2. ePresence & eNetworking
All networking allows you to:
expand your circle of connections to increase information
discover new people, places, cultures & interests
share your skills & knowledge
create opportunities to help others
Reflection:
What is your networking experience?
What do you like about networking?
What do you dislike about networking?
2
“…e-Presence has taken hold in the global workplace, & has
moved from an opportunity & an option, to almost a
requirement for professional practice.
Increasingly, the question is not whether to embrace e-Presence,
but rather, how to manage one’s e-Presence effectively…
…Strategic management of (one’s) e-Presence can be critical in
achieving professional competence, effectiveness, recognition,
and reward.”
~Donald E. Hanna, University of Wisconsin
3. There are over 300 active networking sites & the number is
growing rapidly. Dozens have an industry/business focus:
government, software developers, scientific research & human
resources have specific professional networking sites.
LinkedIn.com & Twitter follow Facebook with the highest number
of users in networking sites:
Ÿ Facebook 1.06 billion
Ÿ Twitter 500 million/200 million considered active
Ÿ LinkedIn 200 million
Facebook was a purely social networking site, but has been
expanding into professional networking. Facebook offers Pages for
companies & groups while individuals may add work history
information to their Profile.
LinkedIn.com is designed for business & professional networking
& includes over 150 industries (a broad business focus).
Twitter.com is a social networking & “micro-blogging” service,
designed to send brief information blasts of 140 characters known
as tweets. Typically, people share interests, information & “what’s
happening”. Twitter can be used for social & professional
networking.
What is the Value of eNetworking?
Using a blend of technology & social interaction, it facilitates a rich
exchange of information:
Job Seeker / Customer poses
question, idea or response
Professional Contact / Business
poses question, idea or response
3
4. It saves time as eNetworking can be done when it’s best for your
schedule. Conversations are easy to track. Individuals can follow a
business to learn about job vacancies & promotions, while
businesses can contact individuals for interviews & potential jobs.
To start eNetworking, you will need:
A concise summary of your skills (your marketing pitch)
Computer skills
Access to the Internet
An open mind
Adaptability
4
The next two pages have activities to help you
prepare your profile.
Please complete the exercises between the first &
second class & bring them with you.
Creating YOUR brand & Marketing Pitch
5. 5
ACTIVITY – Branding Traits in a Professional Environment
Think of a person that you have depended on. This could be someone at
work, school or someone you volunteered with; just as long as it is someone
who you feel you could describe with some admiration of who they are &/or
how they do things.
Describe a Colleague’s Attributes: list interpersonal skills, resources,
personal qualities & strengths (use of systems and technology, information
processing, etc.)
Write the person’s first name:
Write three or more attributes you find particularly valuable (these can be
one word each):
Repeat by describing another colleague.
Write the person’s first name:
Write three or more attributes you find particularly valuable (these can be
one word each):
Add one more colleague.
Write the person’s first name:
Write three or more attributes you find particularly valuable (these can be
one word each:
Did you find that these colleagues shared traits or skills? List them below:
6. 6
ACTIVITY – Your Marketing Pitch
Having a marketing pitch is an important part of networking & job search. It
should be concise, so within one to two minutes you are able to state your
name, a brief but thorough description of your work experience & your
target employment.
Your introduction is generally summarized in years & should include related
education or training, “I have 6+ years of experience in X & a certificate or
degree in X.”
Experience includes two types (use occupation & industry key words here):
Technical: typically job specific skills (machines, tools, languages &
knowledge needed for the occupation)
Personal: typically adaptable skills & personality characteristics
The “Finishing Touch” introduces your commitment to your target
employment.
Steps to create an effective Marketing Pitch
Clearly identify your current position &/or objective.
Summarize total number of years of related (paid or non-paid)
experience related to the current skill set you are offering.
State degree or related coursework, certificates, endorsements &
organizations.
Identify key words/skills in support of your current position/job
objective. Use O*NET for occupational lists on each of these:
http://online.onetcenter.org/find
Summarize your personal attributes derived from life/employment
experiences specific to the job objective. Identify key Foundation
Skills from Workforce Skill Standards (handout).
State how your skills & abilities benefit your current company /
industry.
State how your personality traits apply to your current / target job &
your value.
7. Who are you on the Internet?
How do you find out?
Audit yourself using Google or other search engines (Pipl.com,
Yahoo.com). Enter your name in the search field & review the
results. It’s important to use multiple variations of your first & last
name, city & state.
What about my privacy?
Public records have been available for decades, however now they
are easier to access. They include people’s aliases, phone
numbers, address history, relatives, tax liens, lawsuits, criminal
records & more. The Internet makes it possible to search multiple
databases with access to billions of public records without having
to leave home. Employers are using these records to research
potential employees & job applicants.
