As more and more businesses find utility in using Twitter for company growth and promotion, there are still many doubtful people.
Twitter, to the common person who does not understand it, is nothing more than a “status update,” a place for people to showcase their personal lives and share with the world useless details that seem insignificant and pointless. For example, “Reading a Cosmo on my porch”
I have recently found myself having to explain more often, how Twitter is used for business purposes… and it has not been an easy task. Throughout my explanations however, I have come upon the fundamental difference between a personal and business twitter account.
The main difference is in the question that is being answered:
Personal: “What are you doing?”
Business: “What valuable knowledge do you have to share with the people in your industry?”
Rephrasing the question changes the focus and purpose of a Twitter account and makes its goals more clear and defined. It also changes the results and products of twittering and what someone can get out of their twitter account, including but not limited to:
- The value of the connections made
- The reputation that is created
- The expectations of ones followers
- The type of people that will follow
I have found this to be the key in explaining the use and value that Twitter can bring to a business setting.
Any thoughts?
Starting out in social media…. the question on my mind is how? As I read and research I find that many people are trying to answer this very question and have created their name and online identity around their answers. So where does that leave the rest of us… and where does that leave me?
Everyday I find new articles that give “10 Tips on Twitter” or “5 mistakes to avoid when using Linked In”…. whether it comes in 5, 10, 15 or 20, lessons to be learned are every where… but the question remains… HOW (with all these tips and tricks) do I start my journey into social media? Well, over the course of reading all of these articles, I have come across one constant: ADD VALUE…. It’s as easy as that… (kidding) It’s true though… if you create value for someone, they will read/listen or watch, whatever you put out there.
I read an article today entitled, “7 Ways to Land Great Consulting Work While in Between Jobs” and one of these 7 points got me thinking.
The first point in the article was: “Figure out what you’re good at”
So, the question is: What am I good at?
This I sat on for a while and after thinking about it, I finally decided that I am good at finding useful information. Also, when I find something useful, I LOVE to share it with others… I know what you’re saying… Twitter… BUT… Twitter is sooo fast paced that my useful findings get lost in the crowd and really don’t get all the attention they deserve. Conclusion? Include things I find interesting and stuff I think is worth re-sharing with the world right on my blog… Hey, why not?!
Here are some great articles I found today about entrepreneurship worth taking a look at… even more so now, because so many people are convinced that in this economy entrepreneurship is completely out of the question. Here is to optimism:
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The Job Search: Redefined
People across the world are struggling in their new found career as “job seekers” and the competition is tough! Not only is the competition for jobs tough, the old way of applying for jobs is outdated and much less effective. There is no guarantee that sending out a knockout resume and cover letter is even going to catch a second glance. Web 2.0 has changed the way people interact, meet each other, go about their job search and most importantly, the way hiring managers are making their decisions. There are two main points that have caused these changes; one, we are living in a Web 2.0 world and your 2.0 Identity can and will be found by potential employers and two, this is no time to blend in with the crowd. If you want to get a job, you’re going to have to stand out which, is not something easily achieved with a cover letter/resume combo. Whether you realize it or not, with the accessibility of information on the Internet today, and as a job seeker, you are being judged on much more than the email attachments you send to hiring managers.
So the question is, “What is your 2.0 Identity and what can you do to stand out professionally using Web 2.0?”
Your 2.0 Identity
First, consider your 2.0 Identity and how you represent yourself online. Who you are and what you do is your personal identity, which is unique to you and only you, however, when you post your personal information online, you are creating a 2.0 Identity with online and interactive capabilities.
As a job seeker, it is important to create your 2.0 Identity in a way that it stands out from the rest of the crowd and gains recognition. One way to increase your recognition is to sync your 2.0 Identity across the board of social networks. From a marketing perspective, marketers want to promote their brand using a solid campaign strategy; one that relates their message clearly and will reach their target audience.
