Ever have one of those moments when you are emailing someone, send off the email, and then think, ‘did I sound harsh/dumb/silly/desperate/bored ___? ‘ (feel free to fill in the blank with your own adjective).
These days, an online presence is more important than ever for job seekers and entrepreneurs. It’s a lightening fast way to develop connections, cultivate friendships, and foster online community collaborations and support. Whether it’s emailing, IM’ing, DM’ing, tweeting, or texting– especially if we don’t know the other person in real life— it’s important to remember your tone.
Certain aspects of your “tone” can mean certain things, or certain words you say could mean something different to another. Evaluate how you want to be perceived and how to write in a way that will get your message across the way you want. If the wrong tone is perceived, the reader may become offended. Whether subtle or loud, tone is attitude. A few simple tips include: 1- Don’t write in ALL CAPS. It implies yelling. 2-Avoid emails that make assumptions, “I’m sure you agree..” 3-Try to avoid sarcasm or slang. It may not come across as you would like it to.People have different types of humor. Yours might come across to them as rude. 4-If you are emailing to a global audience (international jobs), avoid using words that other countries may not understand, i.e. “my bad”, “what’s up”, “what’s happening?!”, etc. 5- Use spell check and grammar check. If emailing to prospective employers, as always, it’s important to keep an eye out for spelling or syntax errors.
Your tone is like your body language, so be sure to have it in check when emailing people you want to impress. Sit up, look alive, smile and send online correspondence with confidence.
Wow. In a matter of a week, we lost four icons. To lose two in one day was even stranger. I was on Twitter each time I found out who had passed. It isn’t that I am on Twitter all that much. The kick of it is the news spread so far and wide and fast, that I heard it on Twitter first, then saw it on MSN.
I am amazed at the impact and the reach Twitter and other social network sites have on our society and even, our politics and the politics of other nations— so much so, that the State Department asked Twitter to NOT do a scheduled maintenance so that the lines of communication would stay open for Iranian citizens protesting the Iran election. Seriously.
As a rule, I stay away from news channels on TV. I don’t need to hear every death, every fight, every politician slamming each other, or worse, getting caught with their pants down, as it seems to be the norm lately (for Pete’s sake, keep it in your pants or get a divorce!). Now it seems I can’t keep it away from me. Twitter is inundated with news. I admit, sometimes I am grateful for it. I probably wouldn’t even have known that any of the 4 had died as quickly as I did if it wasn’t talked about and “retweeted” repeatedly.
The upside to all of this is that Twitter, Facebook and all the others can work for us as well. Promoting your book, product or business? “Tweet it”. Looking for work? Post it on Facebook. With the power of viral marketing you can reach thousands of people in an instant. Talk about amazement. Gone are the days of spending hundreds of dollars on paper, ink, and stamps to get your message out. Now you can do it in a single tweet.
There are die hards out there who still insist the best way to get a job is the old fashion way– newspaper ads and word-of-mouth. While I agree on the word-of-mouth (a.k.a. networking) point, let’s face it, the reality of finding a “career” through a newspaper ad is slim.
So, if you are still unfamiliar with social marketing/networking and online branding/profiles, I will give you the 101 basics on how to get started online with fast results. 1. I know I sound like a broken record here, but join LinkedIn. LinkedIn will open doors for you that you never thought possible. Originally started as a professional networking tool, LinkedIn is now being used by employers to seek out job seekers! How do they do this? They type in the keywords of candidate characteristics in the search box. If their words match up with the keywords on your profile, guess what? You have officially become a contender. You can also research companies online, network with employees that WORK at that company and look for current job openings. Utilize LinkedIn as much as you can. You will be amazed at the results you get. 2. Join Twitter. If you are an entrepreneur, have a small business of some sort or are a job seeker, Twitter is a wonderful way to connect fast with all sorts of people. You build your network by following others who in return, follow you. It sounds strange at first until you get going. I created my profile in November, but didn’t see the value of Twitter until the following January when I started really connecting with colleagues and job seekers, plus all sorts of other interesting folks. You can spread the word that you are job searching. The bigger your “follower” list is, the more people will know this and keep their eyes and ears open for you. I just read a great post about a college grad who got a job within just a couple of weeks of joining Twitter. Read it. Then join Twitter. 3.Facebook is a great way to connect with lots of people and get a little more personal with them. With the option of adding pictures, videos, quizzes and applications, you let the other person see more into your personal life–if you want them to. Many companies have their own Facebook pages that you can research. Again, another great networking tool. 4. Another one I think everyone should do is to set up a Google profile. It is a basic profile with facts about you on Google. You will be able to control, or at least add to, what people see when the ‘Google’ you. Put up a professional picture and add a little bio. It adds to your online presence.
There are also Naymz, Plaxo, Ning, Ecademy, and many, many more.
As with anything, there are a few rules to keep in mind when doing your online networking. NEVER ever say anything you wouldn’t want a perspective employer to know. Remember that hiring managers ARE GOOGLING YOU and an unsavory post on any of your networking sites may come back to haunt you. And PLEASE do not post any pictures that you wouldn’t want your Grandmother (or an employer) to see. Be smart. Keep it professional.
An executive LinkedIn profile can help you stand out.
LinkedIn is my favorite networking tool. It is the largest professional networking site with 300 million users. It helps open doors and uncover opportunities on a broad spectrum while building contacts and relationships.
I am constantly asking clients,
“Have you joined LinkedIn yet?” or
“Have you beefed up that LinkedIn profile yet?” or
“If you don’t have the time, let me know and I’ll do it for you— just make sure you do it!”
By now you can probably sense my passion about the site. I’ve only lately become overzealous about LinkedIn because of some very useful information I’ve heard at conferences AND because of the success my clients have had with it.
Did you know that some employers are hiring directly from within LinkedIn? Some are also posting their job openings ONLY on LinkedIn. This is a big deal especially since the majority of these companies are huge. LinkedIn also has other benefits: 1)Unlimited amount of exposure and visibility of you and your business. “Connect” with as many people as you can. If you are job searching this is a great way to network. Once you start connecting, you become visible on other people’s pages, increasing the chances of getting to the top of a page when people are looking for someone to hire. 2) Use your LinkedIn profile to research companies you would like to work for. Go to the “Companies” tab and type in the name of a company you are interested in. Check and see if they are hiring and inquire! 3) Boost your Search Engine results. If you are a business owner, we all know it’s all about Search Engine Optimization. The great news about LinkedIn is that it allows search engines to index your profile information. Adding your LinkedIn link to your signature line while posting to other sites further strengthens your visibility to the search engines.
This is just a quick version of how LinkedIn can help job seekers and professionals. Create your profile and see for yourself.
Ever have one of those moments when you are emailing someone, send off the email, and then think, ‘did I sound harsh/dumb/silly/desperate/bored ___? ‘ (feel free to fill in the blank with your own adjective).
Wow. In a matter of a week, we lost four icons. To lose two in one day was even stranger. I was on Twitter each time I found out who had passed. It isn’t that I am on Twitter all that much. The kick of it is the news spread so far and wide and fast, that I heard it on Twitter first, then saw it on MSN.
the best way to get a job is the old fashion way– newspaper ads and word-of-mouth. While I agree on the word-of-mouth (a.k.a. networking) point, let’s face it, the reality of finding a “career” through a newspaper ad is slim.