Common names, such as Bob Smith, may result in an employer
relying more on your resume & less on the Internet during a
pre-hire screening, although your resume &/or application offer
some clues as to which ‘Bob Smith’ you are.
How do you change or add to your ePresence?
7
ACTIVITY – Use the Internet to find examples of Public Information
Births/Deaths/Marriages/Divorces Foreclosures
Notice to Creditors/Bankruptcies Trustee Sale/Probate
Arrests/Hearings/Arraignments Zoning Permits
Meeting Minutes Fundraiser Participation
Temporary Liquor Licenses Blog Posts
8. If you discover the first audit for you is a recent home purchase,
divorce or article in the newspaper, you can change the results by
updating your LinkedIn or Facebook profile. If the information
about you isn’t what you want an employer to see, clean up your
ePresence! Remove inappropriate photos, links to controversial
sites, add volunteer & community activities. (Another tip, be sure
to create a professional email address if you don’t have one.)
Disadvantages to Ignoring Your ePresence?
You may be considered less professional or less serious
than your peers & colleagues
You may be unable to participate in conversations & work
projects because you are not contemporary.
You may be vulnerable during in an interview when asked
about your ePresence.
Your ePresence can be someone’s first impression. If you
are misrepresented, you may lose opportunities or spend
time defending yourself.
You may not get an interview or job offer. A recent survey
confirms, “A whopping 70% of business managers say they
decided not to hire a job candidate based upon something
found out about online”. (How Social Media Can Affect
Your Job Search, L.Vanderkam, Real Simple October 2012,
www.cnn.com)
More than 90% viewed candidates’ e-profiles as part of
their screening process (Reppler Survey, 2011, 300+ hiring
professionals)
69% rejected candidates based on e-profile content
68% hired a candidate based on their e-profile
content
8
9. The hiring professionals cited Facebook (76%),
Twitter (53%) & LinkedIn (48%) as screening tools
Advantages to Managing ePresence?
Job Seekers:
By being contemporary & savvy you are:
Able to contribute positively in a company that utilizes
social media & maintains an ePresence
Able to help a company become current & utilize this
powerful networking, business tool
Able to share & glean information
Able to find & show trusted connections
Able to compete for jobs and other opportunities
Social networking is your job seeking tool & a skill
to use once you are employed.
Businesses:
Improve &/or succeed in meeting business needs with rich
information exchanges; grow support, develop
products/services, or manage public relations.
Leverage networks of employees and customers
Increase retention & encourage innovation within the
company, organization or school
A source of pre-employment & partner references
9
ACTIVITY - Search these companies on Google to find out about
their ePresence: Dell, Kodak, Microsoft, Starbucks, Southwest
Airlines & others you think of or are interested in learning about.
10. More eNetworking Tips:
Separate your SELF from your SKILLS & ABILITIES
Distinguish communicating your skills, abilities, interests &
experience from bragging; they’re different
Research the business so you know what they look for in
employees
Know the industry & your occupation; demonstrate your
expertise, knowledge & competence
Identify why you want to work - in that job, for that
company – other than to receive a paycheck
What do YOU have to offer?
10
Photo courtesy iStockphoto
Linked In Trivia 2009 - 2011
4.7 million members are employed by small businesses
Over 360,000 are veterans
Over 700,000 have attended Community College
Linked In Trivia 2012
200 million users as of 1/1/2013
21.4 million monthly, unique United States visitors
10 to 15 million-member per quarter growth thru 2012
11. Why Employers Buy
Employers hire people when they have a problem to solve. They
are looking for someone with the skills, abilities and attitude to
solve the problem.
Employers focus on these aspects of business:
Make Money
Save Money
Save Time
Make Work Easier
Solve a Specific Problem
Expand Business
Retain Existing Customers
Attract New Customers
Be More Competitive
Build Relationships, Image, Reputation
Profile Pointers:
Until you are confident about your profile & how a relational
database works, keep your updates private by changing your
activity broadcast setting (instructions at end of booklet).
eNetworking is worldwide – please consider & learn about
cultural mores, expectations & customs as your networking
expands.
Use keywords – job title(s), industry(ies) & work description(s) are
all searchable; use acronyms as well correctly spelled words.
Think about what you are presenting – include web sites,
interests, groups & associations. Remember, these should
complement your professional presentation & not be controversial
or provocative.
11
12. Add a professional photo – it helps people identify you if they
met you or know you; it adds credibility & a personal touch to
your profile.
Help others – offer your insights & experience to individuals,
companies & groups. Write a recommendation & boost someone’s
profile; it may strengthen your value to them & could increase the
chance someone will recommend you. Endorse other’s skills you
have seen in action; they’ll likely endorse yours.
Make conscientious connections – seek people, companies &
groups that are aligned with your interests & goals. If you would
avoid someone at an in-person social or professional setting, avoid
them online as well.
