Networking

Twitter: Tweet tool for recruiting

Wendy Terwelp Leave a comment

By Peter Gray for Recruiter’s World:

Have you noticed that last year’s best sourcing tools are already losing their luster? Are Craigslist, LinkedIn, and Doostang are losing their punch? Well, someone once again “Moved Our Cheese,” as Spencer Johnson would put it. Here is where the cheese has gone:

Twitter http://twitter.com/ Twitter is possibly the next great “happening” on the web. It is a micro-blog that works in a similar fashion to Facebook or LinkedIn section “what are you doing now” Twitter only allows users to post a few words, yet they update constantly via computer, blackberry, mobile phone, etc. It is addictive and users do CONSTANTLY update. Posts range from “eating pasta,” to “waxing the car” to “looking for a new job” to “getting ready to paint the house, ugg.” Many more uses to come once I get my head around this tool but for now we can post, for example, “looking for an Application Architects in Stamford ”

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Networking: What do you do? Name ONE thing.

Wendy Terwelp Leave a comment

Today I read a terrific article by Liz Ryan – “Personal Branding in Slashtown” about people who want to be all they can be – and tell the world. I’m a blogger/career coach/personal brand strategist/rock star, and… Yeah. Hard for one person to take all that in, right?

Her point, which is right on the money, is that you’ve got to decide who you are and communicate that – not everything all at once. It’s confusing to the listener.

I worked with a client making a career transition, and we worked hard on creating a dynamic brand-driven sound bite that gets attention, without overwhelming the listener.

Picking one thing can be tough, but it’s important. As my client first said, working through the exercise, “It’s like my whole career – skills, experience, knowledge is summed up in this one project. It just doesn’t feel right.”

That may be true, however, in networking, and asking your friends, etc. “who do they know,” it is important to be clear and focused. Sharing ONE story helps people get an idea of what you can do for someone. It also helps them easily share your story with their connections. They become your personal sales force.

Aha! Yep, she networked like a rock star after that and made several connections, which led to interviews.

Challenge: Create your sound bite. Be focused. Here’s a link to a step-by-step strategy: Personal Branding Sound Bite.

Back up your LinkedIn now – or else

Wendy Terwelp Leave a comment

Well, Jason Alba sure is on a roll. One of his readers’ LinkedIn account got deleted – and she could not recover it! I don’t know about you, but if you’ve got great connections and awesome recommendations like mine: www.linkedin.com/in/wendyterwelp take action on Jason’s tips now!

Here they are:

Here are two absolute must-do’s, right now, on LinkedIn – and they will take less time than it takes to read this blog post (so do it now!):

  1. Export your contacts. Simply click on Contacts, scroll down to the bottom of the screen and click on Export Connections, and follow that process. Just leave everything at default and you’ll end up with your connections in a .csv file, which opens in Excel.
  2. Export your profile. You’ve probably put a fair amount of thought into creating your profile, right? What about any references you have gotten? Simply click on Profile, then find the grayed-out icons above your name, and click on the adobe pdf icon. This exports your profile, including recommendations, into a very nice, presentable document (kudos to whoever at LinkedIn did that formatting, it is very well-done!). Here’s an image of where the icon is:

These are the two most important things for me to grab, if I knew my LinkedIn account might go away. (1) Who I connected with, which includes e-mail addresses very every single contact, (2) my recommendations (I can always rethink and recreate a profile, but those recommendations are priceless!).

You can follow the rest of Jason’s story about this here.

Always on the lookout for a new gig? Keep your network up to date

Wendy Terwelp 1 Comment

Constantly on the make – for a new job that is.

More than half the executives (57 percent) in a 2007 survey were actively searching for a job or preparing for one, and 75 percent of surveyed execs (average annual salaries of $197,000) were unhappy with their jobs, according to ExecuNet, an executive recruiting and networking company that did the research.

Yet, here’s what happens. We get too busy to retain, rebuild, and remain connected with our networks. And when it comes time to look for a job, that’s when we hit our network hard. No more begging!

Get reconnected NOW if you’ve let your network lapse. Here are five things you can do RIGHT NOW to reconnect – and they take less than five minutes. Yes, really. Networking is no longer a two-hour lunch.

1. Send an email with an article you know is relevant to your connection. Just today I reconnected with a recruiting solutions director pal by sending an article link on his fave topic, employer branding.

2. Send a card. E-cards are fine, real cards are even better.

3. Make a 5-minute call. Ask about THEM. What’s the latest? How are their kids? Set up a time to have a real conversation.

4. Get on LinkedIn and add some new people by sending out quick invitations.

5. Update your contact list! Who’s still hot, who is not? Get it on a system. Here’s a free networking database: JibberJobber.

Want more tips on networking? Check out our Opportunity Knocks newsroom right here: www.knocks.com/news.html – under Networking.

 

 

Create your brand online and get hired faster

Wendy Terwelp Leave a comment

Abridged: Kiplinger.com

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The last time Phylise Banner looked for a job, the job market was much different. And as someone who designs online distance-learning programs for a living, she knows the world has changed since she last pounded the pavement. “This is a different type of search,” says Banner. “I’m trying to create my own online agency to promote myself.”Banner maintains a profile on several social-networking sites, including a popular online address book that, can broadcast her job-seeking status to anyone keeping up with her comings and goings. Banner is ahead of a big curve. “Job seekers today don’t realize the extent to which social networks are a good tool to reach someone inside the corporation you’ve targeted,” says Gerry Crispin, a corporate-recruiting consultant at CareerXroads.

On her website, Banner has posted the full text of her resume, seeded with key words she’s researched for her industry. Time is still of the essence in a job search — it just moves quicker these days. Be among the first to know when a job opens up by also setting up automatic searches on job search engine sites. They’ll spider other sites, then send alerts to your e-mail address.

 

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Want more tips to crank up your brand online?

Check out: http://www.knocks.com/Social_Networking_Course.html.