**Update: I must add a comment regarding this title. It is meant to get your attention. This post is not stating that social media is useless, it is stating my opinion that most job seekers are wasting too much time using it. I welcome and love to hear rebuttals and disagreements! …now that I’ve stated that, feel free to read on.
Do I think social media is a necessity for job seekers? No.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s pretty damn cool. I have tons of fun with it and have met some amazing people through using these tools. Have I spent too much time using Twitter and Facebook? Heck yes. If you’re on my website reading this you can clearly see I have spent too much time on the internet. And obviously, I’m a fan of all social media outlets, technology, marketing…all of it! I love it!
As a job seeker, no matter what industry you are in, you do not need to be an expert in social media. You do not need to be online all the time. You do not need a “Personal Brand.”
Here are the reasons why:
The most successful people I know who actually get paid for using social media are hardly ever using it!
If this is what you want to do as a job, companies don’t care if you’re tweeting constantly or have thousands of followers. They just want someone who knows how to use it as a tool. Because that is what it is. A tool. I can think of two people who are working for very well known companies as the Director Of Social Media, and neither of them are highly visible online. They are what I like to call the “lurkers”.
The more people post on Twitter and Facebook, the more it looks like they are wasting time.
I waste tons of time on Twitter, I’ll admit it. But I actually make my living by connecting people. So this is a good waste of time for someone like me. As a recruiter, I’m also observing. I’m observing people who are using Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn to find a job. I’m also observing the majority of people going about this the wrong way. There are plenty of do’s & don’ts for this. The most important rule for using social media on a job search is, if you won’t say it in a face to face interview, don’t say it on the internet.
Every time a company comes to me asking about hiring social media talent…
The number one thing they all say is, “they don’t have to have tons of experience, they just need to know how to use the basics.” Not one company has mentioned to me or requested a “personal brand” when they are looking for any kind of talent.
The majority of job seeker success stories I’ve heard and seen have nothing to do with the amount of time someone spent on the internet.
When a candidate tells me they found a job, it’s the best news I could hear! And of course I ask them what they did to get it. The people who are getting the jobs are spending the majority of their time networking with people who are actually working. Going to industry related events, volunteering using their professional skill set, not “over-networking” themselves. They have used their time wisely and though some of them are using social media, they are not using it to beg for work. They are using it to advance themselves as a professional by sharing industry related news and participating in like-minded discussions.
Tip: Watch out for the “lurkers”.
I’m often one of them. Sometimes I don’t have anything to say (yes, shocking, I know) and I will watch what other people are talking about. Just because someone isn’t joining the conversation doesn’t mean they aren’t seeing it. I’ve seen a lot funny and crazy stuff…as I’m sure people have seen coming from me…especially during the #latenightcrowd hours. Again, back to the only rule that matters:
If you won’t say it in an interview, don’t say it online.
{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }
Hmm. So I guess you would know better than I, but as an employer, I’m not sure…
I regularly hire people directly from Twitter (caveat, it’s always been for contract work). I also look to social media to get a sense for someones abilities, grasp of concepts, etc. for community related positions.
“Always hire the better communicator” – Jason Fried. Social Media gives me a great read on that.
I would venture to guess that the people doing the hiring in these cases where it doesn’t matter, don’t get social media themselves.
@Justyn Howard – Thanks for the comment Justyn! I love hearing everyone’s opinions and input. Especially employers!
RE: “Always hire the better communicator” – Jason Fried. Social Media gives me a great read on that.
Very true. But don’t you find that the best communicators are the ones who know how to use communication effectively? Spending too much time using one form of communication doesn’t seem like the best use of someone’s time in any situation.
And yes, you are very correct. Most people doing the hiring do not get social media. …but does anyone really “get it”, or is it just like everything else… an opinion?
Veronica,
These are some very interesting topics and something I’m truly passionate about. I have to highly disagree about social media being a “waste of time” for job seekers.
