6 Steps to Getting the Most Out of Social Media
When people began jumping on the social media bandwagon several years ago, it really was a “wild, wild west” type of environment.
Folks said whatever popped into their heads at the time with little consideration given to who would read those posts or what they would convey about the person sharing them.
Today social media has gone main stream, particularly as it pertains to business and professional circles. To use this tool wisely, you have to take a few moments to think about how it really fits into your career plans.
Here are six things that you can do to ensure you’re getting the most out of your professionally-related social media experience –
- Leave no stone unturned: Carefully assess the social media sites frequented by your colleagues and then develop a presence on all of them. Not everyone does that, so you’ll have a leg up by putting yourself out there on all the relevant sites.
- Give equal attention to all: Once you do create a presence on these sites, be sure to post on a regular basis. Going silent for days or weeks at a time will only accomplish one thing: making your colleagues on that site forget that you are even there.
- Self-police: Before you post something, ask yourself how it is likely to be received by your followers. If the answer is, “Joe and Steve will probably think it’s funny” then think twice about making the post. You want all your professionally related posts to be just that – professional.
- Put your followers first: Especially if you’re actively looking for career opportunities, it’s hard to focus on what the other people on the site would like to see from you. But that’s what you need to do, because only by posting things people really care about will your posts be shared with others in their networks. And make no mistake: getting people to share your posts is what expands your own social media presence beyond your own followers to others who might benefit your career.
- Know what you want out of it: Of course, you still want to have a clear idea of what you hope to accomplish with your social media presence. If, for example, it’s an opportunity to move up the career ladder, then post the kinds of things that will make it clear to your followers that you are worthy of the climb, such as research studies aimed at improving patient care.
- Be yourself: While professionalism is paramount, you’ll also want to let your own personality shine through your posts. So be conversational and don’t be afraid to interject a personal story every now and then. For example, “This study found 80% of people with asthma could not properly use their inhaled medication devices” may be technically correct, but the wording doesn’t really invite comments. A better phrasing might be, “Hey guys, I ran across a new study that really applies to my own patients. See if it sounds familiar to you too. Results showed 80% of people with asthma made mistakes when using their inhalers . . .”
