twitter. - Claire Chapman, UKSocialMediaCoach.co.uk

DON’T forget to be sure your Twitter activity matches and validates your brand. Tweet about industry happenings, link to relevant blog posts, comment on recent events. - Laurie Berenson, SterlingCareerConcepts.com

DON’T mix business with pleasure. If you’re using Twitter to brand yourself in the market for a particular industry, then stick to updates about that and don’t add in unnecessary and extraneous information about your Saturday night exploits or celebrity crushes. If absolutely necessary, get two separate accounts! Add news and valuable information about your particular industry or expertise, you want to be ‘known’ for a particular expertise not the jack of all trades and master of jack! - Erica Moore-Burton, SpecialCounsel.com

DON’T forget to leverage your Twitter profile as a personal branding tool to differentiate yourself from other candidates and professionals. At a minimum, include a personal, yet professional photo of YOU, compose a 160-word bio that effectively summarizes your brand, titles, etc. and link out to whatever site, blog or profile best represents you and the value you offer. If you can, create and upload a custom Twitter profile background with more contact info and links included so to advance your brand to the next level on Twitter. - Chris Perry, CareerRocketeer.com

DON’T be boring. We all know not to post photos of ourselves doing body shots on the internet, but too many people take things too far in the other direction. If your Twitter feed is too professional and inoffensive, it’ll be lost. Put enough of yourself into it to keep things interesting and human. Think of it like adding spice to a soup: too much will spoil it, but none at all is just as bad. – Sierra Black, ChildWild.com

DON’T tweet anything political. Yes, I know, this is a free country, but if your soon-to-be manager does not agree with your strong political views, it is his or her “American Right” to pass on your resume. Yikes! - Ashley Money, Sapphire.com

DON’T be scared to toot your own horn occasionally (ex. Just finished my XYZ training and earned new certification). - Susan Whitcomb, TheAcademies.com

DON’T fabricate a title on Twitter even for a job you had several years back. While new employers are limited in what they can ask a previous employer, your title, salary, length of stay, and eligibility for rehire are all fair game. The last thing you want to do is stretch the truth in a public domain. - Debra Yergen, CreatingJobSecurity.com

DON’T direct message companies asking if they are hiring. An @reply saying you are now following them and they have unique sounding job opportunities is a better route. Don’t say “I need a job” or “I wish @company would hire me”. - Pam van Hylckama Vlieg, Bookalicio.us

DON’T listen to all the naysayers. Add an auto responder that links back to your portfolio, website, blog, or profile. This is a forever ongoing debate, because a lot of people deem auto-responders to be wrong. However, they do work. Think about it, if someone is following you because they find you interesting, don’t you think they might be interested to find out where else they can find you and/or your best work? Would you give up the chance to be able to talk to all your followers easily without wasting time by individually contacting them one by one? No you wouldn’t. And on top of that, you get to actually socialize with your more shy followers, because you are initiating the conversation with the auto-responder. Anyone who finds you interesting on Twitter will be glad to find a place where they can see what you’re all about, and whether they can work with you or not. - Arsene Hodali, DanceProof.com

Thank you to all of the experts who contributed to this wealth of Twitter insight!

Are there any other Twitter job search don’ts that you would recommend?

Chris Perry, MBA is a Gen Y brand and marketing “generator,” a career search and personal branding expert and the founder of Career Rocketeer and Launchpad.

via blog.brand-yourself.com

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Facebook beefs up privacy with three big changes | Social Media | Macworld

Facing a fierce public backlash over privacy issues, Facebook worked to reverse its tarnished image Wednesday by offering three big changes to how users can manage their privacy. At a press event, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that his company would “simplify” privacy controls starting with a redesigned privacy settings page.

“We’ve focused on three things: a single control for your content, more powerful controls for your basic information and an easy control to turn off all applications,” he wrote on the official Facebook blog.

These new controls, outlined below, will be rolled out to users starting Wednesday, but will take possibly weeks for all users to see them, according to Zuckerberg.

