Social media had become an essential part of modern lives over the past few years. We use it to interact and connect with our friends and family and update the world on life events. Some of you might not be aware, but social media can also be used as an opportunity for career and professional development. Regardless of whether you are a recent graduate or a professional in your field seeking a new job opportunity, social media can significantly boost your chances of landing a job. 

It is also a vital tool used by many recruiters and those who are social media savvy have recognised this trend to use it to their advantage of getting hired. Other than showing off your skills on LinkedIn or your online following on Twitter, social media also humanises the recruitment process as its projects your personality to you potential employer. Employers are always actively looking for candidates online, and what they find will help determine who they would want to hire.

Below we have listed some great way you can make the best use of social media to enhance your career prospects. 

Create a Strategy

Conduct a systematic research on companies in your industry and formulate a strategy for how you can connect with them and show off your skills. With a strategy you will start seeing the results you want by targeting the right kind of audience in the most appropriate way. This will also allow you to save time, especially if your are already employed. Your job-hunting will be  going even more successful if you know which platforms. are the most popular in your industry, how you will use them, what you want to achieve from them. 

Many companies use social media in different way, so find out which ones they are more active on. If you’re a designer, architect or a creative specialist you can make use of social media platforms like Pinterest, Tumblr and Instagram to promote and displays your projects. Platforms like LinkedIn Twitter and Facebook are great to network and follow the leaders of your industries. 

Cultivate a Personal Image

You should know how to skilfully use social media to build up a personal brand or image that you would want employers to recognise about you. You can do this by paying attention to the details on your profile, and also how you can display image, videos, interact with people and also your own personal blogs.  To enhance your online persona focus on the blogs, articles and posts that you share as these are great indicators of your interests and goals. You can also make use of the choice of colours, designs and logos on your social media to best reflect who you are. 

Showing  how interested you are about your industry and career and being up to date with the latest information and trends immediately catches the eye of the employer. They are looking to employ people who are knowledgable and passionate about their work and have good work ethics. 

Network 

One of the biggest assets of using social media is having the opportunity to network with people online. Throughout the use of a smart device or laptop, you are able to build professional relationships and connections from anywhere in the world.  Having good relationships and leaving positive impressions online can also lead to being invited for interviews and be recommended. 

Networking online is a great tool for freelancers  to use as they can find opportunities and work with other professionals in a similar location and arrange meet-ups. You can make use of your network to approach people if you have any career related problems and also to give advice and tips to others. The more well known you are within your networks, the more it displays a trustworthy image to other professionals. 

Enhance your knowledge 

We have established the fact that social media is a great way to learn more about companies and to find jobs in your field. Many time companies post articles and information on their social media platforms about event or anything new happening with the company. It is good that you are actively reading and researching the latest trends and news in your industry and you can do this through online social media platforms. 

The knowledge and being up to date with the latest information can help you understand if a particular company is one that you would want to be a part of and also give you an advantage during the interview process.