LinkedIn and Twitter recently announced a partnership that will enable users to simultaneously update their status on both platforms. Doing so can help amplify your message to your followers and real-time search engines. LinkedIn and Twitter have billed the new interface as two great tastes that taste great together. And I think this move is a sweet deal for job seekers as well. By using both platforms on a regular basis, job seekers can improve their visibility and create efficiencies in their online search strategy. So what better way to celebrate than to tweet some tips to help job seekers maximize the value of both LinkedIn and Twitter.
LinkedIn Tweets
1. LinkedIn is like a business meeting…it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of the social networking sites, but it’s a great way to connect professionally and share ideas.
2. Take the time to create a robust profile; a complete profile is more “searchable” by recruiters and hiring managers.
3. Keep your connections open. Closed connectors scream “I’m just here to take without giving anything back.”
4. Add a professional headshot. When the photo is missing people wonder why.
5. Don’t use the “invitation to connect” template; be authentic and write an individualized message.
6. Ask for endorsements that are specific about your skills and value; Save “Joe is a great guy” for a wedding toast.
7. Don’t give an endorsement and immediately ask for one from the same person; it lacks authenticity and smacks of “you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours.”
8. Use the Answers feature to build community and position yourself as a subject matter expert.
9. Don’t add a connection that you would not feel comfortable introducing to someone else. Adding people randomly is kind of creepy.
10. Create a public profile with a vanity url with your first and last name to maximize your exposure.
11. Add your LinkedIn url to your resume.
Twitter Tweets
1. Twitter is like a big noisy party. You can’t listen to every conversation; pick a few related to your profession or industry each time you visit.
2. Retweet tweets from people in your profession sharing great advice and share advice of your own.
3. Link to articles that will prove valuable to those in your profession.
4. Follow the tweets of companies you admire or would like to work for and retweet their tweets.
5. Share job search tips with others that you connect to on Twitter.
6. Use tools like Tweetdeck, Tweettake, MyTweeple, TwitterSnooze, SocialOomph, and Twitsay to better manage your time on Twitter.
7. Check out TwitterJobSearch, TwitterJobFinder, TwitterJobCast, TweetMyJobs, and TwitterBeep to see who’s hiring on Twitter.
8. Research topics relevant to your industry and job function with Twittersearch, Tweetscan, Trendistic, Twubble, Twemes, Twitterholic, and Monitter.