Keppie Careers

Social media speaker, social media consultant, job search coach

Archives for 2009

Why you should be on Facebook

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Yesterday, I shared some ideas to get you thinking about using Facebook as a professional networking outlet, inspired by THIS POST by Sarah Welstead, a Recruitment Marketing Consultant who works with Head2Head and RetiredWorker. She really nails down some great reasons to re-look at Facebook.

Today, the definitive…Why you should be using Facebook. (Also inspired by Sarah. Bold – her thoughts, commentary is my own.)

The ‘fun’ value will help you stay motivated

Let’s face it…Updating your LinkedIn profile really isn’t that much fun. How often do you get sucked into spending hours on LinkedIn, just for the heck of it? Contrast it with Facebook. Admit it- you could click around for hours, if only you had time. Or, maybe you do already. As Welstead says in her post, “If you’re already on Facebook, it’s way easy to use it for building your professional profile!”

Facebook delivers better-quality relationships

Think about this. Have you seen pictures of your LinkedIn network’s kids or dogs? How close of a bond do you really feel with them? Contrast to Facebook. Welstead makes a good point about quality over quantity: You may have a smaller network on Facebook – in fact, the BBC says that 150 is the ideal number of Facebook friends, …but because you’re able to have more meaningful interactions, with more people, on a daily basis, those contacts are likely to deliver more ROI in the long run than 1000+ LinkedIn connections.

Bonus tip from Sarah: “People are always more likely to trust someone they’ve known since Grade 8 than someone they’ve met at work, even if they haven’t talked to them since high school.  So rekindling an old relationship will always be easier than forging a new one.”

Another stat from Welstead: At least 50% of your contacts aren’t using LinkedIn!

You want to cast the widest net possible, and the numbers show that Facebook has the most people. I have a friend who is skeptical about all of these social networks. She badmouths them left and right and never hesitates to make fun of the Facebook fanatics. But, guess what? She has a profile there now. The pressure was too much for her! She finally realized that there are some nice results from being able to see pictures of people she cares about but has no interest in talking to! You can’t find her on LinkedIn, though, so don’t even try!

How many friends do YOU have like that? You don’t want to miss opportunities by “poo poo-ing” Facebook.

Facebook is a better ice-breaker

If you connect with your old pals, the nostalgia factor is likely to kick in and it’s just easier to start a conversation. Who is going to argue with that?

Facebook helps you stay top-of-mind with the people who are most invested in you and your career

Update your status, share your expertise, and you may be surprised how many people pay attention. A reminder – this is not a suggestion to run to Facebook, set up a profile and link to old friends for the purpose of asking if anyone has any job leads. Build a network, share information, connect with old friends and THEN, if there is a good opportunity, you can share your needs. Give before you expect to take. Don’t forget, most people don’t think they can help a jobseeker, so if you go “out” as one, you may find that networking does not work for you.


While you’re at it, be sure to become a fan of Keppie Careers on Facebook…I’d be thrilled to have you as part of the community!
So, what are your favorite social networks? Do you like Facebook? Do you have success stories? I would love to hear from you in the comments and would consider writing about some successes!
If you need help mobilizing your networks and your job search plans, learn more about how I can help you!

photo by Brian Veloso

Facebook for your job hunt?

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FBfriendwheel693439830_51fcf34cc4_mI don’t write very much about using Facebook for your job hunt. Why? Honestly, it’s not my favorite social network. I’m a bit of a Twitter fanatic, and LinkedIn is an obvious social networking tool for job seekers. I usually say that Facebook is my #3 “go-to” social network for job seekers.

That said, you may have read recently that Facebook has reached over 300 million users. We know that, if it were a country, it would be the world’s 4th largest. My friend Dan Schawbel tweeted stats that LinkedIn just hit 50 million users and Twitter has ~20 million.

So, it would be unwise to ignore how job seekers can mobilize their Facebook networks for professional networking. That’s why I was so excited to read THIS POST by Sarah Welstead, a Recruitment Marketing Consultant who works with Head2Head and RetiredWorker. She really nails down some great reasons to re-look at Facebook.

Some of her points? (In bold – commentary is mine.)

Just because it’s ‘fun’ doesn’t mean it’s not ‘productive.’

Au contraire, mon frere. (Ah, Facebook reminds me of high school – just something my old friend used to say!) How amazing is it that something that is a “guilty pleasure” for some can actually be useful! How is it useful to reconnect with old high school (or grade school!) friends? Read on…

Still a ‘sphere of influence’ – just a different sphere

You need to network? Well, Facebook is a network! I have a colleague who mentioned that she gets a lot of referrals from connections on Facebook, as her high school friends are all professionals now, many of whom need resumes and job search help.

Similarly, you can connect with friends on Facebook for professional information and advice. You never know who knows someone who knows someone.

Your school friends have grown up into successful people – who’ll make great business contacts!

Welstead notes in her piece: “Remember, people tend to move in peer groups:  That means that if you’re ambitious and successful now, the kids you hung with in high school or university, and the friends you made in your first career jobs in your early 20s, have probably gone on to be successful and ambitious, too.  In other words, they’re worth knowing for professional reasons.”

So, if you use Facebook only to take quizzes and complain about your spouse, it probably won’t be terribly useful for professional networking. But, if you include enough information to let people know about the professional you, it can be a very personal and successful way to connect.

While you’re at it, be sure to become a fan of Keppie Careers on Facebook…I’d be thrilled to have you as part of the community!
Stay tuned tomorrow for more great reasons to be on Facebook!
If you need help mobilizing your networks and your job search plans, learn more about how I can help you!

