How Job Hunters Should Use Facebook To Find Work - CareerEnlightenment.com

Be sure to fill out your Work and Education section as much as possible. This helps Facebook make friend suggestions for you of people you’ve crossed paths with in your career or at school. Who knows what new opportunities old friends can bring?Don’t Be a StrangerYour Facebook timeline is your venue for communicating with your network.So, if you consider people in your network to be important for your job search, interact with them regularly. You could comment on their Timeline posts, include them in  your  Timeline posts with tags or message them.What Not to PostAvoid posts like, “Help! I need a job. Can you pass my résumé on?” You don’t want to come across as desperate. Remember, your goal is to provide value and be upbeat.Instead, post articles with your opinions of them or bring up current events to kickstart conversations with members of your network.At least once a week, post something on your  Facebook timeline  that’s related to your industry. Sharing your opini on about professional issues can help position you as an expert.How to Get ReferralsNothing’s wrong with asking your Facebook network for a little help sometimes. Because the power of your network is in who the people in it know, the best thing you can do to help yourself is to  ask for introductions.But if you want to ask your Facebook contacts for a referral, be specific. For example, don’t ask: “Does anyone have connections at a CPG company in marketing? Instead, say something like: “I’m looking for work as a business analyst at a CPG company. Do you know of anyone in marketing at Purina?” You’ll get much better results if you can say the name of the company and the exact role of the person you want to meet.Don’t Reveal SecretsBe careful not to reveal something you shouldn’t about the companies you’re interviewing with. For example, if you learn what your salary range might be, keep it to yourself. One woman interviewing at Cisco told her Facebook network the salary the company offered her. She was immediately disqualified for breaking Cisco’s non-disclosure policy.How Facebook’s Graph Search Can HelpGraph Search is a way to explore Facebook’s network of information about people. It’s the technology behind the big search bar found at the top of your Facebook profile. By using search phrases, instead of keywords, you can discover all sorts of people using Facebook.Previously, it was very difficult to know which companies were represented in your network and your extended (friends of friends) network. Now, you can see what companies you have connections to, locations you might have acquaintances in and even the brands your network prefers.