Don’t micro-update – if you are modifying your profile, ‘cloak’
your status so you do not trigger status updates for each entry.
Don’t forget to uncloak when you are finished with the updates.
Don’t include your resume on your profile – a resume is a
document specific to a job. After connecting with an employer
about an open position, send a targeted resume detailing your
skills, experience, etc.
12
13. Social Networking Do’s and Don’ts
DO
Use keywords
Show your diversity
(but don’t look sloppy)
Think about what you
are presenting
Create a profile, contact
friends, colleagues &
groups on a professional
networking site such as
LinkedIn.com
Follow up eConnections
with a personal contact
(phone call, thank you
card, invitation for
coffee) & vice versa
DON’T
Micro-update (updating
your profile live, so
everyone can see your
changes as they happen)
Forget to “uncloak” your
profile after adding
updates
Include your resume
Ask questions without
having done some
preliminary research
Be too authoritative
Sell your goods & ideas
Complain
Mingle with people who
commit social or
professional fouls
Forget to make in-person
connections
Twitter.com is a social networking & “micro-blogging” service
designed for brief information blasts that allow 140 characters.
Academic Performance Index (API) data indicates 56 million
accounts follow 8 or more other accounts and 38 million follow 16
others (2011). (Source: BusinessInsider.com)
13
WHICH SITES SHOULD I USE FOR
PROFESSIONAL E-NETWORKING?
14. Examples of Twitter in action:
Space Shuttle Columbia, 10 Years Later
7 Reasons Small Businesses should use Twitter
Top 50 Employers Recruiting on Twitter
300 to 500 jobs are posted on Twitter per minute (2011)
Half a billion Tweets per day 2012 (CEO Dick Costolo)
Hash tags # allow users to follow specific topics/keywords
You can “Tweet” anyone without “following” them
500 employers actively recruit on Twitter (July, 2011)
Facebook.com is a social networking site, with photos, profiles, &
the ability to add links to other sites. 1.01 billion users, with a
new Graph Search feature being rolled out through 2013 to try to
enhance the job search feature. NOTE: Facebook profiles rarely
feature work history & often are less than 120 characters of
information. Linked In averages 1,800 characters of work info.
14
15. Facebook
Advantages Disadvantages
You may already have a
personal profile
Employer Page may list
jobs & show “People
You May Know that
Have Worked” here
1.01 billion users(2012)
Gives you another
ePresence
Great for Realtors, self-
employed individuals,
etc.
55+ job seekers can
dispel age myths by
including photos of
“youthful”, “healthy
activities (walking,
hiking, using a
computer, etc.)
“Like” groups /
businesses showing
support or
involvement;
Showcase your
abilities, traits
Photos serve as a call
to action with added
captions
Large diversity among
friends (less targeted)
Weak privacy settings
Content can be captured
& cached
Cannot easily search by
employer or geographic
area
Mixes business &
personal life at high level
In response to their data
analysis, the layout is
subject to change
without notice making it
challenging to find
locations or sections you
become familiar with
Randomizes the display
of your photos
15
16. LinkedIn.com over 200 million registered users (Mashable, 2012);
over 4 million university & college students are registered with
college & university alumni groups.
LinkedIn.com
Advantages Disadvantages
Professional design
Highest number of users in
American professional
networking sites
Provides another (positive,
focused) ePresence
Search companies,
geographic areas, job titles,
organizations, etc.
Easy to find connections
from previous organizations
with limited information
Profiles can be translated
into multiple languages
Offers network statistics &
degrees of separation
Represents over 150
industries & all Fortune 500
companies
Another website to
track
Content can be
captured & cached
Unable to ‘target’
work experience &
education for
multiple positions
Thoughtful, valuable
contributions take
time
16
17. If you use LinkedIn.com:
Customize your URL (your page on the site); a vanity URL
prevents users from inadvertently clicking on a bad link
(unknown content – unknown destination)
Include all Education that supports a coherent path
List Activities & Societies that are associated with your
professional goals
Projects: describe projects/research you created/helped
with/completed associated with a profile entry or
independently
Languages can be listed, with 5 options to list for your
proficiency level
Courses may be associated with listed education or
independent of other profile entries
Skills/Expertise allows you to add up to 50 keywords that
highlight your strengths
Recommendations: write some for people you know;
someone may write one for you
Additional Info should not be provocative or controversial
Honors & Awards are great to include, especially workplace or
civic awards
Personal Info is not needed & may not be appropriate for job
search
Contact Settings lets you advise others what you are
interested in doing, what you have to offer & the industries
where you’d like to work
“Connect with” individuals and “Follow” groups / businesses
to showcase yourself & your traits
Endorse others whose skills you have seen demonstrated; they
may endorse you in return.
