Using Social Networking to Develop a Professional Online Presence as a Graduate Putting LinkedIn under the spotlight Sue Beckingham Sheffield Hallam University Used, with permission

Social use of Social Networking Tools

Think about the Digital Identity and Footprints you leave behind

 Raise your privacy settings on Facebook  Don’t disclose personal information  Be careful what you share + who you share it with Initial Tips

What do we mean by a professional online presence? values and personal commitment skills and abilities knowledge and understanding

Why would you want to use LinkedIn?

The key professional networking tool the corporate office the water cooler the staff canteen the bar

 LinkedIn is in the Top 20 most visited websites in the world  Nearly 4.2 billion people searches on LinkedIn LinkedIn Demographics

 150+ million members worldwide  students and recent graduates - fastest growing demographic  34m members in Europe  9m+ members in the UK  Company presence  2m+ companies have a page  LinkedIn Groups  18 million members LinkedIn Demographics

personal rolodex LinkedIn

The Employer Perspective

Take note…. an unprofessional profile can be more damaging than not having one at all.

! will find you! Be mindful of how people search for information

LinkedIn ranks highly!

What happened in Vegas, stays on Facebook!

Job applicant screening using social networks

What Employers are saying All our applicants are ‘Googled’ during the screening process We use LinkedIn to recruit for internships We actively use the people search in LinkedIn for applicants Applicants have been rejected based on information found online

 Who will look at your online profile?  What do people want to know about you?  Where will they use this information?  Why is your profile important?  When and how often do you update it?  How will you use your profile to your advantage? Questions to consider

Developing your professional online profile

Think about the key search words employers would use if they were:  looking for people with skills in your field  looking for graduates, interns or students for work placements Keywords

Building your profile #1 Check the privacy settings and options Whilst developing your profile you can opt to make it private until you are ready to share it

Building your profile #2 Use keywords Think about the keywords you would use in a search and include relevant ones within your profile so that people searching for your expertise can find you. Include in your headline, current and past work experiences, summary and specialities

Building your profile #3 Complete your profile

Building your profile #4 Include a picture

Building your profile #5 Customize your profile URL Add to your signature, blog, business cards

Building your profile #6 Include volunteering experience

Building your profile #7 Add your skills Consider the keywords employers might use to search for graduates and internships

Building your profile #8 Ask for recommendations Consider: Employers Club and organisation leaders Parents of friends

Building your profile #9 Build you connections is NOT Quality not Quantity

Building your profile #10 Be a Gardener Career networking on Your initial steps will include seeking career advice and information helpful for refining your job search and building a network is an iterative process

A minimalistic approach to you r profile might be fine for Mark Zuckerberg but potential employers want to know about you! Better to take a leaf out of Reid Hoffman’s book

Exploring LinkedIn beyond your profile page

Developing new contacts

People search A good way to find the head of any company

People search

Search for Companies

Follow Companies

Groups search Join Groups or create your own

Additional useful LinkedIn tools

Student internships and graduate job opportunities

LinkedIn Cardmunch

To be aware of

The LinkedIn Apply Button Companies can add this to their job page on the company website Applicants are asked to submit a link to their LinkedIn profile

Developing your online brand

Developing your brand

Michael Warshafsky Creative ways to showcase work experience

Jonathan

Think about other Social Networking tools you could also use

Considerations

Considerations Standing out from the crowd

“Social Media gives more people a voice and provides a powerful tool for value creation and competitive differentiation” Advanced Human Technologies 2010

“Your brand isn’t what you say, it is, it’s what Google says it is…” It has the power to influence people to invest (or divest) in you. (Joel 2009)

“Social Media gives more people a voice and provides a powerful tool for value creation and competitive differentiation” Don’t underestimate the value of YOUR Professional Online Presence

Sue Beckingham Educational Developer Sheffield Hallam