Social media gives you a voice for personal branding and a very beneficial tool for job seekers. There are many factors that are dependent on what tools you should be using, but with these tools you have the opportunity to stand out against all others that are applying for the same jobs.
I was hired using social media, and yet it was for a social media strategist position, there are thousands of ways to apply social media for the specific position you’re seeking. Yes, Twitter and YouTube, for example, will not help you get hired for every position, but if you utilize them in the correct way to target your audience, you will be successful.
When working in social media, I feel strongly that you need to know more than the “basics” in order to complete a successful strategy for your employer/client. Clients don’t want a social media strategist running their creative social media strategy if all they are capable of doing is the basics. They have hired a social media professional to make them stand out in a creative and unique way.
As for spending time on social media to develop your personal brand, the first place employers go to find out more information about an applicant is Google. If you’re not present on Twitter, LinkedIn or update a personal blog, that employer doesn’t know much about you. If you’re continually updating a personal blog on topics within your industry, potential employers will be very impressed on your dedication and strength within the industry.
Thank you for presenting this interesting topic, Veronica. I could go on for hours on how using social media for networking and personal branding can benefit your professional career.
Have a great Monday!
~@LauraGainor
Funny thing, speaking as a job seeker, I’m in complete disagreement that social media is a waste of time for job seekers.
@Laura Gainor – Laura, excellent reply! You are very correct in many of the points you’ve made. All of them are very applicable to a job seeker who is specifically targeting a role in marketing and using social media to do so. You perfectly described how to use social media as a tool to market yourself. And that is exactly what most people do NOT do. You are the exception.
As a professional recruiter and power networker, I meet people in all types of industries and professions. It is my livelihood to pay attention to what employers are doing as well as job seekers because I work for both sides. We all make comments and write blog posts about how companies and employers don’t understand what social media is, so how are they supposed to hire for it? And this is true. Most companies don’t understand it because they aren’t using it.
But when an employer is hiring for any role….an accountant or a hairdresser….regardless of what that role entails, not every hiring manager knows how to actually do the job they are hiring for. They look at the needs of the business and make their decisions on that first.
This post isn’t just about using social media to find a job in social media. This is for the majority of job seekers that I meet with every week. This is for the job seekers who are throwing themselves on the band wagon of social media because everyone is telling them to and selling it to them.
Laura, I LOVE LOVE LOVE the fact that you know how to use this tool to it’s greatest potential. And I will probably use you as an example to many people I consult with because you really are an exception to what I see everyday in the “offline” world. Not everyone has the same infrastructure and not everyone will “get it” when it comes to using these tools correctly.
When I say that “Social Media Is A Waste Of Time for job seekers”, I’m talking about the 85% of job seekers I meet with regularly that are spending 40 + hours a week using Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook and thinking that this will be the ultimate answer because someone else told them so.
“For $25 you can attend this social media workshop and find a job!”
It’s a bunch of crap and because it’s a desperate time for a lot of people, they will try and buy almost anything.
I wrote this because I know more people who have found jobs by utilizing other resources on their job search and spending less time having conversations on Twitter about a twitpic of my dinner or in a LinkedIn group about my newest entrepreneurial venture.
It’s definitely important to know about these tools and the how’s & why’s people are using them. But the way the job market is right now, I would not recommend full immersion into the social media world if you need a job. I very rarely hear about someone finding a job because they spent all of their time online. I’m not saying it can’t happen, but it is rare.
You are an excellent success story Laura! Super big kudos to you!
@Ed Han – Thanks for the comment Ed. I’d love to hear examples of why you disagree. Especially as a job seeker using social media…do you also have a success story to share like Laura?
Please share! I’d love to hear it and share it with other job seekers as well!
@Veronica –
While I cannot claim the kind of success that Laura does, I find a tremendous amount of great information about job search via Twitter. I think your point, that it’s easy to spend too much time on Twitter or other forms of social media, is a completely valid one, but I cannot go so far as to dismiss the utility of social media entirely. That was what I was understanding from your blog entry. Perhaps I misunderstood, however?
