{"id":2464,"date":"2012-12-15T13:05:17","date_gmt":"2012-12-15T17:05:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kerryhannon.com\/?p=2464"},"modified":"2012-12-15T13:21:09","modified_gmt":"2012-12-15T17:21:09","slug":"pbs-next-avenue-3-social-media-tips-to-help-womens-careers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kerryhannon.com\/?p=2464","title":{"rendered":"PBS, Next Avenue: 3 Social Media Tips to Help Women’s Careers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Most of my fiftysomething female friends are hip to social media as a way of advancing their careers. Many midlife women are getting better at using LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and other social media to get ahead at work and when job hunting. A recent\u00a0Pew Internet and American Life Project study<\/a>\u00a0found that women have been significantly more likely to use social networking sites than men since 2009.<\/p>\n

\u00a0(Read full Next Avenue column here.)<\/a>
\nAll of this explains why I\u2019ve been pained by articles this year inTime<\/a>,\u00a0Huffington Post Women<\/a>and other media declaring that although women may be avid adapters of social media sites, like Pinterist, we\u2019re wimps when it comes to career and business outlets like LinkedIn.<\/p>\n

Women’s Use of LinkedIn<\/strong><\/p>\n

The articles frequently cite a 2010 Pew survey that said nearly twice as many men (63 percent) as women (37 percent) use LinkedIn. An\u00a0infographic on Informationisbeautiful.net<\/a>\u00a0showed similar results.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t get it.<\/p>\n

All my female pals (and I) have LinkedIn profiles. Maybe those online resum\u00e9s aren\u2019t as sharp or search-optimized as they could be, but they\u2019re there. Many of us belong to LinkedIn groups to share ideas \u2014 even if just with other alumni from our colleges or former employers.<\/p>\n

Many of us have Twitter accounts to follow people and companies in our field.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re nearly all regulars on Facebook. Although we use the social media gorilla primarily to connect with friends, some of us also take advantage of it as a platform to promote our businesses. That\u2019s what I do.<\/p>\n

For fun, we\u2019re starting to dabble with Pinterest. Tumblr? Not so much, though our daughters and nieces are somewhat obsessed, especially the teenagers.<\/p>\n

These are the results of my unscientific poll of a few dozen 50+ women who I contacted in October via e-mail.<\/p>\n

Social Media’s Importance for Your Career<\/strong><\/p>\n

Using social media for work, especially if you\u2019ll be looking for a job, isn\u2019t just smart–it\u2019s essential.<\/p>\n

When I spoke about this tactic with Miriam Salpeter, author of\u00a0Social Networking for Career Success<\/em><\/a>\u00a0and owner of\u00a0Keppie Careers<\/a>\u00a0(a social media consulting and job coaching site), she referred me to a\u00a0recent Jobvite study\u00a0<\/a>showing that 92 percent of U.S. companies are using social networks and media to find talent, up from 78 percent just five years ago.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no easier way to showcase what you know to a broad audience of potential colleagues, networking contacts and hiring managers than via social media,\u201d Salpeter told me.<\/p>\n

(MORE:<\/strong>\u00a0How Are Women Really Doing on the Job Front?<\/a>)<\/p>\n

As I have written in my new book,\u00a0Great Jobs for Everyone 50+<\/a>,<\/em>\u00a0and in a recent\u00a0Forbes<\/a>\u00a0column, most professional job searches these days are at least started on social media platforms, like LinkedIn and Twitter. Simply put, social media makes it easy for people to learn about you, which is vital to landing a job. For workers over 50, social media is an ideal way to show prospective employers that you\u2019re not a technophobe.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t even have a resum\u00e9 in the traditional sense. When someone asks me for one, I send them two URLs: my LinkedIn profile and my website.<\/p>\n

How<\/strong>\u00a0Women Use Social Media For Work<\/strong><\/p>\n

So what gives with these surveys and articles? Are my friends and female colleagues the only non-Luddites out there?<\/p>\n

Nope.<\/p>\n

For proof, I introduce this evidence: an\u00a0August 2012 article by Pingdom<\/a>, an Internet tracking site whose research supports my own informal survey. Pingdom\u2019s findings, which contradict the earlier Pew survey: \u201cWhen you look at all the data together, it becomes clear that women rule social media,\u00a0including\u00a0<\/em>LinkedIn.\u201d Facebook and Twitter are both 60 percent female, 40 percent male; LinkedIn is about 54 percent female. It\u2019s the tech-focused sites that have more male users than female.<\/p>\n

But just in case you\u2019re a woman who has yet to leverage social media to promote your personal brand, here\u2019s what I recommend you do straightaway:<\/p>\n

1. Set up a free\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>\u00a0account.<\/strong>\u00a0LinkedIn is where recruiters go when they have a job to fill. It’s a fast way for you to build a far-flung professional network.<\/p>\n

\u201cYour job is to be where the recruiters and hiring managers look,” Salpeter says, “and they are clearly looking at LinkedIn.\u201d<\/p>\n

Next Avenue has a\u00a0helpful article on how to create a winning LinkedIn profile<\/a>. In general, it should be well-rounded and include a professional-looking headshot. You can even add a PowerPoint presentation, a video clip of yourself and a link to a WordPress blog, if you have one.<\/p>\n

(MORE<\/strong>:\u00a06 Ways Small Business Owners Should Use LinkedIn<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Once you\u2019re on LinkedIn, stay active. Join its alumni and industry groups. Search for people you know and connect with them. Try connecting to a few new people each day to continually broaden your network. When you ask someone to connect with you, include a personal note. Otherwise, you\u2019ll come off as a moocher.<\/p>\n

2. Open a\u00a0Twitter account<\/a>.<\/strong>\u00a0Follow people or companies who interest you and ones you might want to interview with for a job someday. You can learn quite a bit about a company and industry trends just by following tweets.<\/p>\n

Consider connecting your LinkedIn updates with your Twitter account stream, as I do. That lets you keep current with social media more quickly.<\/p>\n

And add your LinkedIn and Twitter handles on your e-mail signature so anyone getting an email from you will know how to find you through those social media outlets.<\/p>\n

3. Share, ask and engage.\u00a0<\/strong>Identify an online community of “thought leaders” who discuss your field through social media and share information regularly, Salpeter suggests.<\/p>\n

Depending on your expertise, your community could be in LinkedIn, Twitter or even Pinterest. Go where the buzz is and begin to engage by sharing your knowledge, asking questions and contributing to the conversation.<\/p>\n

The underlying purpose of these professional social media maneuverings is to gradually expand your business network and open up potential opportunities, whether you\u2019re looking for a new job or not.<\/p>\n

Feel free to incorporate news about your personal life.<\/p>\n

In my view, there\u2019s nothing wrong with\u00a0posting on Facebook a picture of an Irish castle where you\u2019re vacationing<\/a>\u00a0if the spirit moves you. (That\u2019s me on the left.)<\/p>\n

You never know. The snaps just might make for an interesting job interview discussion one day, if the hiring manager checks out your page.<\/p>\n

posted by\u00a0Kerry Hannon<\/a>, More by this author<\/a><\/p>\n

\"SocialKerry Hannon has spent more than 25 years covering personal finance for Forbes, Money, U.S. News & World Report, and USA Today. Her website is\u00a0kerryhannon.com<\/a>. Follow her on Twitter\u00a0@kerryhannon<\/a>.<\/div>\n
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