One simple control

Facebook is introducing a new privacy settings page to allow users to more easily control who sees the content you post. Using this setting, Zuckerberg calls “one simple control,” you’ll be able to set the content you create on your Facebook page to either everyone, friends of your friends or just your friends. Sharing of your content will also apply to Facebook products launched in the future—eliminating the need to set new rules to different types of new content, services, or features introduced at a later date.

Facebook says this revamped privacy settings page will help its users take control over how they share their personal information.

Keeping info private

The second privacy update outlined Wednesday is one that gives users a better handle on what basic information you share with the larger Facebook community. One big difference is you’ll be able to block people from seeing your Facebook page and your friends’ pages. However, Zuckerberg pointed out: “We recommend that you make these settings open to everyone. Otherwise, people you know may not be able to find you and that will make the site less useful for you.”

These controls will be accessible via a Basic Directory Information in the privacy page settings area.

Third-party privacy, please

Facebook says it is also making it easier for you to close off access from third-party applications (such as games) and Websites to your private information. Zuckerberg said that Facebook has added “an easy way to turn off Platform completely. This will make sure that none of your information is shared with applications or websites.”

Controls over third-party access to your private information also extends to Facebook’s controversial “Instant Personalization” option.” Already, partner sites can only see things you’ve made visible to everyone. But if you want to prevent them from even seeing that, you can now easily turn off instant personalization completely,” Zuckerberg said.

If you simply want to turn off instant personalization, we’ve also made that easier. Already, partner sites can only see things you’ve made visible to everyone. But if you want to prevent them from even seeing that, you can now easily turn off instant personalization completely.

Zuckerberg assures that these privacy changes are here to stay.

“If you find these changes helpful, then we plan to keep this privacy framework for a long time. That means you won’t need to worry about changes. (Believe me, we’re probably happier about this than you are.),” Zuckerberg said.

As much as these changes put more Privacy controls into the hands of users, it’s hard to say if it will quiet privacy activists and angry Facebook users. Many have asked that Facebook require users to opt-in to data sharing relationships as opposed to opting-out.

via macworld.com

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Taking Advantages of Social Media in Your Job Hunt | EmploymentDigest.net

Have you ever use social media sites on your job search? Believe it or not most hiring managers are now investigating job applicants through these sites. They look to your personal pages on Facebook, Twitter and even MySpace. Honestly, most employers today believe that they can make sound decisions by viewing on how an applicant builds his or her online brand.

The impact of social networking sites on a job search is becoming more evident. As such, more people build their social media profiles solely for increasing their career opportunities. Sites such as LinkedIn however are purely for career related information whereas Facebook and Twitter can be exploited for both personal and professional use.

Unfortunately, as of now, only few people have been taking advantages of social media such as Facebook in their job hunt. However, this is quite the reason why you should make social media as your job hunt ally. You have more edge if you do so. So, how can you reflect your strengths and not your weaknesses on these sites? And how can you guarantee that the employers viewing your pages would be thrilled to meet you and hire you?

- Know what Your Prospective Employers Want! This is a fundamental step in using social media as your job hunt ally. Let’s view it this way: a customer is craving for an apple. If you want to attract his attention, you should give him an apple rather than an orange. Know what your prospective employers want to see and read. Upload a photo that emits positive vibes. Furthermore, make your online photo albums pleasing to hiring managers.

- Use keywords to Your Advantage. Frankly speaking, you can only increase your rank on searches if you use the right keywords that your potential employers are using to search for applicants. Aside from this, also identify keywords that will help you reflect your strengths and skills. Use them to your full advantage. For instance, project management, strategic planning, budget control, and so on. However, do not forget to set yourself apart from other job candidates.

- Avoid Negative Contents. Typically, social media sites allow users to change their privacy settings. For purely personal pages, change your settings so that your friends are the only ones who can view and read them. However, if you want to make a page public, you should eliminate the negative contents that could damage your job search. Tip: be conservative.

- Simplify Your Pages. Content is more important than your page’s graphic layout, unless you are a visual artist. In some social media sites, layouts can cause visual clutters. Moreover, too heavy layouts can increase uploading time, which is not beneficial on your part. So, remove unnecessary and distracting graphics.

