A new community for job seekers and employers/recruiters

Do you use Google+?

Google+ is quickly developing and you might be missing out on opportunities if you don't have a presence there.

Not another social media channel?!

You would be forgiven for thinking this, but Google+ is now the second largest social network after Facebook, so shouldn't be ignored. After all, most people use Google's search engine as their first choice, so why not embrace it? 

I wrote a small piece on Google+ in my previous post "A brief introduction to social networks."

The pros and cons of having a Google+ account are topics for another blog post, but from a personal point of view, I would advise everyone to at least try it out.

Welcome to the UK jobs, Jobseekers & Recruiters Community

I've created a new Google+ community to help job seekers and employers get in contact with each other.

There is going to be much more to it than job adverts though. I want to make it a one stop shop for all the advice and information that you will ever need to find a job, whether online or offline.

It is in it's early days and the number of members is increasing. 

I would love it if you would consider joining the community over on Google+.

Visit the Uk jobs, jobseekers & Recruiters community here

Introductions

Introduction

Hello and thank you for calling by!

My name is Tony and I'm your host:

Why the post?

I read a lot of blog posts about various subjects. One thing I've noticed though is that I don't often know much about who actually created the post.

I want to make sure that you have a little bit more information on who I am, to help you see where I'm coming from in my posts. 

About me

I live in West Yorkshire (UK) and work in Manchester as an in-house Talent Atraction & Selection Advisor (Recruiter!). I've been doing this now for about 9 years, having worked in sales before that.

I have an insatiable thirst for knowledge on the use of social media and digital approaches for recruitment and also for marketing purposes. For me, both of these purposes are very similar and by approaching recruitment as a sales function a lot can be achieved.

What to expect from this blog

I'll try to keep everything as lighthearted and as informative as I can.

The majority of my posts will be geared towards the recruitment implementations of social & digital media.

I have 2 main aims for this blog:

• Helping job seekers approach their online job search and secure a new role
• Help employers/recruiters find and engage suitable candidates

Please let me know if there are any topics that you would like covering though!

Connect with me

As I'm such a big fan of social media, you'll find me on most of the platforms available!

For those of you who stick to the main 4 though, please feel free to connect with me using the details below:

LinkedIn: Connect

Google+: Join me

Facebook: Connect
Twitter: Follow me

I'm unemployed - Do I need a LinkedIn profile?

 

Yes!

There's no point in beating around the bush here. Most employers and recruitment agencies are now looking to find new staff on LinkedIn.

Whether your unemployed, or employed and looking for future opportunities, LinkedIn is important

You are missing out on possible opportunities if you aren't on there.

I don't use Facebook or Twitter, so why do I need LinkedIn?

Think of it as an investment in the future of your career.

Yes, this does also include the people who may think that they are in the Twilight years of their career!

As more and more recruiters use LinkedIn, there is a good chance that they will rely less on the more traditional places that they used to find candidates i.e. CV libraries.

Be lazy…..

I don't think there are many people out there who haven't had to suffer the difficulties of applying for a vacancy online! Every company has a different system, most of which take ages to complete!

You need to attach a covering letter, possibly optimised for certain industry keywords to get through the automated sift on the ATS.

You "tailor" your application to each vacancy, again in a vain attempt to get through the infamous "ATS"!

YOU'RE DOING THE WORK HERE!!

Why not spend some time setting up a LinkedIn profile? You can included all of your achievements, experiences, qualifications & keywords and then let the Recruiter come to you?!?!

……and also make it easy for them!

I can't speak for every recruiter out there, but would hazard a guess that LinkedIn is likely to be their first place to search when they are given their requisition. Most have paid good money for a Recruiter licence, so will be likely to justify that by making LinkedIn priority.

Make the most of this opportunity and make it easy for them to find you!

There are hundreds of blog posts out there which explain in detail exactly how to "optimise" your profile, so do a bit of research before you start. It's well worth the time invested!

Everyone I see on there is more Senior to me!

You're correct! There seem to be  a lot of more "senior" staff on LinkedIn. There are lots more people joining who may be considered as entry level too. Bear in mind though - who ultimately makes the hiring decisions? It's not usually the entry level people !

Create your profile and get involved with the senior people. You'll get used to how they work and what their mind-set is like. That way, the next time you're interviewed by one of them, it'll just be like speaking to them on LinkedIn!

You never know who will see your profile on LinkedIn and where this might take you! You may well get referred and go onto much bigger things than you originally thought!

You have nothing to lose..

It is another social platform, at the end of the day, but if you want to start you career, or develop what you already have, then you really need to pay LinkedIn some attention!

What now?

Create that LinkedIn profile and start interacting with people! You'll be surprised how many people that you already know who are on there!

You can connect with me by clicking on the link : Link to Tony