Keppie Careers

Social media speaker, social media consultant, job search coach

What Twitter applications should you use for your job hunt?

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Regular readers will know that I am a huge fan of Twitter for the job hunt. (Click HERE to learn tips to get started on Twitter and why it is useful.)

Since I wrote that post, there have been so many new Twitter applications that can be useful for job seekers. It’s hard to keep up with all of them! Luckily, Tawny Labrum of AskBinc just posted a comprehensive compilation of 15 great Twitter applications and invited me to share it with my readers!

ConnectTweet – See what is going on inside the doors of a potential company, through the Tweets of their employees.  ConnectTweet allows individuals at the front lines of the company to add a #tag to their company relevant tweets, those tagged tweets are then filtered and posted to the companies @org’s Twitter account, allowing the company’s followers to clearly see the human voices on the inside.

TwitterJobCast– A local job search that allows you to see who is hiring on Twitter by browsing for jobs by city, state or zip code. It works by making requests to the Twitter API. Additionally, the Yahoo! Maps API is used to translate locations into geocodes for use with the Twitter API.

TweetJobSearch – An open source search engine for jobs posted on Twitter, TwitterJobSearch has posted 44,165 new jobs in the last 7 days.  Many of the jobs listed are tech related jobs, but through their search you can look for the position you want in the city you want.

Twellow – Also know as the Yellow Pages for Twitter it allows you to cut through the clutter Twitter sometimes creates.  It enables you to find real people who really matter.  The Twellow service grabs publically available messages from Twitter, analyzes and then categorizes the tweets into categories.  By using this service you can narrow your searching to specific niches and find who you are looking for, that way you can follow specific Tweeters and network your heart away.

TweetBeep – “TweetBeep is like Google Alerts for Twitter” TweetBeep is very simple, you signup for an account, confirm your email and set up alerts to be delivered to your email.  Want to know whenever someone posts a job for a Java Dev?  Set up and alert for that and you will be notified through email on a daily or hourly basis.

HashDictionary– #Hashtags are a way on Twitter to group certain conversations about a particular subject.  If you want your Tweet to be included in a special grouping put the group’s #hashtag somewhere in your Tweet and it will be grouped with other updates using the same hashtag.  HashDictionary.com is a community based dictionary for hashtags on Twitter. Hash tags have been described as collective digital bookmarks and are widely used throughout Twitter. If you want to you can also search the most popular hashtags at #hashtags.org or Tagal.

JobMotel– Allows you to search web developer jobs listed on Twitter.  From what I can tell JobMotel mines Twitter for web dev related jobs and rss feeds them onto their site.

TweetDeck – One of the more popular Twitter 3rd party application, Tweetdeck is a desktop application that acts as your personal browser for staying in touch with what’s happening by connecting you with your contacts on Twitter.  With TweetDeck you are able to create groups from Twitter users and have all those tweets filtered into one screen.  It also lets you do a search for a specific topic and get a live feed every time someone Tweets about that topic.  It helps out with your job search because you can create a filter for the companies you are interested in, see what the Twitterverse is saying about them and be aware when they post open jobs.

TweetMyJobs – TweetMyJobs is a service that brings recruiters, hiring managers and job seekers together on Twitter.  They create Twitter Channels for major cities and job types, and an easy-to-use interface to subscribe to those channels. You will get instant notification of any new jobs as a text message on your cell phone. In your job search all you have to do it create an account on Twitter and TweetMyJobs, subscribe to the desired Job Channels, and have any new openings automatically sent to your cell phone as a text message via Twitter. You can also access job openings on the web at TweetMyJOBS or Twitter.

VisualCV – Not quite a Twitter Application, but you can create your online resume on VisualCV and include a link to your resume in your Twitter Bio.

TwitterSearch – You can find job information on Twitter Search.  Type in the keywords that are important to you it will display results with all tweets that have those keywords, you can either view all the tweets and follow the users or create a RSS feed to read the results later.  Other Twitter Search applications are Just Tweet It and TwitterTroll .

NearByTweets – Search Twitter by Keyword and Location – find out if there are any jobs available in your area or the area you want to work.

Twollo – Twollo allows you to automatically follow users that have similar interests as you.  You tell the application what you like or what you are interested in and the program will generate tweeters for you to follow that have similar interests as you.

Twitscoop – Find out what is being talked about on Twitter right now.  You can search by keyword, allowing you to see realtime info on jobs and networking events.

As an industry expert, often called upon by major media outlets to serve as a source regarding using Twitter as a job hunting tool, I am well situated to coach you! Contact me to discuss how I can help get your search moving!

Use Twitter for Your Job Search

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Twitter is a great tool to leverage for your job hunt. You can tweet yourself to a job opportunity 140 characters at a time! It’s been done!  Statistics show that job search networking is much more effective when you make “loose” connections – touching base with people beyond your immediate circle whose networks and contacts are much different from your own. As an open network, Twitter offers an unparalleled opportunity to create an extended network.

Not convinced that Twitter is actually a high-powered job search tool? Read on to learn how Twitter can uniquely position you for job-hunting success!

What Can Twitter Do For You?