Think of it this way, if every bag of Doritos came inside a bag that looked dramatically different from the other and half the flavors came in boxes instead of bags, it would be much less obvious to see what a strong brand Doritos is and how much dominance they have in the chip industry, in fact, their brand would probably not hold the share they do now if the above were true.
This same idea translates to your 2.0 Identity. Having connectivity among all of your social networking profiles builds a strong 2.0 strategy and paints a clearer picture of who you are to potential employers. That being said, manage your online content so that employers are reading what you want them to read. Having a Linked IN profile attached to a Facebook account with a picture of you from last weekend’s kegger is not only creating an identity split between the two networks, it is also sending the wrong message to potential employers.
Tips to creating a strong 2.0 Identity:
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Use the same picture, preferably a professional one, across all sites
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Link your profiles together (i.e. put a link to your blog in your Twitter bio)
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Use privacy settings to ensure the content being viewed by employers is appropriate Facebook has come out with phenomenal privacy setting that let you categorize your contacts into various groups. Use group titles such as, friends, family, and co-workers to specify the content accessible by each
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Use status updates as personal advertisements informing people of things like, what you are doing to advance yourself professionally, industry updates or personal insights your network will find valuable
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What’s the first thing you want people to think when they see your name? Just like in a marketing campaign, create your 2.0 Identity tagline and use associated keywords to get your message across.
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For example, if you want to be know as a technical guru, choose keywords related to your unique combination of capabilities (i.e. Ruby on Rails, Java, etc)
Getting Creative
Once your 2.0 Identity is polished and your “online brand” is ready to hit the shelves, it’s time to think of creative launch techniques. Hiring managers get hundreds of resumes a day and the only thing that differs is the format and font they come in. Imagine being in their shoes; wouldn’t you jump at the chance to review a candidate based on something more interesting, visually stimulating and creative?
How Will You Get Noticed?
The more you do as a person, job seeker, candidate and potential employee to differentiate yourself beyond the standard resume template, the more attention your application will receive. The question is, “How can I differentiate myself?” the answers to which are many with new techniques emerging daily. However, starting somewhere is better than not using the advantages of web 2.0 and your already extensive involvement, at all.
Techniques to differentiate yourself:
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Create a visual resume and send it as a pdf attachment alongside your normal resume (Include things like slides from a knock-out presentation you put together, photos from a recent ad campaign you put together or demonstrate your Photo Shop skills by including a sample)
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Add a link to your blog or attach a recent article you wrote relating to the industry you’re applying for
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Want to show off your great leadership skills? Include a video, picture or document that represents the results achieved by a group you recently led
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Fed-Ex a paper copy of your resume, unfolded, to the person you would be directly reporting to for a position you are interested in
- The internet may have decreased the boundaries of communication but with so much spam and so many resumes filling email folders, nothing says “Look At Me,” quite like a crisp 81/2”X 11” envelope first thing in the morning
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Use what you know your advantage by sending your potential employers links to your profiles on various social media websites; show them you have nothing to hide
Have a personal success story or technique you’re dying to add to the list? Let’s hear it!
Overwhelmed by everything 2.0? I must say, having been on Facebook already, for over 4 years, even I was hit hard by what the Internet has become with the evolution of 2.0! Researching social media can be a daunting task which leaves you feeling like you were dropped into the middle of an ocean! It’s hard to believe how much there is to learn and if you feel like you’re in the dark about everything, you know the first thing you feel after turning on the lights, in the middle of the night, is the sting.
However, as with anything new, you just have to keep trudging; read article after article and make a commitment to research various aspects of the subject of interest, in this case social media networks such as Twitter, Linked IN, etc, and it will take about three days before things feel like they’re falling into place.
So lets tackle Twitter first, because its adoption is quick and easy. The most important decision to make before getting on Twitter is to answer a very simple question: WHY? Without a strategy you can’t get results so its important to think about what you want out of you’re Twitter experience so you can begin planning HOW you can get it.
