Recruiters & Social Media – Love/Hate or Love/Love?

The most frequent comment I hear from recruiters when we talk about social media is that it takes too much time… they are super busy finding candidates and filling reqs and don’t have 2 -3 hours a day to spend on social channels, updating their statuses and sharing information. While I agree that it takes a bit of time up front, once you have all your social profiles completed you really only need to spend 30 minutes a day monitoring and updating them. 

I’m all about automation to save time.  My favorite tool right now is Buffer App.  This is a free tool that allows you to schedule up to 10 articles at specified times of your choice.  Use this scheduling tool with Feedly.com or whatever reader you use and set your updates to your social networks in advance.  By using a reader you can follow blogs and online papers like Mashable, TechCrunch, Fortune, VentureBeat, INC.com, Wired, Engadget or any of the many, many other great publications.  Then use RSS feeds to your reader or Outlook.  You can quickly scan and click on interesting articles and then use Buffer App to schedule sharing via Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. 

HootSuite or TweetDeck are great tools to manage social feeds and schedule postings.  I use HootSuite and have linked it with my Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn Feeds.  I have tabs for each stream and can schedule posts to all of these networks, multiple times.  It’s easy to post your current job openings directly from HootSuite.  You can also schedule them to recur every week and keep them at the top of your social profiles. 

Use your downtime and leverage mobility.  While you are waiting, pull out your mobile device and check your social feeds and retweet, share, like and repost articles that you find valuable.  I’ve spent many hours at the salon, doctor’s office, auto repair shop, coffee shop or restaurant catching up on my Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn feeds and sharing content from them. 

If you decide to automate (and I hope you do) remember that it is best to read the content that you want to share first and then share with your network.  If you allow the tool to pick the content, you might end up sharing content that is not relevant to you or your network.  People follow you for a reason and you should be sharing what you consider valuable information.  If it’s not valuable to you, it probably won’t be valuable to your followers.  

Will Work For Klout

This picture of me was snapped recently at a local mall and it’s for realz!  Can you believe it? Me, Leslie Mason, reduced to soliciting social media scores on the street corner. Am I the only person who measures their social success by their Klout score and what in the world is going on???

My Klout score is dropping and I am concerned... not panicked yet but on the verge.  After all I worked really hard to get it up to 63 at its peak and three weeks ago it dropped below 59.  

Thankfully it recovered but just today when I checked it was back at 59, causing a sinking feeling in my stomach as well as a bit of dizziness.  Monitoring my Klout score has been a roller coaster ride for me over the past few months and I can’t figure out what is driving this behavior.  

I have carefully maintained all my social networks, judiciously sharing content and engaging with others and trying to spread out my interaction over all the sites that Klout monitors; LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Google+, YouTube, Blogger, Instagram, Foursquare and Wordpress. What am I doing wrong?  Recruiters rely on their social media brand.  It is an indicator of our success, right?  I need to figure out Klout’s secret sauce… is it weighted heavier for sharing original content?  Most of the Klout heavyweights are publications or blogs.  Maybe I’m on to something!   

My company, Intuit, uses a methodology we call Lean StartIN which is a process of rapid experimentation.  We are applying it across the enterprise, including Talent Acquisition.  For my purposes, I want to test the impact of one blog posting on my Klout score over a period of time to see if this will move the needle… hopefully increasing my score.  I will monitor results and report back to you.  

If the experiment is a success my Klout score will hit 65 (an all time high) and if it reaches 70 I will share a video of me dancing a jig like Michael Flatly, the Lord of the Dance (I am Irish after all).  Or better yet... I'll do the Harlem Shake or celebrate GANGNAM STYLE… in fact I’ll post a poll and let YOU vote to decide which artistic celebration of dance you prefer.  This would actually count as another Lean StartIN experiment… look out, I’m on a roll!

For this experiment I will need your help, Dear Reader.  My ask of you is to please tweet, retweet, share, post, comment, like, +1 and utilize any other method of social sharing of my article to spread the word.  I’m also calling in the Big Guns… feeling a comeback!

