How To Get A Job Offer On Twitter

By Ashley Stahl, Originally Published in Forbes

If I had to pick the most common word I hear from clients who come to me for job-hunting advice, it would be exhausted.

They are usually burnt out and tired of generating more resume drafts, more cover letters, and more networking emails.

Chances are, if you’re a job seeker, you know this feeling all too well.

…But what if I told you it doesn’t have to be this way?

As a career coach to millennials around the globe, I know that the world we live in is moving away from face-to-face interaction. Society’s shift to digital communications is changing the workplace, and it’s also changing the job-hunting process. Surveys reveal that 94% of recruiters use social media in their recruiting efforts, and at least 78% of recruiters have hired through social media.

If that doesn’t convince you that it’s time to turn to social media, perhaps my testimonial will. In helping job-seekers find their purpose and land more job offers, one of the most powerful platforms I’ve seen for up-leveling the job search is Twitter. Studies confirm what I’ve been witnessing: Twitter has more job openings than any other social media site and more active job seekers than LinkedIn.

The verdict is in: It’s time to get tweeting!

Here are a few tips to get you started:

1. Brand your twitter account in your niche. No more twitter handles that use the words “glitter” or “cupcake” and please, no handles that reference your proclivity for spring break in Cancun, the color pink, or your obsession with Harry Potter. Unless, of course, any of these words directly relate to your brand. The safe bet? Use a handle that is as close to your name (or your business name, if you’re an entrepreneur!) as possible. This cleanup also applies to your tweeting activity: Share high value, high relevance content on a daily basis. (If that sounds too aggressive for your schedule, sign up for a free account on hootsuite and put your tweets on autopilot). The more valuable the content, the more targeted your following will be. It’s important you share content that is highly relevant so you’re seen increasingly as a leading voice in your niche.
2. Create a list of companies you want to work for. The twitterverse is enormous, but don’t try to figure that out for yourself – just take my word for it. Wandering aimlessly through Twitter is not going to help you in your search. It’s noisy and you’re going to get seriously lost doing that. Go in with a clear idea on who you want to connect with, what you want that communication to look like, and what steps you can take to facilitate a phone call or coffee in person.
3. Find a key point of contact in each company. Connecting with the right person is crucial, which means going beyond HR personnel to their more senior counterparts who have the real hiring authority. Try to establish a dialogue with the person who would be your potential boss. For example, if you read a fascinating article by the company’s CEO, consider tweeting at her directly: Even a simple line such as “@FutureBoss fascinating piece in The Atlantic today” and retweeting the article will go a long way in grabbing her attention. The beauty of Twitter lies in the ability to get down to the brass tacks immediately by letting people know what you’re interested in, and showing them that you’re committed to the same objectives through a direct tweet, retweeting content, and favoriting tweets.
4. Support and engage. Once you are supporting your potential future employers on Twitter, the next step is facilitating the opportunity for them to have an interest in you as a candidate. You don’t want to come on too strong, so be patient: Consistent, polite support will pay off eventually. If the person is an engaged member of the Twitter community, he or she will tweet back at you eventually, giving you an opportunity to engage directly and direct message a request for a quick call or cup of coffee. Twitter will get you to that point, but effective cold networking is what carries it into a job offer.
5. Let Twitter guide your search. You can learn a ton on Twitter simply by following conversations about your interests. For example, if you’re a job hunter, you might be interested to know that #hiring is most active on Tuesdays, as are other job-related hashtags such as #InternNeeded, #Careeradvice, #JobHunt, #JobSearch, and #JobTips. Another hashtag, #EntryLevel, is most popular on Wednesdays. Take the time to explore what others are talking about in your field of interest – it may guide you to employers or contacts you wouldn’t have found on your own.

When Twitter’s data team did an assessment of hiring conversations, it found that there are more than 3.5 million hiring-related Tweets per month. Clearly, the potential power of this platform needs to factor into your job hunt.

For those who haven’t spent much time on social media, Twitter can be understandably intimidating. However, don’t wait until you have a big following or a perfectly curated Twitter feed to get started:  your dream job is out there, and it could be yours…for 140 characters or less.

For a FREE course to land a new job you love, launch your dream business, or find your purpose, visit AshleyInternational.com.