Using Twitter for Job Search (presented at the 2013 APICS Tampa Bay Job Seeker Symposium)

1. Twitter Job Search
Strategies
September 26, 2013
Christy Schutz

2. Agenda
• Intro to Twitter
• 4 Ways To Use Twitter for Job Search
• Remembering the Goal of Twitter
• Brief Overview of How to Get Started
• Q&A

3. My Background
• Advertising, Marketing and Communications
Professional for past 15+years
• Last 13 years with the recruitment communications
firm, Bernard Hodes Group
• Co-published book on Women-Owned Businesses in
the Tampa Bay Area called CRAVE Tampa Bay
• Author on career management, telecommuting,
women in the workplace, and more
• On Twitter: @ChristyKSchutz

4. Intro to Twitter

5. What is Twitter?
• Information Source
• Noise
• Celebrities
• Contacts
• What people had for lunch
• Showcase of Best Practice business ideas
• Meaningless & overwhelming
• Another tool in your job search arsenal

6. All of the above!

8. What is Twitter?
“Twitter is a real-time information network that
connects you to the latest stories, ideas, opinions and
news about what you find interesting. Simply find the
accounts you find most compelling and follow the
conversations.”

9. What is a Tweet?
At the heart of Twitter are small bursts of information
called Tweets. Each Tweet is 140 characters long.
Tweets can contain photos, videos and conversations
– all in a glance.

10. Learn the Lingo:
Twitter Terminology
• Feed: the stream of tweets that shows all the Tweets from the users you are
following on Twitter
• Handle: your username on Twitter
• Retweet: when you repost another Twitter user’s Tweet
• Mention: tweets can include mentions of other Twitter users by using their
@name/handle
• Reply: when you respond publically to a specific user
• Direct Message: when you correspond privately with a specific user (both
have to be following each other)
• Hashtag #: hash tags are words or acronyms used to make your content
more searchable
• URL Shorteners: bit.ly, tinyurl, ht.ly, etc.

11. Ways to Use Twitter for Job Search

12. #1: Twitter Handle & Professional Profile
• Take care when creating your Twitter handle
• Twitter profile is your online business card
• Describe your skills and experience
• Use terms recruiters would search for when looking
for talent
• Link to your online resume, website, blog, or
LinkedIn profile
• Forces you to be brilliant and brief
• Powerful personal branding tool

13. #1: Twitter Handle & Professional Profile

14. • Twitter’s culture makes it acceptable to “follow”
companies you are not plugged into or people you don’t
personally know
• Start following these users and grow the number of
individuals/companies you follow slowly to avoid looking
“spammy”
• When you follow them, you will see their posts, but they
won’t necessarily see yours (unless they follow you back)
• Listen and learn about the topics they are tweeting about
(excellent way to prep for an interview, identify new
career paths or learning opportunities, etc.)
#2: Connect with Key Players/Organizations

15. • Find jobs before they are stumbled upon by your
competition on the job boards or company websites
(results are usually more timely than Google or other
search engines)
• Use hashtags like #Jobs, #JobSearch, #JobOpening,
#JobListing, #HR, #Recruiting, #Hiring, #Employment,
#ApplyNow
• See “who” is broadcasting the tweet, and consider them
as a potential “friend” for your network
#2: Connect with Key Players/Organizations

16. Use Twitter’s search or
Twitter directories to
start following people in
your industry, companies
you are interested in
working for, etc.
#2: Connect with Key Players/Organizations

17. #3: Contribute Valuable Content
• Ask/respond to questions
• Join Twitter chats
• Share news articles that are relevant to your industry
• Retweet links or tweets from other industry leaders
you respect

18. What to Tweet?
• Take a multi-channel approach that blends industry
content (news, articles, advanced in the industry,
subject matter expertise) along with inspirational
quotes, point-of-view comments, conversational
dialogue, and a taste of your personality.

19. What NOT to Tweet?
• Sex, politics, religion, jokes or disparaging remarks
about race, ethnicity, or geographic location
• Trash talking your employer or colleagues
• Other things that are going to position you negatively
during your job search (be cognitive of your personal
brand)

20. #4: Make a Personal Connection
• Establish contact, build a relationship, then take it
offline
• Be bold enough to suggest meeting for coffee or
trading ideas on a quick conference call
• Attend Meetups, tweet n’ meets and industry
conference events, etc.

21. That one’s worth repeating!

22. Don’t lose site of the fact that
the end goal in all of this is
to develop relationships
that will transcend the
computer screen and help
you land your next great job!

23. Overview of How to Get Started

24. Register (or Login)

25. Create a Profile
• Include a picture
• Professional, searchable, and impactful
• Link to your own website or your
LinkedIn profile

27. Start Tweeting!

28. Managing Your Time
• Know what you want to accomplish and track your
progress (@replies, DM and follows offer instant
feedback)
• Set limits by establishing amount of time/frequency
• Utilize social media management tools like Hootsuite,
Buffer, Socialoomph, Tweetdeck, etc.
• Set filters up front that will help you later (e.g. lists,
searches)
• Create a content calendar that outlines the types of things
and topics you are going to tweet each week

30. Q & A

31. Resources:
• Twitter 101: What is Twitter Really About:
http://socialmediatoday.com/node/1371811
• Twitter YouTube Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AN4_N5N52U#t=12
• 10 Best Social Media Management Tools:
http://dashburst.com/best-social-media-management-tools/

32. Ways to connect with me:
• Twitter: @ChristyKSchutz
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/christyvalienteschutz
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/christy.schutz