Friends and Coworkers:

You know who you are, but like the academy awards I only have limited space to call out names. Forgive me for those that have been omitted.  

@StacyZapar friend and social rockstar… I’m happy to ride on your Klout coat tails anytime. ;)

@ghouston @aaroneden @LeanStartIN @JorgenSundberg @StephenMonaco @adriandparker @BillVick @ray_anne @smheadhunter @nmailey @crizzcoxx @scottaxel @fishdogs @philohme  @Mike_Anas @SherYoung @LindaBurkard @PHXRecruit @keli_intuit @KMGoodall @mint @Intuit @QuickBooks @turbotax @IntuitInc @IntuitPayroll @IntuitAccts @GoPayment @IntuitCareers 

Please… hook a sister up!!!

Shameless Self Promotion (really cry for help):

@Mashable @TechCrunch @twitter @LinkedIn @YouTube @Facebook @hootsuite @Google @instagram @Forbes @HuffingtonPost @GuyKawasaki @scobleizer @dannysullivan and all you other Captains of Klout out there… you have my permission to share and repost my content. 

And last but certainly not least:

@StephenAtHome Award winning twitter celebrity superstar that you are… I’d be thrilled just to see @leslie12002 show up in your timeline

Hmmm… wonder if @Klout would use this article in their blog?  Stay tuned for part deux… hope to see you on my timeline!

Leslie Mason @leslie12002

Find Me on:  

Defining Your Online Brand

Everyone knows what a brand is… most people associate it with a product or a company like Cheetos® or Nike®.  We have been talking about Corporate Brand in the recruiting industry for quite awhile and now Personal Brand has become just as popular.  You hear it on everything from the Wall Street Journal to America’s Next Top Model.  What exactly does Personal Brand mean and do you really need one? 

I teach a workshop on personal branding so I read a lot of articles on this subject.  Today I read an article by Jasmine Sandler about How to Create a Visible and Engaging LinkedIn Profile that also explains personal branding extremely well.  I would like to take it outside of LinkedIn and apply it to your career goals and personal life. 

What is it?  Your Personal Brand is basically what people think about you.  How they see you at work, in real life and more and more importantly these days, online.  Going one step further, what they will say about you to their friends, associates and colleagues. 

Why do you need one?  Even if you don’t think you need one, you have one. It might not be what you would expect.  People are forming opinions about you based on their interactions with you, word of mouth (what they see and hear about you) and how you present yourself.  You need to take control of how people view you and show yourself in the best light.  Good lighting is crucial for a great picture and you are creating a picture of yourself for the world to see.  If you are a job-seeker you need a strong, positive personal brand to attract prospective employers, present who you are and get interviews.  As an employee you need a good brand at work to make the best possible impression, define how you can contribute to the organization and advance your career. 

How do you do it right?  You should start by knowing yourself, your capabilities, and the direction you want to go and then start building your brand.  A key place to start is building a powerful online brand.  This will be the cornerstone of your personal brand.  The article I reference earlier is a great example of building out your LinkedIn profile which is the most important professional social network at this time.  You should also create profiles on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and maybe even Pinterest to share your perspective and establish credibility.  Show your personality and let people see your thinking, world view and sense of humor.  (Remember to constantly manage and adjust privacy settings to only show professional pictures and interactions.)

Start Building Credibility… when you develop your online profile, make sure people can find you when searching by using key words that are the most relevant and make sure your profile reflects those key words.  Be sure and publish your recommendations and accomplishments. Highlight your successes… share the conferences you are attending, articles you have published and accolades received.  Stay informed… subscribe to publications like Forbes, Bloomberg, Tech Crunch and follow your favorite companies and people. Join groups related to your industry and comment on the articles that interest you or that especially touched or informed you.  Engage in conversations, share your expertise!  Be consistent, select a unified theme for all social media so people will easily recognize you everywhere. 

