Written by Victoria Cabral, RBC Senior Campus Recruiter- Functions and Insurance, RBC
The job market is a competitive environment, especially as students compete to get noticed in this tech-driven society where everything is online and the internet never sleeps. If used effectively and strategically social media can be your strongest tool for creating a robust brand for yourself, which will allow you to better attract and engage prospective employers.
Your online presence is a reflection and extension of who you are. Employers such as RBC look at your social media presence to learn about the person behind the resume. In fact, a recent study found that 73% of 18-34 year olds found their last job through a social network!
There are numerous platforms which you can leverage to build a strong online presence: Twitter and LinkedIn are two platforms used heavily by employers and prospective recruits.
Twitter is an easy way to stay up to date and acquire information about the subjects you care about. On Twitter you find information related to essentially any and every subject possible…including jobs. Meanwhile, LinkedIn is a social business networking tool.
Here are a few tips to help you create an engaging online presence.
Showcase your professional profile
Put together your Twitter and LinkedIn account as though it were your online business card. Include information that is specific and professional. If you are using other platforms to showcase your skills and experiences, include a link (i.e. LinkedIn, blogs).
Have a strategy – determine who you want your audience to be and what purpose these platforms will serve. In order to avoid confusion about whether you are using Twitter for personal or professional purposes, make the distinction! You can create two accounts but be cautious about the content and images you are sharing. There is no “delete” button on the internet.
Identify the people and companies you want to follow
Identify the companies and people you want to follow on Twitter or connect with on LinkedIn.
Twitter has a feature which allows you to find people and companies followed by the people you already follow. Simply click on the “who to follow” tab. Once you have a good roster of people and companies to follow, start retweeting interesting tweets by those people. Don’t be shy.
Effective interaction is a key component when you are trying to build a connection with a prospective employer. For example, you can get a head start and connect with a companies’ recruitment team to learn about opportunities and the recruitment process.
Similarly, on LinkedIn, you would simply need to log onto your account, click on the search bar at the top of the page and enter the name of the person you’d like to find. You can also search via company if you don’t know a specific name.
Make decisions based on quality not quantity. This part will require a little legwork but it will go a long way!
You’ve got to give to get
Create and share content that will demonstrate your skills and aptitude in your field.
Stay up to date on recent trends and related articles that will help you initiate interesting dialogue with your target audience. You are more likely to attract and retain followers and connections if you are sharing relevant and interesting information.