Social Marketing for Students
The economy has completely tanked and I have no idea what the I’m going to do with a journalism degree when I (hopefully) graduate in 2.5 years. How am I supposed to make myself “stand out” from every other person that’s clamoring for a job with that local newspaper that has more employees than readers? The answer lies in social media, marketing, and networking. Since everything else is going online, you should too.
Personal Networking
As clichéd as it may sound, it’s all about who you know. While social networking and marketing isn’t the only way to get your name out there, it’s certainly the most efficient. I was talking with one of my professors about landing an internship and he told me that the key is to have something by which people can remember you. This doesn’t mean that you should write a Shakespearian style poem or limerick containing the highlights of your resume and recite it to every person you meet. They might remember you, but only as that idiot who wrote a limerick. On the other hand, a business card with your professional Twitter, blog, and LinkedIn profile addresses can be a good start to any job seeker. The more you can show you’re tied in with the online world, the better. As far as Facebook goes, I would keep that off any employer’s radar. If you’re completely against removing you’re professionally inappropriate pictures, make sure your privacy settings are tight and think about using your first and middle, but not last name.
Socially Market Yourself
Most importantly, an online presence is a living resume. What I mean is that a resume tells what you’ve done, while a strong presence online shows what you’re doing. Everyone has heard stories about companies looking at the Facebook profiles of prospective employees, so why wouldn’t they look at your blog? Knowledge of social media applications denotes that you’re a “tech savvy” individual, which in this day and age is a huge leg up on the job market competition. As a journalism major, I’m slowly coming to the realization that I’m going to need samples of my writing that are more substantial that that paper I wrote on Hamlet in the 10th grade the morning it was due. I’ve recently created a blog devoted to such writing samples, which I plan to reference when I start looking for jobs and internships in the future. Even if you don’t want to be a journalist, having a few projects online could help convince employers that a few things in your heavily padded resume could be true.
Social Communication
I don’t remember the first time I heard someone refer to people my age as the “YouTube generation”, but I couldn’t help thinking how stupid and nonsensical that sounded. Then I actually thought about it instead of just being cynical, and I realized that it really does make sense. Our means of communication are vastly different than those of past generations. For my grandparents, it was pen and paper. For my parents, it was the telephone. For me, it’s Facebook, blogging, and Twitter. Everything has gone social. Every time you communicate, you communicate with multiple people. Since everyone is connected in a huge online network, everyone has theoretically unlimited exposure. The old idea of “six degrees of Kevin Bacon” has been flipped upside down. If I follow Kevin Bacon on Twitter (he doesn’t have one, by the way), we’re separated by only one degree, and we’re even closer if he follows me back (which a surprising amount of celebrities do, but not Kevin Bacon since he doesn’t use Twitter). What if I communicate to the Twitterverse that I’m an unemployed Journalism grad, Kevin Bacon sees my tweet, and tells one of his buddies at the LA Times that a starving and desperate kid is in need of a job? As Austin Powers might say, I’m in like Flynn. Granted, the likelihood of that happening is slim to none, but the basic idea is realistic. Marketing yourself and your professional skills is dependant upon mass communication. If Coke had never advertised, no one would know about them, they would have gone out of business, and we would be stuck with Pepsi. The same goes for you. Advertise yourself on the greatest personal communication network. It’s free, efficient, and it can get you a job.
Spencer Coates is a native of Charlottesville, Virginia and sophomore at the University of Tennessee. After realizing math was not his forte, he changed his major from finance to journalism and electronic media. He hopes to one day write for an online publication or blog, preferably one associated with technology and consumer electronics. When he's not diligently studying, Spencer spends the majority of his time reading or watching movies. His favorite writers are Chuck Klosterman, Dave Berry, and David Sedaris. You can read his blog here, follow him on Twitter @SpencerCoates, or contact him via e-mail by clicking here.
