Have you ever wondered if anyone outside of friends and family cared about your views and opinions on social media? In today’s job search, social media can make or break your chances of landing. According to a 2014 Jobvite survey, 55% of recruiters have reconsidered a candidate based on their social media profile. Maintaining a strong and attractive social media profile increases your visibility, and invites potential employers to learn more about you. Your online presence can even be the factor that seals the deal after an interview. Employers can use your social media profile to verify your qualifications, your personality, to see if you’re a cultural fit, and work out other details they were unable to glean from you during an interview. Making these little details easier for employers to find helps your marketing hit the target and inspires action when you know what is important to the recipient.

There have been countless articles written about how NOT to represent yourself on social media, but what are the best ways to present yourself? I’ve compiled a list directly inspired by Youtern’s article, “These 5 Social Media Personalities May Be Unemployable” and put an EPIC spin on them.

 

So what are the best types of social media personalities that increase your chances of landing a job?

 

1. Complimentary Candice – Complimentary Candice is the type of employee who speaks positively about her experiences and her past employers. She highlights the good things her employers have done in the workplace, in the community, or how they positively impact the world. She comes off as enthusiastic about her work and her co-workers. She is the type of employee who comes to work with a smile and greets everyone with kind words. If the morale of the workplace is low, a Complimentary Candice will find a way to raise everyone’s spirits. In turn, she is the type of employee who people want to work with and her attitude can help positively impact productivity and profits.

 

2. Showtime Samurai – The Showtime Samurai knows that social media and being online is important in this day and age. This type of employee uses social media as a part of their overall image and to capture the attention of potential employers. The Showtime Samurai knows if they are invisible online they won’t attract as many job opportunities. They know it is completely possible to network and to be found by potential employers without using social media, but social media is their sword. They use their weapon to connect with others and draw attention to themselves. The Showtime Samurai is also honorable and knows they must put their best self forward. They have a networking infographic because they know it will improve their visibility among the job-seeking crowd. They are transparent and they have a sizable number of followers. This type of social media personality is very attractive to employers who value a large social media following because those employers know a potential candidate with lots of followers can bring an instant expansion to a company’s visibility. The Showtime Samurai is also the type who uses their charisma to draw others closer. Their influence is constantly expanding by their numerous initiatives and projects in progress.

 

3. Sociable Steve – Sociable Steve is similar to Showtime Samurai in that he knows the value of social media visibility. Where the Samurai is intense and loves a large following, Steve is laid back in his approach and doesn’t worry about large numbers of followers. He has an open social media profile and allows recruiters and hiring managers to not only follow him, but also accepts their friend requests. He knows that his passion and knowledge can be appealing to potential employers. His life is an open book that is warm and welcoming to anyone who comes across his profile. Sociable Steve’s other big strength is his ability to make clients and customers feel at ease. His easy-going personality and calm reasoning can diffuse a variety of difficult situations.

 

4. Professional Perry – Professional Perry knows that people are looking at his social media profile and that it represents his online brand. He doesn’t post inappropriate content, make crude jokes, and never shows his wild weekends online. Instead, he posts about the volunteering work he does, about his positive family outings, and his hobbies. His value makes him trustworthy and a good spokesperson for a conservative company with strict social media policies.

 

5. Transformative Tim – Transformative Tim is a change agent. He is bold and not afraid to tackle difficult subjects, engage in debate and to try and change public opinion TACTFULLY and RESPECTFULLY. He is a master at seeing both sides of an issue. He knows where he stands and does his best to win others to his side. Transformative Tim also knows where to draw the line and when to stop pressing if he can’t sway an opinion. This type of personality isn’t appropriate for all companies, but it is perfect for social impact organizations, non-profits, lobbying organizations, and public office officials.

There’s a counter-argument to the positive social media personalities: “If I only post about good things, I’m not being true to myself!” In his Slate article, Paul Heibert states numerous reasons why people tend to over-share content on social media that can make them un-hirable. One reason is the lack of inhibition and a sense of being invisible due to not having face-to-face communication with others when posting to social media. Like it or not, your presence online is your brand and employers are going to research you in order to lean more about you. The 2014 Jobvite survey noted that 93% of recruiters will review a candidate’s social media profile before making a hiring decision. Of the 93% of recruiters, 55% of those recruiters reconsidered a candidate based on their social media profile, and 61% of those reconsiderations were negative. Profanity, illegal drug references, alcohol references and spelling errors topped the negative reconsiderations on recruiters’ lists. On the flipside, over 60% of recruiters want to see positive content such as memberships in professional organizations and volunteering for charities. By using the knowledge that potential employers will search for you online and that you can make yourself more appealing through social media, you can increase your chances of landing the job.

 

If you have a social media profile and are searching for your next job, it is almost certain that a potential employer will view your social media profile. You can make their decision to consider you for the job easier by making your social media presence attractive. This means having a social media profile that will strengthen the best aspects of your personality and give employers a positive glimpse into the type of worker you will be at their companies. Your online presence also avoids the negative pitfalls that turn off potential employers. American entrepreneur Amy Jo Martin said it best: “Social media is changing the way we communicate and the way we are perceived, both positively and negatively. Every time you post a photo, or update your status, you are contributing to your own digital footprint and personal brand.” Just as you want to be perceived positively by employers in the real world, you want to be perceived the same way online.