Become a Subject Matter Expert… decide what you want to be known for and make sure people know you for that.  Share your opinions, educate and inform others.  You can start by creating a blog.  It doesn't have to be super high tech, many sites like Blogger are very easy to use and set up.  Create engaging content about whatever you are passionate about and share your passion with the world.  Finally network and make connections… you never know where that next speaking engagement invitation or job offer will come from. 

Remember the three fundamentals… Be Seen, Be Heard and Be Respected. See you online!

What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up?

I would wager that it wasn’t a recruiter.  This was a question I used to jokingly ask my potential candidates to break the ice, get them relaxed and open up.  Usually they would say something like “I’ll let you know when I decide to grow up” or “retired” or simply “employed”.   Funny, they all seem to hold true, even today.  I don’t ask that question anymore but the “retired” answer seems to be more and more attractive to me now.  If not retired, then maybe ready for my next stage of life that allows me to work part time from a remote tropical location and do what I love.  That could include recruiting or something to do with social media… maybe I’ll be like Bethenny Frankel and have an online empire and fabulously successful blog… WHAT… it could happen! 

My friend, Dennis Smith, recently posted an Infographic on his blog jobgeeks.com of the most popular jobs since 1970.  His comment was that he didn’t see “recruiting” anywhere on the list.  This made me smile and reminded me that when I graduated college with a BFA in Advertising Art, the world of recruiting was as unknown to me as outer space.  After all, I was going to be an advertising executive for the Richards Group working on incredibly creative campaigns like Chick-Fil-A and winning CLIO awards that I would display in my super chic, urban loft. 

Two years later I was still tending bar (a lucrative skill I picked up while working my way through college) and doing small projects for friends and customers like designing logos, business cards, signs, flyers, etc.  Not exactly the career I had mapped out.  But I was getting by and had a flexible schedule, no bills to speak of and kept a bag packed in the trunk of my car in case a spur of the moment trip materialized (which they often did, usually scuba diving over the weekend in Cozumel).  One day a friend of mine (who had been trying to recruit me to work for her at a Personnel Agency for months) came into the restaurant and pointed to a 40 something waitress working there and said that was going to be me in 20 years.  Suddenly I was considering a career transition…

After all Patty pointed out that I would be a natural recruiter… I had the perfect combination of sales, smarts, savvy, and storytelling (another skill I picked up bartending).  Hey maybe I should trademark that as the 4 S’s of successful recruiting – that could launch my online empire.  Stay tuned for my next blog…   

The next week I was working in an office in the Galleria Tower I for $800 a month draw vs. commission.  Somehow this seemed like a step back but not one to wimp out, I persevered and was given a desk, a marketing script and the yellow pages and told to start “dialing for dollars”.   This was my introduction into the world of recruiting… I was now a Full Desk Recruiter!  Turns out I was a recruiting natural and indeed have become moderately successful in this unplanned career.  Even though at times the path has been rocky (2002 was a really, really rough year) it’s always been interesting and I have lots of wonderful stories to tell.  Case in point – let’s revisit an earlier blog posting.  

Of all the recruiters I know, only a handful actually planned for this career.  Most like me, stumbled upon it and found success and an aptitude.  It’s not for everyone, but neither is blogging or social media which is the turn my recruiting career is taking me at the moment.  I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t be writing this blog if I hadn’t made that decision 20 years ago.   

I’ve told you mine, now you tell me yours… what is your story… how did you become a recruiter?  

Just call me +Leslie

That’s right… I’m in Google+… totally socially networked now.  Are you impressed?  I’m overwhelmed!

Just when I was getting accustomed to using my twitter handle @leslie12002 (which I still use in my signatures and is a great way to reach me) along comes the new social network, Google+.  Thank goodness I have connections and was able to get past the bouncer at the door.  Now I’m at the club, just had my first trip to the bar but still watching the crowd to see what’s up.  Not sure I’m ready to get out on the dance floor yet.  Don’t want to give away all my moves until I’m sure this is a place I want to hang out.  Also I haven’t quite figured out yet all the security issues, the bouncer seems like a capable and reasonably good guy but will he be there if I get in trouble? 