  1. Afford access to other professionals in your field. When you follow industry leaders, you’ll know who spends time with them, what conferences they attend (and what they think of the speakers!), what they’re reading and what is on their minds. This is great information to leverage for your search.
  2. Provide exposure and credibility as well as personal and professional relationships when you connect to others in your industry.
  3. Offer you a venue to demonstrate your expertise and share information in quick, pithy bursts of wisdom. This is perfect if you don’t have the time or energy to create a blog.

Unique Aspects of Twitter

  1. It is casual and immediate and a great place to “meet” informally.
  2. You’ll find an array of people on Twitter, including CEOs, top-level executives, hiring managers, recruiters and everyone in-between! It’s one-stop shopping for your networking needs. You’ll be surprised to find that stars in your field (mentors) may follow you if you reach out to them!
  3. Unlike Facebook, where it is kind of creepy if you start trying to “friend” people who are connected to your contacts, it is acceptable (and expected) to follow people on Twitter because another friend or colleague does.
  4. It forces you to be brief. Coming up with your “Twit-Pitch” – what you have to offer in 160 characters or less – will help you clarify your value proposition. Remember: less is more!

Convinced? What To Do First?

  1. Brand yourself professionally. If you are planning to use Twitter for a job search, set up a designated profile and account. Choose a professional Twitter handle using your name or some combination of your name and profession that sounds good and is easy to remember. For example, JaneSmith or PRProJane.
  2. Take time to create a professional profile that will attract your target market. If you don’t have a website, link to your LinkedIn profile.
  3. Before you follow anyone, start posting some tweets! Don’t succumb to the temptation to share your lunch menu…Tweet about an article, an idea or share a link of professional interest to your targeted followers. Do this for a few days. It may seem strange to be tweeting when no one is following, but you may be surprised to gain an audience before you even try. Once you have a great profile and a set of interesting tweets, start following people in your industry. Aim high! Follow stars – some will follow you back.
  4. Continue to build your network by using Twitter Search and Twitter’s Find People tool. Manually review profiles and use Twubble to help you find new people to follow. Use directories such as Twellow and TwitDir. Grow your network slowly – you don’t want to follow 1000 people and have only 30 following you. That makes you look spammy, not professional.
  5. Another tool to use to learn what is going on in your area of expertise is Monitter. (Hat tip Steve Cornelius.) Steve used it to look up information about a company where he was interviewing. It is also great to see what people are talking about and to find conversations to join on Twitter.
  6. Use hashtags (the # sign) to “tag” your posts and to search for tweets about subjects of interest to you. These tags make it easy for people to search for your content. Cision Blog explains this well:
    “Hashtags are used on Twitter to create groupings around a particular topic, event, community, industry, location, etc. By using a hashtag, tweeters can follow an entire conversation chain uninterrupted by other tweets.” Tagalus is a service that provide the definition of  hash tags, so take a look if you are following people and have no idea what their tags mean! For additional resources about hashtags, follow THIS LINK.
  7. Give, give, give! Think about what you can do for others. Don’t blatantly self-promote. Instead, help promote others. “Retweet” (pass along information someone else shared, giving them credit) – you will earn followers and friends this way. Those who know (and like) you will become part of your network and will be willing to help you. (See picture for an example of a retweet.)

 

Sustain Your Twitter Network

  1. Twitter doesn’t have to be very time-consuming, but if it’s going to be part of your job search strategy, make a point to keep up with it by sending out something useful every day.
  2. Read what other people write and respond. Join conversations and start your own.
  3. Don’t be afraid to send a message directly to a star in your field. Simply address your tweet to @their Twitter name, and they should receive it. (Be aware that Twitter isn’t 100% reliable, so feel free to try again if you don’t hear back or have reason to believe your message wasn’t delivered.)
  4. Feel free to tweet that you are looking for an opportunity. (See below for a success story!)

People Who Found Jobs and How!

  1. Jessica Smith found her current “dream job” as Chief Mom Officer simply by tweeting to approximately 400 followers, “Anyone looking for a marketing or biz dev person?”  Within minutes, she received a DM from the founder of Wishpot.com, asking for a phone interview that resulted in a perfect position!
  2. Kyle Flaherty used Twitter to find a job that moved him and his family to Austin, TX from Boston. He tweeted to approximately 650 contacts that he had left his job. He included a link to a blog post outlining his interest in connecting. He explains, “Within hours I had several emails, IMs, phone calls and tweets about the topic and it actually ended up that I took a new job.” Follow this link for an interview with Kyle’s new boss, Pam O’Neil, who explains how she and Kyle used Twitter to fill the position.
  3. Heidi Miller, the “Podcasting Princess,” found a freelance project using Twitter by tweeting updates about her job hunt. Many of her colleagues questioned the wisdom of being so open about her search; they worried she look desperate or foolish. However, the ends justified the means.

 

As more and more get involved (dare I say addicted?) to Twitter, opportunities to leverage this tool for job search networking will grow exponentially. Don’t be the one left behind! Get on board and start connecting for success.

How are you using Twitter for your job hunt? Share in the comments section below!

A version of this blog was posted on Problogger’s new site about Twitter.

Keppie Careers is a one-stop shop to help you get your job search on the right track. Need a resume? Help getting going? We can help!