Any job seeker knows that a paper résumé is not enough anymore. Internet is the prime source of job offers as well as candidate profiles: this is a unique place where recruiters and candidates can meet, without geographical boundaries or time frames. If you are looking for a job, the web is the place to be. The first objective is to publish your professional profile and build your network. But the final objective is the one to keep in mind: find a job!
It is essential to promote your online profile, therefore your résumé, efficiently and to the right people. The most straightforward way is to send direct messages to your connections. Let people within your community know that you are looking for a job. But what if nobody within your community can help you? You need to get the word out: outside of your initial network, even more so if you are unemployed or if you do not fear your current employer to know.
Twitter is an amazing tool for job search. If you've been reading companies' tweets, you know some of them are already tweeting job offers. Some brand's accounts are even dedicated to jobs; they tweet only job offers and invite candidates to tweet their applications. What are you waiting to tweet yours?
Careful though: Twitter has very particular and with specific codes. Before tweeting out, you must know these codes, and get accustomed to communicate your content in 140 characters at the most.
But first things first: what the heck does tweetsumé mean? My simple definition of "tweetsumé" would be "to tweet a résumé" or "to post your résumé on Twitter." Twitter is a social network very different from all the others in the way that it allows to share content with a lot of people. The first concern is then: can I share my résumé, or at least my willingness to find a job on social networks in general, and on Twitter more precisely? I'd say "yes, we can!"
1. Is it appropriate?
If you are seeking a new position, you would share the information on Linkedin or Viadeo, maybe also on Facebook depending on the quality of your network, i.e. the potential help your friends can provide you with. The objective is to find a job; the means is to spread the word!
Tweeting your resume is an option worth trying if you feel confident sharing with the world your willingness to find a job (if you are unemployed) or even a new job (if you don't care about your current employer finding out). Twitter is a growing tool that job seekers utilize for broadcast application, or mass résumé distribution. Why? Because it is not intrusive; if people do not want to pay attention to what you are saying, they can! But these people are thus not your target
2. How do I reach my target audience then?
Your audience will first naturally be the ones who are interested in you, and therefore, the ones you are paying attention to you and your tweets. But this existing audience may not be enough.
The first trick is the most obvious one: study the markets, the industries, and the companies you wish to integrate. Start following the firms you are interested in, their competitors, clients, partners, and mentors. Follow the news reports and journals from the industry and pay attention to the keywords! These keywords will be the hashtags your target audience is using on Twitter. These hashtags will be the keywords you should be using to reach your target audience. Ok... Great, and now what?
3. How should I tweet my résumé?
The advantage of Twitter is that, as long as your profile is public, your tweets can reach many people from all other the world if you use the right timing and the appropriate keywords. However, the constraint with Twitter is that you are limited to 140 characters, not enough for meaningless information. Drop the noise and focus on your value proposition!
4. How should I write my tweet-résumé or tweetsumé then?
Define your value proposition with quick and easy steps:
- Job title: state the job title you are currently holding, or seeking. If you are applying for a specific position, state the one used by the firm in the job offer.
- Main skills: express your value by sharing your strongest and most relevant skills, in relation to the position you are applying for. If you are seeking an event planner position, you can write "multi-tasking, budget & time mgt" (the shorter the better here...)
- Location: outline where you are from, where you are now, or where you wish to relocate, according to what matters the most for you, or for the position. If you want to highlight the fact that you are Irish, include "Irish" in your title. If you want to highlight the fact that you want to work in California, make sure to add "CA".
- Link to your résumé: this is the most important step! Do not forget that 140 characters are not enough to describe you. You should therefore forward your audience toward your complete profile or résumé.
The way you choose to link your résumé is very personal and depends on the type of position, or industry you wish to get in:
- If you wish to keep it simple, you can link to your Pdf résumé saved online on platforms such as box.com, or even via dropbox.com.
- If you want to promote your online profile, link people to your Linkedin or equivalent account.
Careful: make sure your profile is open so that recruiters do not find a closed door! - If you intend to be creative, link recruiters to a Power Point résumé via Slideshare.com, or even a video résumé on Youtube.com. Barney Stinson's advice!
5. How do I keep it short? Shorten your links!
Links can be very long and you need to keep them as short as possible as they actually do not say much by themselves. Shorten your links via bit.ly, goo.gl, or tiny.cc. You do not need to be registered to shorten links.
But: if you want to keep track of traffic, register and access the statistics of your links. It is actually a great way to identify which tweet, and which link, works best.
6. How do I keep it focused?
- Use keywords. Add the "#" sign in front of your keywords, and you get the Twitter hashtags! These hashtags categorize the tweets and help users screen the tweets in relation to their interests. If you are looking for a job in the mobile industry, insert "#mobile" into your tweet.
- Address your target audience. If you are applying directly to a company, talk to them. For instance, if you wish to work for Google, start your tweet with "@Google".
- Give instructions. Tell people to contact you or to retweet (only if you are not tweeting to a specific person).
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