My first thoughts are to keep this social network for my cool, socially connected friends who share relevant information with a twist of humor.  What I don’t want is another invitation to Farmville.  I’m a big city girl after all… or is that wicked city woman?   I started with just my immediate contacts in my circles, and then I found a list of all the Google employees and decided I had to have  a circle for them.  Is there a limit to circles?  Can I assign which circles come into my home stream?  What I really need is a HootSuite for Google+… has anyone found one? 

Looking over my 2 week old Google+ ecosystem… I now have 13 circles created thus far, 128 people in my circles with 32 people adding me to their circles.  I have no idea how these people found me or why they want me in their circle, I’m not sharing relevant or witty information yet (remember, still at the bar).  My first instinct is that they want to sell/send/spam something to me or even worse – stalk me!  (Of course I intend to use it for recruiting purposes, after all my momma didn't raise no dumb babies.) 

  

The jury is still out on Google+… for now I’ll continue to monitor my stream and selectively add to my circles.  I'm open to suggestions and creative solutions.  Let me know if you have anything that will sway me, all I need is a good reason to bust a move! 

LinkedIn Improved Email Settings Features

Someone at LinkedIn must have read my previous post... have you seen the new features under your settings page?  (I don’t remember it being this way before, but then again, my memory isn’t exactly the steel trap it was in my youth.)  They have made it much easier and more organic to manage all your email settings now by adding the new email preferences link that allows you to control how all email is sent to you.  Click on the settings tab (hover over your name) in the top right corner and land on this page:

Now if you click on the Email Preferences Tab you can manage messaging to you via email:


   
• Select the types of messages you're willing to receive
• Set the frequency of emails
• Select who can send you invitations
• Set the frequency of group digest emails


 
 
 
And you can manage how LinkedIn pushes information to you via email by clicking on the Frequency of Emails link. All this in one place!
 



• InMails
• Invitations
• Messages
• Group emails
• Announcements
• Status updates
• Notifications
• Network Activity
• And several others including LinkedIn Partner Emails


 
 
 
Thank you LinkedIn! 

Too Much Information? Easy Steps to Manage your LinkedIn Status Updates & LI Twitter Stream

Recently I received an email from one of my LinkedIn connections requesting that I “remove him from my list”. This person is a connection that I know personally and I was surprised at the email since I don’t have a list and wasn’t sure what he meant. Turns out he was referring to the frequency of my LinkedIn status updates… seems he had all his connections status updates set to come to his inbox and my daily updates were becoming “too much noise”.

For a recruiter, this can be a fine (on) line to walk… how many updates are necessary and how many are too much? My solution was to twofold… to show my connection how to manage his LinkedIn Status Updates and for me to manage my LinkedIn tweets and only post the tweets especially relevant to my network and my role as a recruiter. Seems I have gotten a bit overenthusiastic on twitter lately. 

My part was accomplished by going to my LinkedIn settings under “manage twitter preferences” and checking the box to only post my tweets with #in instead of every tweet that was going out.

For all of you out there who are having this problem, here are the steps to manage your LinkedIn Status Updates so that you won’t be affected by all the online noise.  This is how you can turn off status updates on your LinkedIn Profile and you won’t receive any of them at all in your stream:


1. Go to your LinkedIn profile and click on your name in the top right corner

2. Click on SETTINGS

3. Click on the ACCOUNT tab on the left bottom of the page

4. Under settings – click on “customize updates you see on your home page”

5. Under the General tab uncheck the “status updates from your connections”

Hope this helps… we are all out here in the sphere together… let’s all try and get along.

Data Driven Decision Making - YouTube as a Recommendation Engine?

Those of you who have been following my tweets are aware that I have been strongly evangelizing my company's involvement in our push to “data driven decision making”. We are offering our products as online/SaaS offerings as well as mobile applications. With this direction, data becomes more and more a priority and talking point.