- Update Your Profile as much as You Can. The more updated your profile is, the better. This includes updating your profile photo, and revising your description as much as possible. Make recruiters and your online contacts know that you are available for new opportunities. Evaluate what prospective employers currently are seeking and make the necessary changes.

Landon Long is the founder of InterviewMastermind.com. You can download his FREE “Resume Rebel” Video Course to learn how to write a resume and stand out in a slow economy.

via employmentdigest.net

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Are Twitter and Facebook Killing Job Boards? : CollegeRecruiter.com Blog

Marvin Smith, Talent Community Evangelist at Microsoft Many of my fellow job board owners are like ostriches with their heads in the sand. They don't want to admit that social media is having and will have more of an impact on our businesses. Unfortunately, those owners fail to realize that while some of the effect is and will continue to be negative, some is and will continue to be positive.

More and more employers are not just talking about building candidate communities but they're actually doing it and social media is integral to the success of those groups. Job boards can also play a large role, but not the only role. But go to the conferences and listen -- really listen -- to the thought leaders in corporate recruiting and you'll hear loud and clear that the day of spending the lion's share of their recruitment budget on job postings and resume searching is gone and never coming back. Few will say they won't spend anything and even those who do will agree that they will spend on niche sites but whether they're spending none or just less there can be no doubt that job boards which continue to offer the same tools as we offered in the 1990's will perish.

For job boards to survive and even thrive, they must innovate. They must integrate with social media. They must listen -- really listen -- to their clients. And if they do all of that, they'll get that job boards aren't job boards because they sell postings and resume searching. They're job boards because they provide their employer clients with value in helping those clients more efficiently and effectively connect with the best candidates for those employers.

via collegerecruiter.com

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Taking Advantages of Social Media in Your Job Hunt | EmploymentDigest.net

Landon Long is the founder of InterviewMastermind.com. You can download his FREE “Resume Rebel” Video Course to learn how to write a resume and stand out in a slow economy.

via employmentdigest.net

Posted via web from AndyWergedal

Establishing A Home Base | Social Branding Blog

Getting discovered through social branding can be a difficult task at times. It takes persistence, a sound strategy, and communication. All of your hard work could be useless, however, if you don’t have a home base.

By home base, I mean a central hub for your content. One blog or website that you can direct everyone to and easily be found on the Internet. This blog is my home base. It’s where I direct all of my friends/followers from all of my social profiles and communities.

Allow me to explain a few key factors about establishing your home base:

Why Blogging is Important

Not everyone needs to have a blog as their home base, but it certainly helps from a branding perspective. If the goal is to get found, it is important to create content. Both search engines and people like content, and the more you put out the more likely you are to be discovered by interested audience members.

Keep It Simple

There is no need to go over the top with your blog. Everything from the domain name you choose to the layout is important and the simpler it is to remember or navigate the better. Avoid complicated or long domain names and sophisticated, vibrant layouts. Make it easy to read your content.

Make It Easy to Communicate

Speaking of keeping it simple, it should be relatively easy for your viewers to communicate with you on your home base. Strategically place social icons on your site and make subscribing to your content easy. Also, make sure it’s easy for people to comment on your posts. Let them be social!

Get Rid of Clutter

I know there are a lot of cool plugins and widgets out there and it can be very tempting to just load up your sidebar with cool features, but try to keep it basic. You can test widgets to see if they’re having an impact on your viewers or not. If they aren’t, get rid of them. Avoid having too many ads too. It’s okay to make money on your blog, but don’t sacrifice all the good real estate.

Register/Claim Your Home Base

Continually try to make it easy to be found online. Register your blog with all of the top search engines and claim your domain on sites like Technorati. Try to make use of any platform that pops up. If it is somewhat popular you can always find wealth in readership there.

Image Credit: onyks

via socialbrandingblog.com

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10 Branding & Social Media Blogs You Should Be Following | Social Branding Blog

I am a big fan of blog content. If you’re reading this, then the chances are good that you are too.

