Looking for work in the age of social media: How to reap the benefits and avoid the pitfalls

You’re ready to begin your job search.  But before you do, it’s time to take a hard look at your digital life and what it says about you.  Potential bosses can now see a picture of you far beyond what you show them in a resume, cover letter and interview.  That silly post from a party two years ago may come back to haunt you.

Unfortunately, there is no way to create a sharp divide between your online world of friends and your professional image.  It feels like two different things when you’re joking with friends on Facebook and then move to update your LinkedIn profile, but these different streams could be all equally visible to your prospective employers.

The first thing to do is to make sure your privacy settings are correct.  Make sure you set your personal profiles to private.  Take a look not only at your profile photo but at all the photos in all your online album, wall or feeds.  If your friends have left rude or crude comments on your sites, that could reflect badly on you, as well.  Obviously, don’t brag about current or past questionable work activity, and don’t badmouth past employers or their companies.

But trying to keep your online image totally secret isn’t the best strategy, either.  Employers expect people to have an online life, and they now routinely use social networks to screen potential job seekers.  They will look at your online image, including social media posts, to evaluate your character and personality.  This can work to your advantage if you’ve been smart.  It’s up to you to develop a solid social media strategy, and to curate your social media image.

Mastering the art of using social media to your advantage

Do you present yourself professionally online? Is there any questionable content on your Facebook or Twitter feed?  Do you have a personal website or blog?  Do you frequently post responses on other sites?  It’s usually easy for a potential employer to search and discover what you post online.

Posts that appear provocative, inappropriate or offensive may be the difference between being hired or not.  Publicly posted photos depicting drinking or drug use may automatically disqualify you.  Posts seen as hostile or angry, posts that use profanity, or even posts that merely display poor communication skills may cause a potential boss to look for someone else.

When you are aware that social media is being scrutinized by employers, you can ensure that what they see shows you at your best.  You can take control and use social media to your advantage, highlighting your abilities, accomplishments and personality in a way that will benefit you.

Here are some actions you should take:

• Be sure to proofread your profile on LinkedIn.  Typos, grammatical errors and poorly-written descriptions show that you don’t take time to check your work.  A poor photograph shows a lack of professionalism; make sure that yours looks professional.
• Make sure your background information is presented the same way across social media.  Potential employees look beyond LinkedIn.  If you come across one way on LinkedIn but another way on Twitter, that may cause an employee to think twice.  But if what they see reinforces the image of someone who uses social media responsibly, seems thoughtful, considerate (or at least, not rude), and interesting, that could launch you to the top of the stack.
• Showing a sense of humor or a silly side is fine, as long as it passes the “grandmother” test:  if you can imagine your grandmother reading it and you aren’t cringing, than it’s probably fine.  Frat-house-type humor may not play as well.
• Try to respond quickly to e-mails and requests.
• If you use nicknames or pseudonyms online, take a fresh look at them.  Your potential boss might see them.  What you thought was clever in high school might not seem so clever to a Fortune 500 firm.

It’s far better to build your social media portrait thoughtfully by being a respectful and positively-engaged digital citizen, rather than having to hide or clean up your past.  But if you do have a questionable digital trail, then it’s time to curate your image.

Used properly, social media can be a boon to job seekers.  A well-crafted, complete profile on LinkedIn is the first tool.  Social media can be great for networking and for collecting recommendations.  A network that is large enough to be useful but made up of people you genuinely know or have had contact with can help a great deal.  A network stuffed with “contacts” and “friends” that you don’t actually know is no help.  Remember, as in most things, quality trumps quantity.

Social media can make or break your job search.

Review your public information, profiles and posts.  You may be passed over because of politically-divisive posts, long, rambling or incoherent posts, or rants.  There are even tools like SimpleWash (http://www.simplewa.sh/about ) that can help your identify and remove questionable material.

Although employers expect job seekers to be active on social media, there is such a thing as being too active.  Having an account on every possible platform and posting five times a day will not help your impression.  Your potential boss may wonder just how much time you spend online, and if that will affect your work performance.

If you have a personal or professional website that is relevant to your job search, make sure you link to it with all your social media platforms.  Make sure your LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc.  are on your business cards, resume and e-mail signature line.  But don’t use these platforms to communicate with companies you would like to be hired by.  You may comment on something they have posted, but this is not the place to open a dialog.  A direct e-mail looks more professional and shows a better understanding of how to use social media.

Your online profile is really your own personal brand.  It should be consistent, professional, and interesting.  It should show you at your best.  And a well-crafted online image could help you get that dream job you’re hoping to land.