Often we find ourselves “retweeting” and “hashtagging” to socialize with friends, families and celebrities on Twitter. With much of our focus on the social aspects of Twitter, we often neglect its networking features.
Last summer, Lindsey Pollak, a prominent LinkedIn ambassador, hosted a seminar for Northwestern students on how to use both the career-oriented social network and Twitter for professional benefit. She explained that following companies and businesses on Twitter can not only keep you up to date on their activities but also serve as a direct route of communication. For instance, if a company were to post a question to the public, a follower could immediately respond with an answer. This opens up the opportunity for the company to recognize you and possibly even reply.
Company Twitter accounts can also notify you of job openings. More often than not, businesses will have a Twitter account devoted entirely to posting about recent job opportunities. If you land an interview with a company, Twitter can give you that extra edge. Bringing up past tweets the employer may have posted and offering insight specific to those tweets can show that you are an active, engaged and social-media-savvy prospective employee.
Once I returned home from Pollack’s seminar, I immediately made myself a professional Twitter account. I immediately saw how this account could be valuable to my future in communications or law. I saw a post by Omnicom Media Group, a marketing and communcations company, announcing their merge with Publicis Groupe. After simply responding to this tweet with, “It’s great to see Omnicom and Publicis Groupe merging together. What a powerful communications group!” the company followed me back. I also networked on Twitter over Winter Break when I purchased a book, “Recipe for a Happy Life” by Brenda Janowitz. Her biography on the back cover said she was a career counselor at two New York City law schools. I tweeted at her that I had just purchased the book and could not wait to read it. Within minutes, the author had retweeted my tweet and even direct messaged me. By making these simple connections on Twitter, I have broadened my network, putting my name in the minds of established professionals.
As undergraduate college students, i is important to get good grades and polish our resumes to perfection. But it is just as important to take the time to establish a professional social media presence. I have experienced the power of networking on Twitter and hope that you too will witness these benefits. So what are you waiting for? Get tweeting.
Jennifer Yamin is a Communication sophomore. She can be reached at [email protected]. If you would like to respond publicly to this column, send a Letter to the Editor to [email protected].