From Intuit’s business perspective… one of our greatest assets is in the data we collect through our software and services for small businesses and general consumers. Our goal is to transform our data assets into innovative services to better serve our customers. We are currently in the process of transforming our DaaA strategy... specifically in web analytics. We are focusing our efforts on data driven insights on customer behavior, customer acquisition and lifetime value. Over the course of the next two years we will be building a linked collection of data assets to provide near real-time market intelligence to our internal and external customers.

From our recruiting perspective… how do we use data as a two way experience in our recruiting efforts; for a better candidate experience as well as from a branding and awareness recruiting best practice? Being on the forefront of Social Media recruiting, I am taking this discussion to the cloud and would appreciate your insights as candidates, customers, colleagues and interested parties.

Intuit Careers already has a strong presence on Facebook as demonstrated by the data we receive from fans and downloads of our video chat presentations. We also have a strong LinkedIn presence with our Intuit Careers page, Alumni Community, Data and Insights Community and many other Intuit product pages. We are also seeing more and more candidates following and interacting with Intuit Careers on twitter (follow @intuitcareers and our list of Intuit Recruiters).

Going one step further I am proposing using our YouTube channel as a recommendation engine and am asking you to visit Intuit Careers on YouTube where we have many videos posted about our products, culture and our various business units. Go ahead… surf, browse, view, play, share and most of all comment! We want your opinions/feedback/suggestions here: www.youtube.com/intuitcareers.

Pease give us your honest feedback as your insights will help us shape and improve the way we interact with you through our social media channels. Stay tuned… more to follow!

Crowdsourcing - The Wisdom of the Crowd

Just how wise is the crowd anyway? Everyone is talking about crowdsourcing, or using the talent of the crowd, to create solutions and/or content for business. It can also be used on a personal level to put problems out there “into the cloud” and taking the combined opinion of “people in the cloud” to determine the best solution by way of the most popular answer. There are hundreds of social networking websites that can be used for this purpose… Facebook and Twitter are probably the most popular right now.

A great example of this was a recent episode of House where the patient was a high tech software developer who owned a very successful internet company but, of course, had an un-diagnosable disease. (Remember it is House, after all… and no, it was not Lupus! ;)

When the first few attempts of House’s team to diagnose what was the cause of his illness went horribly wrong, he posted his symptoms on the internet and offered a reward to the person with the correct diagnosis. And the correct diagnosis was submitted by one of the people in the crowd… in this case the crowd was pretty wise. (Actually it was House who solved the mystery anonymously since he didn’t have his medical license back yet.)

Sometimes I am so at a loss for a solution that I ask advice from almost anyone I come in contact with… the person on the other end of the phone, the cashier at the store, the neighbor walking their dog, the person in the elevator in our building at work. Almost any opinion is better than not having an answer. Maybe there is something to this Wisdom of the Crowd after all… what do you think?

Home Tweet Home

Very interesting lunch today at the Metroplex Technology Business Council... the subject was "Social Media: New Strategies for the Enterprise" and the speakers were Bob Pearson and Scott Anderson. This was the first time I have ever attended a luncheon where the speakers encouraged the attendees to break out their cell phones… and tweet!

Probably about 10% - 20% of the audience had twitter accounts and were able to send tweets to the MTBC, who then projected them on a screen. It was great fun and an easy way for me (being a visual learner) to pick up some well needed twitter help. (It also helped to feed the narcissist in us to see our comments up on screen for everyone to see;)

You could say that now I’m just twitter-fluent enough to be dangerous. So I’m back at the office working on my FollowFriday and filled with enthusiasm to take my twittering to the next level… we will see how far that goes.

Many thanks to Bob, Scott and all the tweeters at the event! What I came away with was: there are 3 things customers want to do… share ideas, product knowledge and solve problems. The fundamentals haven’t changed… we are still having conversations that lead to business, your customers are in control, they are talking to each other and you should join the conversation, and you should be so compelling to your customers that they seek you out. It’s not about the specific tools… it’s about where the technology is taking us.

To quote Bob Pearson: “the world's greatest OS is the web; not Microsoft.” Tweet you later… @leslie12002