Whether you’re a brand manager, marketer, or just someone looking to make a name for yourself or your product/business, following the right blogs can be a source of free education.

Out of the hundreds of blogs I (try to) follow regularly, I have compiled this list of some of the very best when it comes to social branding.

If you read these blogs regularly, you will learn a lot about brand marketing. Look for more lists like this in the future, as I am always on the hunt for useful content!

These are in no particular order:

Chris Brogan

One of the best in the business when it comes to building communities and marketing with social media, Chris Brogan’s blog is a good place to start for anyone. You’ll find a lot of great marketing tips and insights, as well as new and interesting ways to use social media that you may not have realized before.

Social Media Explorer

This is a great site that covers everything regarding social media, PR, advertising, and marketing. Discover new tools for monitoring your brand and overall presence online.

Altitude Branding

Amber Naslund’s blog contains a lot of great information pertaining to social branding and makes for a very insightful read. You’re bound to learn something useful from her.

Hard Knox Life

Dave Knox lists a lot of good information in regard to marketing and new media. While maybe not as well known as some on this list, this blog is extremely helpful and is a constant source of ideas for the Social Branding Blog.

SocialMouths

SocialMouths is another great resource for social media strategies and branding for your business. If you can’t find something you’re interested in reading on this site, you’re not looking hard enough.

Conversation Agent

Valeria Maltoni is an expert at marketing online and is very focused on social media. See how things work from the inside as she provides industry-related social strategies and terminology.

Techipedia

Tamar Weinberg is a driving force in the social media movement. On her blog, she provides a creative look at how to utilize social media for business and marketing. Her articles are very informative and are a great way to stay up-to-date with the latest news/trends.

Branding Strategy Insider

Geared towards marketing professionals and leaders, the Branding Strategy Insider covers everything branding and advertising. A truly great resource.

Social Media Examiner

This blog gives you a lot of creative ways to use your favorite social tools and websites. It is a constant stream of useful information pertaining to social media and marketing tools.

Web Strategy

Jeremiah Owyang’s Web Strategy blog rounds up this list. A true professional, his blog is very informative and covers CRM and the social business industry extensively.

Conclusion

What do you think of the websites I’ve listed? Did I forget to mention your favorite social branding site? Leave your thoughts, ideas, and comments below!

Image Credit: Mexicanwave

via socialbrandingblog.com

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What is your favorite social relationship manager? — Scobleizer

There are a slew of social relationship managers that have been released in the past year and the space is really heating up.

There’s Gist, here’s CEO T.A. McCann talking about it in front of the Google IO conference.

But there’s Xobni, Rapportive, eTacts, and others.

I’m trying them all.

So far Gist is my favorite. Why? Because of its completeness of information about other people it brings into my view and because of its web centricity. Xobni is nice if you use Outlook, for instance, but I don’t use that anymore.

Rapportive is nice because it works on regular old Gmail. Gist just shipped support for Gmail, but only if you are using Google Apps. I don’t use that either.

But which one is your favorite? Have you considered using a relationship manager? They aren’t for everyone, but if you need to keep up to date on a large number of people, which usually means executives, PR people, or salespeople, then these things are really great. It’s interesting that everyday Gist sends me an email and presents information about the people I’m emailing with the most. That often lets me learn about people in a new way that I miss on Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook.

For instance, you can see my public profile on Gist and get an idea of the kinds of things it presents about the people in your life. Now, imagine you were headed to a meeting with a VC, or trying to sell something. Wouldn’t having all this data about that person be useful? Also, Gist has a nice iPhone app that shows you info and it just got an update today that lets you import your iPhone’s contacts.

By the way, I’ve created a Twitter list of “weapons for entrepreneurs” like these and other tools, people, and services that help entrepreneurs do their jobs better. Why aren’t you following that?

via scobleizer.com

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Why Recruitment consultants minimize social networks - Secrets of the Job Hunt Career Podcast

www.laurentbrouat.com

The other day I came across an article in the Sunday Times talking about social networking and recruitment.

