Marketing me: The queen bee networking guide to job searching.

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Finding a job is not the most fun thing in the world, but here are a few tips I'll share with you that I'm utilizing to make it work for me:

Determine where to put your stinger:  Set goals / target job search focus on positions of career interest.

 

Drip a little bit’o honey:  Access features, advantages, benefits…AKA skills, qualifications, and current experience that is applicable to reaching that goal position and appealing to recruiters.

Get your stripes on:  Create your marketing materials- keep in mind brand consistency across all points of contact with potential employers (resume, business cards, email signature, LinkedIn profile, blog or personal website) Use consistent descriptions, fonts, colors, etc.

Google me- how search & social media have changed relationships

I was just chatting with a friend when the topic of "Google Me" came up. We joked for a minute, before admitting we had each "Googled" each other. That made me wonder, what does my searchable profile tell people about me? What content is public? Social Media and search have changed the "first impression" for most people.

I am often curious before meeting a new business associate or when interviewing for a job, for example. I even Google as a screening effort for potential dates. So if I am using search to learn about people, I would only assume that others are doing it as well. And why not? The more social media sites out there, the larger a person's digital footprint.

Your digital footprint is kinda like how much real estate you have on the web. Every time you create a profile on a website, that info can be traced and is searchable. That is why there are so many privacy setting options on social sites such as Facebook.

Speak no evil, hear no evil: A lesson for Facebook Page Managers

So I realize that I have not updated by blog or written a new article in a LOOOOOONNNNNGGGG.... time. Over a year to be exact. That makes me a bad blogger. Good thing I'm not putting my career on the line, based on my blogging frequency.

Checking in on my blog page reminded me of a lesson I have been practicing lately as a Facebook page manager: If you do not have anything good/ fascinating/ amazing to say on your social media channel, it is best to not say anything at all. People do not share crap. It is a fact. People share amazing.

Think about it...what is the last video, picture, song, etc. that you shared on a social network? What was it that evoked an emotion in you to make you go out of your way to tell others?

Lessons from a LinkedIn FAIL

Today I received the following message from someone requesting to connect with me on the social network, LinkedIn. (NOTE: Actual names and numbers have been changed for the purposes of this demonstration).

I will dissect the email and point out why this is a FAILED attempt at networking, and then I will show examples of how to send a LinkedIn request that has proven to be successful in my experience.

Wooed by GOOGLE once again with "Fast Flip"

I have been wooed by GOOGLE once again with a shiny, new web application that lets me customize how and what news headlines I want to "flip" through!

What the flip is Fast Flip? GOOGLE's Fast Flip combines qualities of print and the Web, with the ability to "flip" through pages online as quickly as flipping through a magazine. It also enables users to follow friends and topics, discover new content and create their own custom magazines around searches.

What's the flippin' point? You can browse by topic, source, or author from many of the top news sources that you already are familiar with. GOOGLE partnered with select publishers, giving them an opportunity to introduce new readers to their content and provide another resource for ad revenue to be generated online. (You may be aware that there is a decline in print ad spending, since the whole world has gone digital.)