Social Media Trends: What’s In, What’s Out

Social media trends seem to move at the speed of light, making it difficult to keep track. The trick is to keep up with the major trends, and not to worry about the small stuff; it’s easy enough to tell when an entire platform is going out of style (ex.: MySpace), and that’s what’s important. For job seekers, it’s vital to know where the people are, because that’s also where employers are.
To begin, let’s take a look at a couple of outdated trends to avoid in 2012:

• Amateur YouTube Videos: That isn’t to say that YouTube, itself, is necessarily going out of style, nor are fewer people actually making homemade videos. The fact is, Google, which owns YouTube, is looking to move more toward professional quality, scripted content. If you’re able to provide that kind of quality, that’s great, but if not, amateur video makers, including those making video resumes, for instances, may end up turning to other sites such as Daily Motion or Qwiki.
• Sharing Status Updates With Everyone: Not all of your Facebook friends need to see all of your updates– take your boss or potential boss, for instance. Google+ has begun working on this premise, allowing you to share certain posts with certain circles of people (i.e.: co-workers, friends, family, etc.), and now Facebook has introduced a similar feature. Now you can keep some posts out of sight for employers who are likely checking out your social media presence.

Now to examine some growing trends, particularly those that are popular among recruiters:

• Facebook is Growing: Now that it has gone public, Facebook is expected to reach 1 billion users this year, and with a population five times that of LinkedIn, recruiters are beginning to lean toward the former. In addition to the increasingly large talent pool available to employers and recruiters, the new timeline feature makes professional and personal landmark events more easily visible.
• Online Referrals are Gaining Popularity: With the average social media user’s friend count somewhere around 150, employers are beginning to realize that personal referrals of social media connections may be a viable hiring strategy. After all, that’s 150 potential job seekers looking to successfully fill an open position, 150 people with first-degree connections to your company.

Social media in and of itself is not going away any time soon, but trends come and go with each new platform, function or feature. As a job seeker whose potential employers are likely turning to Internet resources to learn about you– just like you’re likely using similar resources to learn about them– you need to know where they’re looking and what they’re looking for. Keeping up with these trends can only take you one step closer to successfully finding your next position.

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Careerminds provides scalable, strategic solutions to organizations seeking affordable, web-based outplacement services. Using a Web 2.0 e-learning platform that delivers affordable, online career transition services, Careerminds provides a high-tech and high-touch blend of on-demand career transition education supported by senior-level career consultants to help displaced workers reenter the workforce quickly.