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02.11
 Seven Tips for Purposefully Building Your Online Network
By Debra Feldman,
JobWhiz, Executive Talent Agent
In today’s job market, employers
are relying increasingly on web search results
to formulate that critical first impression of a
job seeker. The proliferation and popularity of
social and professional networking sites are
driving changes in the traditional résumé, from
a single-page print or pdf document to a variety
of new media incarnations.
To shape your image in the
information age, you must post data and publish
ideas online to demonstrate your talents and
develop trust. If you don’t actively construct
your online persona – your webinality
(web + personality) – you could lose out.
Up-to-date, compelling online content makes you
available, accessible and credible. If employers
can’t find you through an Internet search, they
might question your potential value to them.
To establish and maintain your
professional reputation,
you need an online persona that demonstrates
your unique expertise and potential
contributions to potential employers.
Social media operate on the
show-me-don’t-tell-me principle. Your webinality
should reveal a reliable, accomplished, go-to
expert with extraordinary capabilities and
respected endorsements. Your webinality is
replacing the résumé as the standard initial
contact and interest generator.
When constructing your
webinality, keep these tips in mind:
·
You cannot control what searching
“your name” produces; create positive social
media content communicating your unique value
·
Differentiate yourself: promote
core competencies and key skills
·
Increase visibility and attract
contacts by addressing your target employers’
needs
·
Describe how you get results, make
money, save costs and improve process
·
Suggest resources and exchange
ideas to strengthen relationships
Today, Your Work IS Your Résumé
You don’t have to rely on a
snapshot document to highlight your potential to
prospective employers. To attract employers,
develop a comprehensive, dynamic social media
portrait of your achievements and thought
processes. Post success stories, tweet news and
participate in virtual conversations that
generate continuous evidence, alleviate doubts
and describe challenges, actions taken and
results of remarkable milestones. Share
recommendations testifying to your abilities and
character. Attract connections with a vivid,
continuous description of your achievements. In
the 21st century, every job is temporary. You
are always a prospective candidate. Your next
job will find you via your network.
Your contacts are like “career
insurance,” producing referrals and new leads.
Creating a Network Purposefully will help ensure
that your next job finds you.
7 Recommended Steps to
Network Purposefully Online
1.
Define career goals, go-to-market
strategy and correct positioning
2.
Establish Reputation 3.0 baseline by
auditing and evaluating your current online
status
3.
Create searchable, targeted social media
profiles (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and more)
4.
Expand and strengthen relationships by
promoting yourself and your connections
5.
Implement a webinality strategy by
joining LinkedIn groups, building Twitter lists,
liking Facebook pages, identifying blogs to
read, and publishing original content via a
website or blog
6.
Establish professional blog website as social
media anchor
7.
Conduct routine social networking
tune-ups
 Debra Feldman, founder
of JobWhiz, is an executive talent agent with more than 20 years of senior
management consulting experience. She uses networking to identify and connect
candidates with unadvertised new career opportunities in the hidden job market.
For more information, visit
www.JobWhiz.com, and to contact her, visit
www.jobwhiz.com/contact.php.
Comments
may be submitted to
todaysengineer@ieee.org.
All
right reserved, Debra Feldman 2011
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