Where do you go to look for jobs or networking opportunities online? Most people automatically think of great sites like LinkedIn or Indeed; however, a growing number of people are turning to Twitter. Twitter is now being heralded as the best job search tool you probably aren’t using.
How can you harness the power of this social media powerhouse? Well, we aren’t encouraging you to tweet out a 140-character version of your resume, but we are encouraging you to become more familiar with site functions which can be very helpful when job searching.
Use Built-in Search Tools
Type keywords into the search bar to source job openings. You can type in a location plus the word “hiring” to get a broad overview of positions in your desired area.
However, an even better way to look is to search using hashtags. Hashtags quickly help you find available opportunities; even better, they alert you to companies and/or people who are tweeting using that hashtag. Remember the importance of using career and industry specific hashtags as well. Some popular hashtags to use in your job search include:
#sciencecareers
#stemjobs
#sciencejobs
#PhDJobs
#SciencePhD
#Hiring
#NowHiring
#Jobs
#Careers
#TweetMyJobs
#JobPosting
#ITJobs
#TechJobs
#Freelance
Start Following
If you have specific companies/organizations you are interested in, then you should start following their main account. On top of this, try to follow other people in your field of interest whether that includes industry leaders, publications, job forums or even recruiters. This can also be a great way to stay in the loop regarding recent news or business developments, which might alert you to possible job openings.
Stay Organized
Most Twitter users use it for both personal and professional purposes. If it helps, you can create new lists in which to add people. These lists can be either public or private and you can add as many users to them as you like. Clicking on a list gives you a quick snapshot of tweets from just those added individuals and companies. This can be a great way to help organize the often chaotic and continuously updated feed in the Twittersphere.
To add or remove people from your lists:
- Click the gear icon drop down menu on a user's profile.
- Select Add or remove from lists. ...
- A pop-up will appear displaying your created lists. ...
- To check to see if the user you wanted to add was successfully included in that list, navigate to the Lists tab on your profile page.
