A Little Bird Told Me — How to Use Twitter in Your Job Search

By Ritika Trikha


We took a Bliss Poll recently asking our CareerBliss community “Do you use Twitter as part of your job search?”

Of the more than 500 people who have taken the poll, nearly half said “I have no idea how to use Twitter for job searching,” and 41 percent said “No, Twitter is totally useless in my job search.”
OK, OK — we understand why skeptics might raise an eyebrow and roll their eyes at using the same forum as hey-look-at-me celebrities – like Kim Kardashian — who share an obscene number of self-portraits.

But Twitter is so much more than that. (And you don’t have to follow Kim Kardashian.)
“Twitter is one of the most powerful conversational networking platforms out there that make it easy for individuals to keep track of others within the industry, employers, and industry news publications,” says Jonathan Nafarrete, director of social outreach at BLITZ Agency.
Here’s how you can use Twitter as a job searching tool:

1. Find Relevant, Helpful Tweeps
Professionals at the top of your field are Tweeting cool, valuable information right now—and you’re missing it! The easiest way to scope out credible people that are most relevant to you is by searching similar job titles and industries. So, if you’re looking for a finance job, search “finance.” Then, on the left hand side, click “people” to find everyone who has listed “finance” in their bio.
After you add your favorite folks, take a look at who they’re following to get leads on more interesting people. Also, check out 10 Career Experts You Need to Follow on Twitter & 10 Internship Experts to Follow on Twitter to fill your feed with valuable career advice. Oh and @CareerBliss, of course!

2. Use Hashtags to Find What You Need
It’s not about simply adding a #hashtag #to #everything #you #type. It’s about using hashtags that are actually searched a lot. Here are some job searching hashtags that can pull up valuable information for any job seeker:
#hiring
#nowhiring
#jobsearch
#jobadvice
#HR
#career

3. Jump into a Twitter Chat
Since everything happens in real-time, Twitter is a great way to conduct live conversations with people you might never be able to otherwise. Twitter Chats are a live, Q&A session that typically discuss specific niche, industry issues.
There are Twitter Chats for just about everything under the sun: From career advice to project management.
Try to Google and look for Twitter chats that are relevant to your area of expertise. Usually, one moderator asks questions (Q1, Q2, Q3) and any Tweeps can answer (A1, A2, A3). It’s usually an hour-long discussion once a week. Check out 4 Twitter Chats Every Job Seeker Should Know.

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