Answer the question: “Why should I be on twitter?”
Do you want to:
- Increase your professional network in the ________ industry?
- Find new clients?
- Target a segment of consumers?
- Become a leader in your industry?
There are many ways to answer this question of “why” and no one answer is better than another, as long as your objectives are clear. After your goals are set, the next step is to figure out HOW to achieve those goals.
Identify Your Ideal Follower:
Think of Twitter in terms of a town of people. Now, say you want to run for the Vice President position at the towns local Lions Club. Who would you contact? You could reach out to the current members of the Lions Club who will ultimately be voting on the VP position, set up personal meetings with the most influential members of the club in order to gain their support in hopes that they spread the word to others, or you can target the new members who have not had very much experience with the organization and who don’t already have a heavy lean to vote one way over the other. The process just described seems quite obvious doesn’t it? Well, it’s the same process that you should apply on Twitter! Twitter is nothing more than a group of people with various interests, expertise and goals and it is your job to find the people who can ultimately help you achieve your goals while at the same time helping others achieve theirs.
To begin your Twitter adventure, identify the people you want to connect with and start following them. When you begin following someone they are immediately notified and will usually look at your profile in return. If they think you are interesting, see you are in the same industry as they are or that you could potentially be a valuable addition to their network, they will follow you back. This is how you build your network. However, just because you captured their initial attention doesn’t mean it’s going to last.
Add Value For Your Followers:
It is just as easy to un-follow someone as it is to follow them. As in the example of the town, common sense tells you that just notifying someone that you are running for a position is not enough to secure their vote. You have to tell them WHY they should vote for you, WHAT you will do for them and HOW you will do it. If you do a good job of showing people how you can HELP them and gain their trust, chances are, they will vote for you!
Now back to Twitter: How will you convince your followers to trust you? This is done by adding valuable content that your followers want and need. This content can be in the form of links to articles, valuable insight you have on the area of your expertise, or links to other valuable resources from industry leaders.
The Twitter strategy is one that requires time but because it is such a fast paced social network, what you put into it is what you get in return. If you tweet once a week, your results will be very slow but if you dedicate 10 minutes a few times a day to Twitter, you will soon see how fast information spreads!
Building Your Network:
Once the ball starts rolling and your followers increase, you will begin to make contacts and interact with the people you were initially interested in finding. These people will start getting to know you and you will start getting to know them and at that point you have to put your networking skills to use. How would you approach someone you met at a conference or a person you started talking to in the grocery line?… Human interaction is made easy by Twitter but, in the end, it is still human interaction.
Similar to when you first meet someone in person, you want to create rapport with others on twitter and show them that you’re a good twitter citizen who contributes in positive and resourceful ways. Once you build that rapport, you can guide your network to better helping you achieve your original goals, whether it be by linking them to your latest blog post or to your website, your network will be more likely to advance on your efforts.
So I’m here! I finally made it into the blog world!… Seems like only a natural progression after diving into social media, but usually the last to take. First, Facebook (4+ years ago) then Linked IN, Next, Twitter and last but NOT least… Blogging!
But blogging is a whole new cup of coffee. There is no real guidance like facebook and Linked IN; there are no directional arrows guiding me to write about myself “here” or listing my favorite books “there”, and there’s no space where my favorite quotes belong or an easy button to click if I want to ”add a new position.” No… blogging is much more of an art… I would describe it as going from paint by numbers to an oil painting and if you’re familiar with both these mediums you know that it requires a huge leap… in many cases, years of training and fine tuning of skills, not to mention equipment and natural talent.
So if I’m here… and have finally decided to take on this blogging challage would it be fair to say I have fine tuned MY skills and deem myself credible enough to blog? Just as with an oil painting… you can’t determine much from the first stroke. Never the less, I intend on grabbing this metaphorical ”blogging paint brush” and getting my hands dirty.
