Tips for Professional and Personal Social Networking
Begin networking and learning to
distinguish professional contacts from personal contacts while you are in
college. Students should grow both networks, but, in general, keeping them
separate. I recommend using LinkedIn for professional connections and Facebook
for social connections. The Internet has dozens of tips to optimize your social
media profiles, but here are eight tips that I have found most relevant.
1.
Use for professional contacts, such
as professors, employers, and graduate students.
2.
Choose a professional looking head
shot for your profile. Appropriate selections involve a non-distracting
background and a well-groomed subject (yeah, that's you).
3.
Maintain less restrictive security
settings so that employers and recruiters are able to learn about you and your
brand. However, keep your profile conservative since your information will have
increased public visibility.
4.
Generate a summary discussing your
thesis project and what you did or learned about the topic.
5.
Post writing assignments. If you
completed a great paper for one of your classes, attach it to your profile or
turn an assignment into multiple blog posts. Keep your posts short by
subdividing a lengthy paper into articles of 400 to 700 words. If you have a
video of yourself presenting the material, attach that as well.
6.
Build a profile that you will be
able to convert into a resume for future job searches.
7.
Endorse and recommend connections
who show genuine skills and you can expect that they will return the favor.
Better yet, only connect with people who you would recommend to others to
create a solid and credible network.
8.
Follow professional publications and
groups in your field as well as companies to which you plan to apply for future
employment.
1.
Use for personal contacts, such as
relatives, classmates, and roommates.
2.
Choose a photo that reflects your
personal style. But NEVER post a photo of yourself with a drink in hand.
3.
Establish strict security and
privacy settings where only your friends see your updates, photos, etc.
4.
Post photos or videos when they
express more than your pithy update does.
5.
Reference contacts in your post to
thank them or to share something that reminded you of them.
6.
Fill out your profile and share
favorite books, movies, and television shows.
7.
"Like" status updates that
you enjoy.
8.
Follow companies with which you do
business.
Of course, the network that we
create and keep up in person far outweighs any online network. So, get out and
enjoy the people around you.
0 comments:
Post a Comment