Where and how to find a treasure trove of free advice to help you land a job

Twitter can provide you with
a ton of useful job search help.

I've recently come across a bevy of career advice from top experts that could help you. 

The location? 


Twitter. If you’ve been resistant to sign up for this hugely popular micro-blogging site, I encourage you to do so right now because:

1) I am going to help you get started and provide you with a shortcut to the expert advice.

2) Having an established Twitter presence and including your Twitter address on your application materials shows potential employers you “get” social networking.

Signing up for Twitter is easy. (If you already have a Twitter account, skip to How to find a ton of great career advice on Twitter)

1. Sign up for Twitter, then click the “Sign up now” button. Create an account using the email address you are using for your job search. Select a professional sounding username (which could be your full name or a name based upon your name and career type). For example, mine used to be @kathybernardmkt (the “mkt” is for my field, which is marketing). My Twitter address is now @WiserUTips. 

Your Twitter user name can be up to 15 characters long. No spaces are allowed. Note: Many usernames are taken, so keep trying usernames until it says “OK.”

2. Delay following friends – Once you establish an account, Twitter will ask you if you want to search through your email contacts to find friends. Wait on this step until you’ve established your Twitter profile. If and when you do decide to invite friends, be selective. Invite those who can help you with your job search and who won’t take you off task.

3. Establish your profile – Where it says “More info URL”, add your blog or web address, or your LinkedIn profile web address (copy it from your LinkedIn profile page). For the “One Line Bio” section, use power words to convey who you are and what type of job you are seeking (in 160 words or less). Add your city into the location box, then skip the “enable geotagging” and the “delete all location data options.” I’d suggest not clicking the “Protect my tweets” box so interested people can view your topical “tweets” (Twitter messages) and opt to follow you.

4. Add your photo – Click the picture tab and add a professional-looking picture of yourself. Ideally, it should be the same picture you use on LinkedIn. If you have a picture saved to your computer, simply click the Browse button, find the image file and save.

5. Start following and being followed – But first, think about what your purpose is for being on Twitter. If it is to get a job, focus on the people (or organizations) who can help you do that. Use the “Find People button and click through the “Browse Suggestions,” “Find Friends,” “Invite by email,” and “Find on Twitter” options to get a feel for how to find and follow people or organizations. Just click the “Follow” button to follow someone, or the “Unfollow” button if you change your mind. Many of the people you follow will follow you back.

6. Send relevant tweets – Use the “What’s Happening” box on your Twitter home page to remind your followers that you are seeking work, to pass along job leads, news tips, etc. Tweets can only be 280 characters in length or less including spaces. Use a free url-shortening service like tiny.cc or bit.ly/ to share too-long web links. Use the number sign # (called a hashtag in Twitter jargon) before keywords like #careers so people who are interested in your topic can find your tweets and follow you.

Once you have elected to follow someone and you have hit “refresh” on your Twitter home page, you will immediately begin seeing the person’s career advice tweets on your Twitter home page. Use the search box on your Twitter home page to find specific topical advice such as “resume” from these career experts and others who have talked about resumes recently on Twitter.

Other Twitter Tips

• Make it a habit to read through received tweets and post a few tweets daily to build up your following.
• You can send tweets right from your LinkedIn status box. Just click the Twitter “T” box near the status box.
• Add your Twitter address to your email signature. You can learn your full Twitter address by clicking your Twitter profile and copying the web address from your browser window. For example, mine is https://twitter.com/WiserUTips. Feel free to follow me!
• Continually learn about Twitter tools and third-party applications that can help you maximize your Twitter experience. Also learn how to use hashtags, send direct messages, retweet, and forward messages.
• Click “Follow on Twitter” icons on various web sites and e-newsletter you enjoy to start receiving tweets from them.
• Realize that the more people you choose to follow, the more tweets you will receive. This can be overwhelming and impossible to keep up with (and also annoying if people are tweeting about irrelevant topics). Rather than get discouraged by it all, use your search box on your Twitter home page to search for topics of greatest interest.
• Review your Twitter followers occasionally to weed out (unfollow or block) people who just seem to be trying to sell you something or who are up to no good.

Maximize your use of Twitter to find career advice and job leads … doing so can help you land a job or get a better one!

Do you use Twitter in your job search? Share your experiences, concerns, and tips! -- Kathy

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