How To Use Social Media - promoting yourself as a hire or design freelancer.

TAMING THE BEAST THAT IS
SOCIAL MEDIA
@get_hoodzpah #gettinbizy
Laguna College of Art + Design
Professional Practices
Fall 2014

SOCIAL MEDIA
YOUR
FACE
HERE
The Face

SOCIAL MEDIA | The Face
Separate profiles for personal and work
CONS PROS
• More privacy on your
personal profiles.
• Double the work (posting)
• Gaining new following

SOCIAL MEDIA | The Face
Unite or die. Personal profiles double
as work profiles.
CONS PROS
• Already have a following
• Less work (posting)
• More censure on what
you post.

SOCIAL MEDIA
SOAP
The Deep Cleanse

of companies (almost 2 in 5)
use social networking sites
to research job candidates.
SOCIAL MEDIA | The Deep Cleanse
39%
Source: Career Builder study, 2013, by Harris Interactive

of hiring managers who currently
research candidates via social
media said they have found
information that has caused
them not to hire a candidate.
43%

You’ll want to go through all your current networks
and do the following:
Update bios
Remove outdated
work that no longer
reflects your skills
Remove inappropriate
statuses, tweets,
photos, etc. that may
turn off potential
employers

What is inappropriate? Every company is
different, but here is a basic list to start:
• Provocative photos.
• Photos or posts about drugs or overuse of alcohol.
• Cursing or angry rants.
• Bad mouthing of employers.
• Discriminatory comments about race, gender, religion, etc.
• Proof of lies on resume

Double check your privacy settings.

Double check what your friends are posting to
your wall/statuses.
After all, we are who we hang out with.

Rule of thumb is:
If you don’t update it, get rid of it.

Lastly: this doesn’t mean you can’t have
a personality!

of hiring managers (1 in 5) said
they found something that caused
them to hire a candidate. 19%

If your social media profiles clearly show
your personality and that you’re a capable,
well-spoken, well-rounded person,
this is a plus!

SOCIAL MEDIA
A Guide To The Networks

SOCIAL MEDIA | A Guide To The Networks
Twitter
!
A network for opinions, discussions about your
industry, and pop culture. It’s very much like
highschool. You kind of have to find your niche
group. For us it’s design/tech.

Facebook
!
This is more for family/friend interactions, but if you
keep people apprised of projects you’re working on, or
share links to new posts on your website, it’s a great way
to remind your family and friends that you’re a designer
accepting new clients.

Instagram
!
The easiest of the networks for us designers! You can
post progress shots, finished projects, pics of your
team, etc. Great for a behind the scenes look at the
design process and for defining the culture behind
you and your brand.

LinkedIn
!
For keeping up your professional network in case you
need a job. Also now allows people to give you
recommendations and reviews on your work. More of an
old school network, but can be helpful nonetheless.

Pinterest
!
Another great network for visual creatives. If you post
your own work with proper attribution of your name
and your website, this can be a very powerful
network and business tool.

80% of pins on Pinterest are re-pins
!
So it’s better that you put your work out there with
the right link-backs and credit so YOU get the web
traffic and recognition, instead of some random
Tumblr feed.

Dribbble
!
An invite-only site for designers to bounce ideas and
designs off of one another for feedback. It’s a chance
to gain street creed from your design peers. Pro: A lot
of agencies search here for subcontractors. So bring
your A-game. It’s also a great place to hunt for jobs.

SOCIAL MEDIA
Tips & Tricks

SOCIAL MEDIA | Tips & Tricks
Photos: Use Natural Light
So you don’t have a professional photo studio?
So what. Natural light always looks best! Take your work
outside and stage it on a white poster board or a
clean wooden table.

Photos: Don’t take photos in Instagram
Use VSCO app to help you take better shots, edit
them in a more modern way, then post those
photos to your Instagram.

Photos: Consider Composition
• Centered subject.
• Off-center subject (rule of thirds).
• Use negative space to create interest.
• Consider sight lines (do the lines on the
environment lead to the main subject?).
• Focus. If you’re using your iPhone, make sure you
tap to focus before taking the shot.

Photos: Use Props
Give context to the work. If you’re sketching out
logo options, show the pens and pencils you use.

Fake it Till You Make It
Want to get logo work? Do a personal project and create
a logo for it. Or redesign a major company. Then share it
across social media. You get what you put out there.

Ain’t nobody do it like my clique
You all have talented and connected friends. They’re
you’re allies and your avenue to potential clients. Tag
them in posts, give them shout outs when they’re
working on cool things. It’s likely they’ll do the same for
you when you launch something. Also, it positions you in
the eyes of others. You are who you hang out with.

Use hashtags
And use them correctly!
Help people discover your work.

Embrace the two way conversation
If someone responds to your post, if you have the
time, write them back. Comment on other people’s
posts. You get what you give.

It’s not just about friends
Social media is a place for likeminded people, not just
friends. Follow people you admire or want to work with.
Start interfacing with them.

That being said, be unique!
Don’t just say “love your work!” or “let’s collaborate!”. It’s
“social media” not a networking mixer or a fan club.
Play. It. Cool.

Start creating a lifestyle and culture behind
yourself and your brand.
If you want to get jobs with the apparel industry, start
checking in when you’re in the LA Garment district. Start
checking in at the Rose Bowl swapmeet. Start checking
in at your favorite stores. Start getting into circles.

Beware of the Tumblr feed creep.
Tumblr belongs on tumblr. Don’t turn YOUR social media
presence into a tumblr of other people’s work. Post your
work and be authentically you.

Don’t try to be someone you’re not.
Be yourself! Create work that’s authentic to you. You’re
more likely to get clients you’ll vibe with if you’re honest.

Don’t Be a Negative Nancy
There’s a difference between sarcasm and whining.
No one likes a whiner. Be positive! Or at least
hilariously cynical.

Death to feed replicator bots!
Tailor your posts for each social media venue. On
twitter, keep it short and sweet. DON’T just post
something on Instagram and push it out to all the
other networks.

The Devil is in the Data
Analyze your networks. What content is engaging
your users? There are proprietary analytics on
Facebook and Twitter, and there are also analytic
3rd party sites for Instagram (Iconosquare).

Google Analytics
Install this on your website to track the most
successful ways you’re gaining traffic.

Google Plus
You should have this purely for the fact that Google
puts priority on the content submitted by Google
Plus users in search engine results.

Full Speed Ahead!

How To Use Social Media - promoting yourself as a hire or design freelancer.

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