Tweet to land a job

It’s 9 pm and you are still stuck inside your cubicle, juggling multiple files that need to reach the Boss’ table by 8 am sharp the next day. You are having your nth cup of coffee and are wondering how the hell you landed up in that soup. You know this has been going on for too long, and now you are seriously contemplating switching jobs.

In today’s world of cut-throat competition, you know landing another job is not going to be easy. Well, it is not. But how you go about hunting for a job is directly proportional to the amount of time it will take to get one. With the internet boom, networking sites like Twitter and LinkedIn have revolutionised the whole scenario of job search by making it much more convenient and easy. The classifieds in the newspapers now belong to the age of dinosaurs. Once popular site, Monster is also facing the heat. If you think creating an impeccable profile in one of the many job sites and browsing its pages every two hours will gift you a job, and that too soon, then you are in for a sad surprise. The new name of the game is the social networking sites. It is one of the best channels to grab the attention of worthy recruiters, and thus save time. If that wasn’t enough, it’s free too. It’s difficult to get noticed in a sea of similar job seekers who are eyeing the same candy. The solution to this is to be different. A smartly packaged profile, realistic job expectations and a credible resume will demand the attention of potential recruiters.

Facebook and Twitter have changed the very meaning of a social life by making it more virtual. They provide a great platform to meet people, and potential recruiters being one of them. Selecting the appropriate platform to advertise is important. A recruiter might turn to Twitter to recruit younger people, but when seeking employees stained by experience, they are more likely to turn to LinkedIn. Depending upon your job requirements, choose a networking site.

Exploit these sites to your full advantage. To land a job you need much more than LinkedIn connections. You need a direct connection to the company you desire to work for. With a networking site, you can easily check who knows who and who has worked where. Once you can find out a connection between you and the company, you can request introductions or an interview.

Having an impressive online influence will also help you in landing a job. In today’s world, a person’s soft skills, such as his communication ability and organizing power, also play a role in securing a job. Online influence indicates how active you are online, how many blogs you follow and how many people follow your blogs. It also measures how many connections you have and how strong they are. When two candidates of similar aptitude apply for the same post, the deciding factor often depends upon their online skills.

The social networking audience is increasing at an impressive rate every year. Therefore, the opportunities to exploit are huge too. One just needs common sense to judge which site and why would it be beneficial. The patience and the will to comb through and search religiously will surely land in a job sooner than possible. It’s the era of social networking sites and job search…