How to Maintain Social Media While Seeking Employment

Remember those days when you would physically walk into a potential employer’s building and apply for a position in person? The paper application on an old wooden clipboard with a pen that barely worked?  I know I do! The process of searching for a position has changed quite a bit with the advancement in technology and social media. We now live in a digital world with social media at our fingertips, allowing us to navigate the web with just a few clicks. Every aspect of life seems to be involved with technology at some capacity, from online grocery shopping, ordering takeout food, and even looking for employment.

With the social media progressions, hiring managers are screening candidates based on not only their qualifications/skills, but also their social media presence. Navigating a career change or entering the job market can be overwhelming enough. So, we wanted to share some tips to ease anxiety on how to manage your professional and personal social media accounts.

Professional Profile

When you are applying for positions, your professional platforms should have key information listed. Any listed information should be accurate and up to date in terms of work history, job responsibilities, and education. We suggest having an up-to-date profile picture that includes yourself in a professional light.  We would suggest avoiding the filters.

Interacting with the professional groups that align with your career industry also helps you stay relevant in the field. You should engage with posts and videos that you find interesting, while making sure you are interacting in a positive productive manner. You should be presenting yourself well to your audience and making comments that are appropriate and positive. You should avoid putting negative feedback on other’s posts.

We also encourage you to interact with the company’s page that you are applying for. By engaging with their content, it shows you are willing to do the research on the organization and be involved with the current events. Follow their page so you can stay up to date with their content.  This will help you be knowledgable to have great conversation during the interview.

Personal Media Profile

Personal media is something that is just as important as professional social media platforms when searching for a position. These days hiring managers are cross-referencing your personal media and you want to be perceived as a well-rounded individual. Be sure to maintain what you are being tagged in by friends and family. Employers understand you have a life outside of work, but you want to make sure the posts/pictures are work appropriate as they are looking through them. You should avoid photos and posts with content that include illegal activity, drinking, etc. Posting pictures of hobbies, friends, and family is a great way to show what kind of person you are outside of work. Highlight what makes you the great individual that you are.

Your social media should represent yourself as an individual. Having an opinion and voice on social media is great, but you want to make sure that you are presenting yourself in a positive light. You should stay away from negative and harassing behavior. Being abrasive and controversial on social media is a huge turn off for an employer and it is a red flag. Remember that everything you are posting and commenting can be seen by the public.

With the topic of political content, again, it’s okay to have an opinion, but keep your interactions clean. Tearing others down for their opinions is not okay at anytime, but especially when you are seeking employment. Instead, you should be commenting and posting positive articles that align with your thoughts and goals.

Your social media should reflect who you are as a person. With the advancements in technology and social media presences, job employers are relying more on technology in order to screen their candidates. What does your social media say about you?

At MCDA CCG we specialize in helping candidates prepare and land the job of their dreams.  We offer reputation management services if you need assistance cleaning up a digital trail of not so great content.  Reach out today and find out how one of our HR specialists can help you.

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