Ed
@Ed Han – You’re right regarding finding great information via Twitter. As well as the wealth of information that is posted in professional blogs and even LinkedIn groups!
But please be careful what information you take in. There are a lot of people who claim to be professionals in human resources and job search who really have no professional education or background in those areas.
This is one of the negatives of social media. It’s easy for people to be anything they want to be online and those of us who are trying to educate ourselves can easily be misguided. Do your research on the person who is providing the information before you accept their advice.
I am in no way dismissing the use of social media as a utility. Other than the title of this post, I’m not sure where that message came across in my writing. But please know, I LOVE social media and am a very heavy user!
The purpose of this post is to get the attention of job seekers and let them know that there is a world offline too and they should not discount it! I’m finding far too many job seekers wasting time on the internet and ignoring other valuable resources that can help them achieve their employment goals.
I got an interview for the job I have now because the recruiter at an ad agency, I had no contacts at otherwise, found me on Twitter and Linkedin and liked what I was putting out there. Maybe social media is a waste of time if a job seeker is spending the entire day on it and not putting out any useful information. But, when used right, it can get you noticed. And that’s one of the hardest parts about job seeking…standing out among the other 500 candidates going for the same job.
@Leah – That is AWESOME news Leah!! Just like @LauraGainor, you have a great success story! My question for both of you would be…
Do you think that because of your industry, you have a better chance of success finding a job using social media?
Example: Professionals in communications, marketing, journalism, public relations would have a better experience than those in operations, accounting, finance, or office management?
This is what I’m seeing from the feedback so far…
I agree with Leah. There’s a difference between spending your entire day on said platforms vs doing it the right way. People tend to think that twitter/facebook feed diarrhea = more people noticing their existence.
It’s an over-said line but always true: quality over quantity!
@Sami – Thanks for reading Sami!! I have to admit, I definitely thought about you as I was writing this post! I thought about how this does NOT apply to people like you!
But as I was telling @LauraGainor in my comment above, at least 85% of job seekers I meet with weekly, are wasting time on social media by being solely dependent on it for their search. And even worse, there are people telling them to do this! That’s why I wrote this.
Veronica, I think there’s a great deal of truth in what you say. I think social media can be a tool, another arrow in your quiver, so to speak. Used wisely, it might be of some help in your job search. At the very least it might help you make a connection or learn something useful that you might not have found elsewhere. But using social media to the exclusion of everything else usually winds up being a colossal waste of time — the same way that limiting a job search to Monster and Careerbuilder will get you nowhere fast.
I’ve always believed that in the end, people are still hired by people, not by websites or Twitter pages.
@Mark Lyons – Thanks for the note Mark! I absolutely LOVE your last remark….
“I’ve always believed that in the end, people are still hired by people, not by websites or Twitter pages.”
So very true!
I would say that the biggest mistake job seekers make with social media is treating it as a short-range strategy for finding employment. Social media is not a great tool for securing interviews, particularly if you have been “on” social networks for less than a year. It works in a similar way as on-ground networking. An effective network takes a lot of time to build and there are many rules of engagement that must be followed so as not to exhaust or irritate those who could help you find a job.
Even though social media isn’t great for securing interviews (unless you’ve been growing and providing value to your network for a long time, perhaps while still employed), it is a great tool to help interested employers get to know you after they’ve decided they like you. For that reason, I think social media is valuable in proportion to the level of job you are seeking. For jobs that require second, third, and fourth interviews, a strong social media presence may be enough to edge out competing job seekers.
The second mistake people often make with social media is failing to engage and provide value to their network. If you’re constantly blogging or posting about your job search, that won’t impress potential employers. What will impress them is demonstrating knowledge and expertise in your niche, having a large and engaged network of professional colleagues, and showing some personality while you’re at it.
On another note, great blog! This is my first time to visit but I’ll be back!