What do Phil Neville, Sally Bercow and Piers Morgan have in common?
They’ve all come under fire as a result of their social media usage.
Morgan famously outed Ryan Giggs’ affair despite his super-injunction, Bercow libelled Lord McAlpine, and Neville came under attack as his past sexist posts were unearthed just hours after he was appointed as manager of the England women’s football team.
These are just a few high profile social media gaffes in recent years – gaffes that highlight the dangers of carelessness on platforms like Twitter and Facebook.
It’s not just the rich and famous who need to be careful, though: while cybersecurity and business IT workers are more security-conscious than most, their social channels may still leave them open to criticism from current and future employers.
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Your CV is the tailored, polished version of you that you want employers to see – your social media, on the other hand, is unfiltered.
This could be a good or a bad thing. To decide, you need to ask yourself: is my digital persona employable? Here are some tips to make sure the answer’s a resounding ‘yes’.
Social media: the positives
We’re by no means saying that social media use is a bad thing for job hunters. Far from it, in fact: when done right, it can build your reach and turn you into an integral part of a community.
What does doing it right look like? Joining and contributing to relevant industry LinkedIn groups, starting or joining constructive discussion on Twitter and sharing relevant articles – whether self-written or from the media – can get you noticed, help you forge new connections and even get you closer to your dream role.
After all, it’s not only candidates who use social media: it’s employers and recruiters too. 84% of companies use networks such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to find candidates. If you’re active and respected in professional communities on these platforms and get yourself noticed, it stands to reason that you’re more likely to see success.
If you’re job-hunting with a specific employer in mind, seek out their social profiles. It’s an easier way to get a foot in the door than speculative phone calls or emails – just be sure to find the right balance between confident and pushy.
Personal branding is key
What does your digital persona say about you? It’s vital to present yourself in the right way, creating a personal brand that signals what you’ll be like as an employee. Blogging about your industry, liking, sharing and commenting on articles and getting involved in discussions pertinent to your role will mark you out not only as an expert, but as someone who’s genuinely interested and invested in their career.
So, who’s doing it well? In the IT industry, there are plenty of individuals leading by example.
Brian Krebs has a Twitter following of well over 200,000, thanks to a very balanced feed, sharing his own content along with breaking industry news from other sources, and both starting and responding to debates and conversations from other Twitter users.
In the cloud computing arena, David Linthicum – Chief Cloud Strategy Officer at Deloitte – has a following of 36.5k who follow his original content on cloud security, trends, vendor news and more. Head over to his LinkedIn profile and you’ll see that he not only posts regular articles, but that they garner a great deal of engagement too.
Maximum impact, minimal effort
The likes of David Linthicum didn’t become this high profile overnight: for an individual to become a major influencer in any sector, it often takes years of hard work.
However, there are quick wins that can ensure that you’re noticed by the right people, in the right place, with relatively little effort.
- Be in the right place. Understand which social networks the companies you want to connect with are most prolific, and connect with them there.
- Define your personal brand. Make sure that every activity – from posting a profile picture to the content you share – reflects how you want to be seen by potential employers.
- Share regularly, but only if relevant. This could be sharing media articles, your own blog posts, or even simply contributing to relevant discussions.
Social media – the negatives
Sharing inappropriate content is one way to be noticed in the wrong way, but there are plenty more ways in which your social activity can turn potential employers off, rather than on.
There’s a whole Tumblr blog dedicated to inappropriate LinkedIn profile pictures: does a picture of you cuddling your pet or in fancy dress send out the impression you’re looking to cultivate?
“19% of employers have turned down a candidate because of their online activity.”
Results of a YouGov survey from 2017 show that 19% of employers out of 2,058 surveyed have turned down a candidate because of their online activity, with offensive language (75%), references to drug use (71%), bad spelling or grammar (56%) and drunken photos (47%) being the four types of behaviour that would most put employers off.
However, it’s not just content that can prevent a candidate from landing their dream job – it’s the choice of channel too.
Which social networks should I use?
While many individuals will have a preference for certain social networks over others in everyday life, it’s important to assess whether they’re the right channels when it comes to job hunting. LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram are the top four – and each has a different remit in the recruitment industry.
LinkedIn is, undeniably, a great source of job postings – and you’ll find that the majority of connections you’re looking to make will use the network.
- Keep your profile updated
- Give people a reason to connect
- Be active: create, share and comment
Twitter is far more open than LinkedIn, allowing you to make connections and start conversations with the majority of users, without needing to be accepted first. It’s also a less formal medium – but be careful not to make too informal an approach.
- Consider a separate professional account
- Delete any controversial historic tweets
- Start and contribute to relevant conversations
Facebook’s Jobs functionality allows users to search for listings posted by company pages – but there’s plenty more that can be done.
- Check privacy settings – which of your content can employers see?
- Take advantage of your existing network – ask friends if they have beneficial contacts
- Seek out relevant groups and pages, and contribute actively
Following a company’s Instagram account is a great way to learn about company culture – and commenting on its posts can get you noticed.
- Check what you’ve previously posted – does it portray you in the right way?
- Reply to comments from existing staff at your dream company – get noticed
- Use hashtags to stand out in your industry – but stay relevant
The bottom line
While your CV is the polished version of your professional self, your social media accounts will often demonstrate more breadth. What you choose to share via social media is up to you – but remember that it could be used to assess your employability. The good news? Relevant, regular activity in the right place and at the right time could just mark you out as the perfect hire.