Stand out in a crowd to improve job prospects. Here's how.

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standoutincrowd2447128243_b9ed95ec74_mMonday, I reviewed Gary Vaynerchuk’s new book, Crush It! and yesterday I posted some additional thoughts inspired by his book regarding personal branding. (It’s looking like Gary Vaynerchuk week here at Keppie Careers! That’s okay – I think these are important points that job seekers don’t often stop to consider.)

Today, I’d like to share an interview that Pam Slim (author of Escape from Cubicle Nation) conducted. You can tell how passionate Gary is about the subject:


Interview with Gary Vaynerchuck, author of Crush It! from Pamela Slim on Vimeo.

A summary of the highlights:

  • Stop doing what you hate – the cost of doing what you love is a lot less than it was 10 years ago.
  • Everybody has a voice. Being in business now is like “working a room.” You can’t control the conversation.
  • Quality of your product is key.  Content is king.
  • Regarding integrity/credibility. If you are worried about credibility, it means you don’t have it.
  • Do what you love. Apply what you understand about social media to your passion. Apply social media to make things happen – it’s free! The gatekeepers are gone. Going through the trenches is gone.

Gary’s book is mainly directed to people who are considering breaking out and becoming a business owner. However, it’s important to focus on the fact that these points apply equally well to anyone who wants to work for someone else, but doesn’t want to get lost in the crowd.

If you think about what you have to offer and take some time to share it, you will improve your career profile and the number of opportunities available, whether or not you need them right now. I think it is worth investing some effort. Your return could be more than you think.

Think you could use a little help raising your career profile? I can help! Learn more about Keppie Careers.

photo by shellysblogger

Gary Vaynerchuk on personal branding and working hard

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Gary_Vaynerchuk_by_Erik_KastnerYesterday, I reviewed Gary Vaynerchuk’s new book, Crush It!

It’s a great guide for job seekers and entrepreneurs (or “wanna-be” business owners) who hope to make a name for themselves. There are some additional points I wanted to share that I thought were particularly important:


It takes hustle – lots of hard work – to Crush It!

There really are no true shortcuts to success. Gary says, “…Hustle is it. Without it, you should just pack up your toys and go home…You might have thought your old boss was bad, but if you want YOUR business to go anywhere, your new boss had better be a slave driver (p. 88).

Gary doesn’t believe you can pay “lip service” if you want to succeed. He says, “The only differentiator in the game is your passion and your hustle…Expect this to be all consuming” (p. 89).

Personal Branding

Gary makes a lot of great points about personal branding, which I think is a bit of a mystery for a lot of job seekers. He says, “Developing your personal brand is the same thing as living and breathing your resume every second that you’re working (p. 38).

In essence, your personal “brand” is just that – YOU!  Everything you do online just gives you the opportunity to share YOU with an audience.

However, the most important piece of a personal brand according to Crush It? Quality. What you have to offer is more important than how you offer it. It’s the underpinning of every job seeker or entrepreneur: if you aren’t good at what you do, Gary says, no one will care.

Something to think about!

Do you need help demonstrating your best “YOU” online and in your job search materials? I can help!

Photo by Erik Kastner

Crush It! by Gary Vaynerchuk, a review

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book-header-transI’ve heard a lot about Gary Vaynerchuk. He is well known and widely lauded for his approach to personal branding for business owners. He “leveraged social media tools such as Twitter and Facebook to promote Wine Library TV,” a video blog about wine. He’s hob nobbed with Meredith and Ann on the Today Show, shared wine with Ellen and Conan and been featured on Nightline, among other appearances.

So, when I was invited to participate in launching his book, I was happy to join in. (I love reading advance copies to share with my readers!)

Gary’s book is a high-energy guide for business owners and would-be business owners to harnessing the power of social media to fuel not only your bottom line, but also your personal brand. (And, if you don’t think you need a personal brand because you are happy with your day job, Gary’s response, “What you think you’re invincible?” He notes, “Developing your personal brand is the same thing as living and breathing your resume every second that you’re working” (p. 38).

He reminds readers how important it is to create bonds with other professionals in your field and to share your ideas and expertise on the social networks. (I LOVE when other writers second what I tell my readers!)

Gary thinks traditional resumes are going to be irrelevant. This is a common belief among the social media elite. I agree that your reputation (aka, personal brand) will be key, but having a great traditional resume is still important for most people! The good thing? Pursuing a new media strategy to support your professional reputation does not prevent you from having a terrific, traditional resume. The best approach? A multi-tiered plan that has potential to appeal to everyone in your target audience.

Other terrific points relevant for job seekers from the book? Wait for it…this is key:

If you are authentic, you will sometimes lose people along the way!

Gary knows this – he admits that his loud, in your face, brash style does not appeal to all wine lovers. He says, “I lose about 12 percent of my viewers right off the bat because I yell and scream like a maniac” (page 85). You can’t be everything to all people, whether you are a job seeker or an entrepreneur. And, you really shouldn’t try. When you differentiate, you will lose some people, but those probably are not “your people.” On the other hand, by strongly focusing on what you have to offer – your best and authentic you – you have a better chance to connect and appeal to a community of “good matches.”

Crush It! is a terrific guide for anyone (entrepreneur or job seeker) who needs a nudge and a guide to begin to shift his or her mindset to move forward with today’s tools. Stay tuned for more thoughts from his book tomorrow, the official launch date!

If you need help using social networking tools for your business or job search and just need a helping hand, contact me to learn how I can help!