And what amazed me is the fact that recruiters were all saying that Social networks are really useful but it is not that great.

” Linkedin is a great networking tool and research tool. However it is not a panacea.” Toby Fowlston, Robert Walters

“Linkedin isn’t the phone book and even if it was, who would want to look through the entire phone book to find the right candidate?” Eamon Collins Michael Page

Why do you think they do that?

They do that to minimize the impact of social networks on recruitment…because they are afraid of losing more clients using Linkedin in an increasingly part of their recruitment process.

SAB Miller (brewer) used Linkedin to recruit 120 managers around the world and saved 1.2 million £.

John Campagnigno, head of Recruitment at Accenture, said that he plans to make as many as 40% of his hires in the next few years through social media. It is cheaper and faster.

Social networks are a clear threat to the number of assignments that rec agencies/consultancies can get, so their aim is to say “yes it is a good networking tool but it is not enough”.

What they are missing is that the sourcing part of recruitment is a huge part…and if companies can get candidates faster and cheaper with not so many resources, what do you think they are going to do?

Why more and more companies will use linkedin or other social networks to recruit:

It is cheaper, it almost costs nothing and internal recruiters can leverage their own connections
It is faster, you can get in touch with people quickly and can carry out a reference check online. You can search using keywords, location, and many different criteria
CVs online are more accurate than written CVs (like I explained here) as people show their profile to everybody
Even when you post a job, the level of the candidate is better than using other job boards: you have less candidate applying but the average level is better
Candidates update their own profile so the accuracy of the information is much better
It is good for an employer brand to show that the company is up-to-date and a leading example in her industry in terms of recruitment processes

Agreed that you still need to meet people face to face, and that recruitment is a time consuming activity…but these tools are changing the landscape and even if recruitment consultancies are not happy with that, companies will use it more and more.

via secretsofthejobhunt.com

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Don’t Be A Stealth Job Hunter!!! | Career Rocketeer - Career Search and Personal Branding Blog

Are you trying to find a new job without letting anyone know you’re unemployed? Many people try, very few succeed. Especially in today’s job market, it is extremely difficult to get a new position without extensive networking!

That word seems to scare many people. In their minds it conjures up images of glad-handing Multi-Level-Marketing salespeople who wants to show their “plan” with the “perfect” opportunity for you without knowing anything about you. Or it draws memories of the brother in-law who became a life insurance agent and has been haranguing every distant family member for months to buy a new policy from him.

Those bad memories are caricatures of networking or sales, and not the image you would create by effective networking for a new job.

Don’t hide from the people that can help you! Here are some thoughts and some practical help to do it right…

Especially now, there is no shame in losing your job! Often, I hear people say they don’t tell others they are looking for a job because they are embarrassed over being unemployed. Too often they blame themselves somehow when in fact market conditions can make anyone a casualty of a lay-off. When companies are forced to make drastic cuts in their expenses, they often have to cut broadly and deeply. Often they will cut a whole department, or a straight percentage from every department. The decisions of who stays and who goes are often made very arbitrarily with the bottom-line the primary concern. Survival of the company is more important than cutting carefully with a scalpel.

Over the past 2 years, virtually everyone recognizes that no one is immune. There is no stigma to a lay-off as there may have been years ago. There is no need for embarrassment, or shame. It is what it is and generally people don’t view your unemployment as a reflection on you, but rather a sign of the times. I was told of someone recently that didn’t tell his wife that he had been laid-off for 3 weeks. He rose, dressed and left for ‘work’ each morning just as he always had so his wife wouldn’t suspect, but spent his day at a coffee shop. Now that’s stealth, and not at all a good idea.

Who do you tell? Everyone! You never know where your best leads will come from, and usually they come from the most unlikely sources. Make a list of everyone you know. Studies show that most people, on average, know more than 350 people. Create lists in groups to help jog your memory. List ALL your family members, close and extended. List friends. List ALL your previous co-workers from everywhere you’ve worked. List service providers like your doctor, accountant, lawyer, real estate agent, dry cleaner, mail carrier, etc. List other parents on your kids’ sports teams. List other parents you know from your kids’ school. List people you know at church, temple, or mosque. List people you know from former vendors, customers, trade associations, user groups, or professional associations. List alumni from your schools. Hopefully, you get the idea… make lists of everyone you know!

