It is no secret that social media is all the rage these days. Pretty much every company now has at least a Facebook page, if not a Twitter account as well. Many employee’s are taking to LinkedIn to network and companies are using it to recruit. Some companies even have a presence on other social networks such as YouTube, Pinterest, FourSquare and Google+.
That being said, it is amazing how many college senior’s and recent graduates in the communications field take such a half-hearted approach to their social media presence.
Do you need to be present on every social network known to mankind? No.
On a side note: The more social networks you are familiar with, the more valuable you are to a potential employer.
But you do need to make the most of your presence on the social networks you do choose to join. Here are a few “must-do’s” to make the most of your social media presence:
Clean up your images. It is okay to have a few tasteful images involving alcohol, but you can cut out the one of you doing a keg stand at a toga party from your sophomore year.
Filter your thoughts before you share. Being in communications (especially PR), learning to filter is a must. Sure you may have strong opinions about a certain political figure or religion, but posting it on Facebook (or any social media site) for the world to see could backfire. It is okay to engage in discussion on touchy subjects, but make sure your tone isn’t belittling, ignorant or aggressive.
The minimum will not cut it. I am shocked at how many people on LinkedIn have only filled out the very basic of their profile. Your profile needs to have a professional picture, your career-related job experience with official titles and a description of what kind of work you do (Just like your résumé). The more detailed and informative it is, the more it will help you.
Be consistent. Social media, especially Twitter, is not something you can jump on once a week and expect to reap any benefit from. You must engage your audience everyday to build a solid foundation of consistency and reliability for your audience and potential audience. If you follow 70 celebrities on Twitter, have six people following you and have only tweeted five times in the last six months, why are you even on there? Twitter is an excellent tool for keeping up with news and trends in the industry, networking and building your reputation in the field. Otherwise, you might as well not even have an account.
What other “must-do’s” would you add to this list?
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