You probably already know that recruiters use social media to find and vet great candidates. But while it’s obvious they’re using LinkedIn, many are now also turning to Twitter, because they find it easier to engage with and attract applicants.
And the ones having the most success use tactics to find and socialize with you, gaining your trust before even mentioning their jobs. So, why not turn the tables and use their strategies to grab their attention?
Your mission starts with a simple plan. Where do you want to work? What is the industry? What job title could your boss have? What’s your expertise or passion? Where would your skills be welcome?
Once you’ve mapped out your answers, you’re ready to use these five foolproof recruiter-attraction ways.
1. Look Fabulous
When you follow someone, that person is likely going to hop over and look at your profile. Make a fabulous first impression by being more than just an egg!
The first step? Photos. To make sure that recruiters who are searching for you using Google image search (yep, they do that!) know it’s you, use the same profile picture that you use on LinkedIn. Then, set the scene with a banner image that represents your personal brand. Here in mine, I’m showing that I speak, train, and write and give a hint that they’ll see (many) dog pics!
All you need now is to complete your 160-character bio (hint: mix your professional life with an injection of personality), add your location, and add a link to your LinkedIn profile, your website, or even an online portfolio.
For the icing on your profile, pin a tweet—like I have done with a tweet from The Muse.
2. Share Great Articles
Now that you look great, you want people to see that you know your stuff and share information that they’ll find useful.
Thinking back to your plan, what would recruiters or hiring managers want to read about?
With that in mind, there are lots of places that you can go to find articles related to your industry, business, or desired position to share. My favorites include Swayy, which suggests content based on your community or chosen topics, Klout, which that will show you what’s “hot,” “on target,” or a “hidden gem” in your chosen topics, and Feedly, where you can find all sorts of news and articles and also store and organize your content.
Feedly is my first stop in the morning. Over my coffee, I scan through the most recent content, choose what’s right to attract my preferred followers, and stack up my Buffer. As I mentioned in my article, “5 Chrome Extensions That Will Change the Way You Job Search,” Buffer is a scheduling tool that will drop out your tweets during the course of the day. In one click, you can create your tweet, add hashtags, schedule it, and know that Twitter is still working for you while you’re busy with other things.
3. Share Pictures
These days, Twitter isn’t just about 140 characters—one of the best ways to engage your followers is by using images. See how this tweet from Cloud Nine Recruitment’s image stands out?
Take a page from that playbook, and consider what pictures could you use to show off your talents. A project you’re working on? A marketing campaign you just launched? Though selfies should be used with care, they can be a fun way to show off your environment—for example, if you are giving a presentation, you could show off your audience. You could also use them to show that you’re at industry events, which could even lead you to having an offline conversation with another Twitter user.
If you’re an Instagram fan (and, er, happy to let all of your pictures go out onto Twitter), head to IFTTT and set up the recipe that delivers your pictures as images (not links) onto Twitter. Then, you can make even the most mundane picture look fabulous, add hashtags, and know your snaps will be working hard for you.
4. Find People
So now that you look fabulous and have been sharing some great content, it’s time to find the right people to follow. For that, I suggest my two favorite and free search tools, Manageflitter and Topsy.
In Manageflitter, under Account Search > Refine, you’ll see the option to search Twitter bios. Below is an example of searching for “HR manager” in New York. You could also search for “recruiters” or “talent acquisition.”
The reason I love Manageflitter so much is because when you hover over the results, extra information appears, so you can swiftly ascertain if someone is exactly who you are after and also, importantly, if he or she is using it! Brilliant.
Along similar lines, I use Topsy to search for words in tweets and influencers, which helps you find people who may not have filled out their bios. For example, the image below shows a search for tweets containing “The Muse.”
Go ahead and follow anyone who looks interesting to you—recruiters and hiring managers at your dream companies, people who have jobs you want, and industry leaders can all be helpful as you’re building your presence and connecting with people online. On that note:
5. Build Trust
Here’s the thing about Twitter (or any other social platform, really): You need to keep on top of it all. When you regularly engage, you become known and trusted. And once other users see you as valuable, they’ll likely follow you back, and you’ll be able to communicate more freely by direct message.
The easiest way to keep up with the people you’re following is by creating public lists. This way, you can easily keep up with the people you want to pay particular attention to (read: recruiters), even among the noise of all of the other tweeters you follow. And by going into the list and retweeting their stuff, adding a comment, answering a question, giving a tweet a favorite and so on, you’ll start building trust.
How to do it? On your profile, click More (I’ve circled it on my profile above), then Lists, then “Create a list.” A public list is just that, public, so be careful what you name it! When you add users to a public list, they are notified—but this is a good thing, as it puts you on their radar again. Though you could create a private list, you’d miss this opportunity.
So, there are your five foolproof ways to attract recruiters: Look great, share valuable content, share insight through pictures, follow the right people, and engage with the VIPs by using lists. But remember—that’s just the beginning! To really get noticed and build trust with recruiters and hiring managers, you’ve got to play the long game with your social media efforts. Remember that the goal is to engage with people and build relationships before even mentioning your job search. That’s what recruiters do to find the best candidates—so turn the tables and do it yourself.