17
18. Additional Tips
LinkedIn.com maintains a consistent layout for all your
information & you can use Google for help in navigating
LinkedIn.com as well as LinkedIn’s free Learning Center
Training & Webinars (on their website). Type a question or
keyword in Google or under your LinkedIn More tab & check
out the results.
When an employee leaves a business or organization, you ask:
Which employer hired her or him FROM this position?
What keywords are in their profile?
Is there a lot of turnover in the organization?
Does the job description look interesting, challenging &
reflect professional growth for me?
When you see an employee at new job, you ask:
Where did she or he work BEFORE this position?
Is that position now open?
Who are their connections?
Does this look like a business or group I’d like to work
with?
Does the employer target specific companies/industries
frequently?
When an employer recruits other companies’ employees or hires
applicants, you ask:
Which companies are they hiring from?
What keywords are used across the profiles?
Are there keywords & transferable skills you can add to
your profile or skills summary to get noticed?
18
RESEARCHING AND FOLLOWING
COMPANIES
19. Research companies on Linked In & review the tabs of information
on their page, especially the Insights tab reflecting staff changes.
Conclusion
There is a wealth of information & a variety of opportunities on
the Internet. The challenge is to strike a balance between staying
contemporary & not being overwhelmed by technology or feeling
there’s an additional demand or requirement. Implemented
thoughtfully, your online profile & the Internet can help you
streamline your job search, reduce the number of hours spent &
potentially increase your contacts and leads.
A careful approach to marketing your skills can facilitate career
growth & valuable partnerships. We encourage you to continue to
seek information & watch the trends. Most importantly, keep
networking, in all its forms, a predominant part of your
professional life.
Remember, a simple but thorough Internet search (using
Google.com) is the best way to find the most current answers to
your questions.
19
Photo courtesy of Microsoft
GLOSSARY OF TERMS & DEFINITIONS
20. Alerts - information you receive about updates posted online.
Apps - applications available online to facilitate connection between
programs.
Blog – updates by an individual or group shared on website in an
information stream.
e-Presence - a virtual presence, for social and/or work relationships. “e”
stands for internet; email, eBay, eBanking, eHarmony, eStatement,
emoticon, etc.
Friend/connect/like someone - connection through the internet
between people based on interests, topics; sometimes requiring
acceptance from the targeted individual.
Keywords - significant words for intentional connection between topics,
also used for ranking systems.
Micro blog – short information blast, typically limited in length by the
maximum number of characters (letters/numbers/etc) allowed in the
message.
Privacy and control settings - it is widely accepted that privacy is a
rapidly diminishing concept with the “age of Information” through the
internet. One can try to encourage/discourage information sharing
through privacy settings.
Profile - description of a person, such as in an individual Facebook
account.
SEO/edge rank - a mathematical ranking system.
Social networking - interaction of individuals who share a common
interest.
URL /URI (Uniform Resource Locator/Identifier) - specifies where an
identified resource is available and the mechanism for retrieving it;
example www.go2worksource.com.
Viral message- information with broad appeal that spreads through
networking circles, usually on the internet.
20
21. Web search - (some use “Google” as a verb to represent web search) a
software program that seeks information based on keywords.
Add terms and definitions you want to remember and use:
21
HOW TO TURN OFF YOUR LINKEDIN ACTIVITY
BROADCASTS
22. Go to your name and use the drop-down menu to choose “Settings”
Click on “Setting” and go to the bottom, middle of the page:
Under PRIVACY CONTROLS Click on Turn on/off your activity broadcasts
22
23. This window will appear and you need to deselect this option (make
sure the green arrow is gone from the box)
Click and your updates will not be broadcast as you work on
your profile.
DON’T FORGET TO RESET your settings when you are done making
changes and are ready to have real-time updates posted.
23
24. Websites
http://learn.linkedin.com/training/
www.gcflearnfree.org
http://michaelhyatt.com/ (Twitter)
http://www.myskillsmyfuture.org/
http://www.mynextmove.org/
www.worksourcenorthwest.com
(click on Job Seeker Resources / Career Planning)
www.whatissocialnetworking.com
http://webtrends.about.com/od/profiles/fr/LinkedIn-bio.htm
www.cnn.com
http://blog.reppler.com (August 30, 2012)
Books:
The Thank You Economy by Gary Vaynerchuck
Me 2.0: Build a Powerful Brand to Achieve Career Success
by Dan Schawbel
How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
The Start-Up of You by Hoffman & Casnocha
Social Nation by Barry Libert
Other social networking tools:
www.Twellow.com searches Twitter bios and their urls
www.Delicious.com (social bookmarking web service for storing, sharing
and discovering web bookmarks or “favorites”)
Booklet created by AnnMarie Jordan & D. Monique Stefens Revised 06/2013
24
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