Then gather contact information… find where they work on LinkedIn, call the main number of the company and call them. Gather email addresses if you have them. Google their name to find something of theirs with contact information. Use resources like Jigsaw.com, ZoomInfo, or the phone book!

What do you say? That will vary with how you know them, how well you know them, and what position they hold. However, as a general rule, one thing you don’t want to say is: “Do you know of a job opening?” The vast majority of people you talk to will not know of something off-hand and then the conversation becomes awkward and cut short.

As a suggestion:

“I’m connecting with everyone I know in order to network effectively to find a new position. I realize you may not know of a specific open position in my field. However, I figure my job while I’m looking is to keep adding links to my chain of people, connecting one to another until I find the right opportunity.

I’m hoping you may be able to give me names of a couple of people that you know that would be worthwhile for me to talk to… either anyone else you know in my field, someone that you might reach out to if you were in my situation, someone that just seems to know a lot of people, or anyone you know at companies that seem to be doing well.

I’d be grateful for any specific job leads if you know of one, however, I’m really only hoping for the next couple of links in my chain.”

People can’t help you if they don’t know you are looking! Don’t keep your job hunt under wraps. Let everyone you know you are looking, touch base with them regularly (every 4 to 6 weeks), and keep adding to the links in your chain until you reach someone with the right opportunity for you

Author:

Harry Urschel has over 20 years experience as a technology recruiter in Minnesota. He currently operates as e-Executives, writes a blog for Job Seekers called The Wise Job Search, and can be found on Twitter as @eExecutives.

via careerrocketeer.com

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4 Social Media Marketing Tips That Work

Speakers at the Smash Summit in San Francisco today said brands should take a holistic, goal-oriented, authentic approach to social media marketing, rather than focusing on any one platform or method. Analyst and keynoter Jeremiah Owyang labeled the temptation of marketers to fixate on any one tool like Facebook or Twitter “fondling the hammer” as opposed to building the house — an awkward if memorable metaphor. But presenters did offer up a few solid case studies about tweaks that worked. Here are some of the ones I picked up:

Use the tools available to tweak your targeting and language and test them, said Facebook’s Bubba Murarka. In one test, he was able to boost clickthrough rates fivefold by changing the world “has” to “could” in the text of an ad. Murarka is working on publishing an academic paper on the findings, he said.

Posting fresh content is important, but the archive has value, said YouTube’s Hunter Walk. He advised brands to start on YouTube with an “anchor video.” Once it gets to about 5,000 views, it will start surfacing in search and related videos. Of YouTube’s more than 1 billion playbacks per day, Walk said, half of them are from content uploaded more than six months ago. That’s a huge opportunity.

Make promotions fun, said Wildfire Interactive CEO Victoria Ransom. For the private retailer Hautelook, Wildfire turned coupons awarded to fans on Facebook into a game. Users didn’t know the value of a coupon they received — anywhere between 10 and 90 percent off — until they registered. Hautelook received five times as much revenue as what they spent on the campaign, with customers including 20 percent first-time buyers and many more people who hadn’t purchased in a while that the company assumed weren’t coming back anymore.

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Networking Resurrection: Time to Reconnect

The Myth of the Social Media Sabbatical

Events Aren't Dead, Your Strategy Is

Social Media: A Game You're Losing by Default

The Power Move: Reconnect and Reinvent

Head of the Pack

Movie Stars

It’s All About the Interactions

Zappos Gets an A in Social Media

Head of the Pack

Movie Stars

It’s All About the Interactions

Zappos Gets an A in Social Media

An Author’s Plan for Social Media

One simple control

Keeping info private

Third-party privacy, please

Why Blogging is Important

Keep It Simple

Make It Easy to Communicate

Get Rid of Clutter

Register/Claim Your Home Base

Conclusion

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