Recently I’ve been viewing a lot of resumes and talking with a lot of recent college grads looking for jobs.   Lots of the resumes I see are dull and unimpressive.  Even many designer resumes I’ve reviewed have been bland with no personality.  It really made me think about how helpful engaging in social media can be to improve their situation.  Creating a blog, interacting with people on forums, and connecting with those in your niche on LinkedIn and other social networks can do wonders for your career or business ventures.   As a recent graduate or current student it can put you leaps and bounds ahead of your peers in terms of building a professional reputation and presence.

I’m going to submit an article to various college professors and career service employees I know in the hopes that more college students will utilize social media to catapult their career or business when they graduate.  Let me know what you think:

Here’s just a few benefits why a college student, recent grad or professional in general should be utilizing social media:

1. Control Your Online Reputation

When a potential employer or business partner meets you, or comes across your resume you better believe they will often do some due diligence before hiring or going into business with you. When your name is searched on Google or another major search engine wouldn’t you want favorable results to appear? Millions of students around the country let their online presence stop with facebook. Therefore if someone is searching for their name the top results may include them doing keg stand or photos of a drunk make out session at a local bar, night club or frat party. By publishing favorable content and keeping an eye on your online reputation you can control the image and perception people have of you. This is one of the fundamental aspects of marketing any brand and you are the most important brand you’ll ever have to market.

2. Gain Credibility & Expand Your Circle of Influence

By actively participating in daily conversations happening in your industry (or future industry) on blogs, forums and professional social networking sites like LinkedIn you have the ability to “Flex-your-expertise” and let your knowledge and experience shine through. This will increase your credibility and everything that comes with it such as:

- Additional job offers
- Business opportunities
- Media exposure

Once you’ve established credibility for yourself, social media and the internet as a whole can increase your circle of influence very quickly. By continuously producing high quality content and contributing insightfully to meaningful conversations in your space you have the ability to reach and influence thousands of people all across the world.

3. Build Your Professional Network

It is often said that to be successful or land that great job it’s not what you know it’s who you know. One great thing about social media- especially twitter, blogs and forums is that you have the ability to really get to know, interact, and build relationships with a wide range of professionals, potential employers and thought leaders. This is very powerful because people generally want to do business with people they know and respect. There are many times that I’ve met someone that I’ve interacted with on twitter or in the blogosphere and when we met it was like we had been friends for years. I would encourage all marketing professionals especially students to invest their time in using social media to build their professional network, it will pay off immensely.

4. Improve Your New Media Marketing IQ

The landscape of marketing has changed tremendously with the growth of the internet and personal computer. In the last five years there has been a large switch from traditional marketing which markets “At a Potential Customer” to new media marketing (or Social Media Marketing) where you build relationships with potential customers as well as deliver valuable content which to them at the precise moment they are seeking it. These new media marketing methods don’t interrupt the consumer like a loud broadcast or radio ad, but help potential consumers solve their problems and position you as a trusted resource making them more likely to do business with you. By building your online brand you will become familiar with new age marketing tactics like Search Engine Optimization, Social Media Optimization, viral marketing and more. This will not only make you more marketable yourself, but give you valuable experience that you can take with you for years to come that will enable you to grow awareness of any product, service, or brand you decide to promote.

Did I miss anything? How beneficial do you think utilizing social media is in growing your career, personal brand or business venture?