In today’s society, it is common practice for clients and recruiters to turn to social media before interviewing or hiring a potential candidate.
In the past we have seen how limited company contractors may increase their LinkedIn presence to win more contracts, but more and more candidates are turning to Twitter to find their next opportunity. Therefore, we have provided 5 of our top tips on how to improve your Twitter profile in order to win more contracts. And don’t forget to give PayStream a follow too to keep up with all our latest news and industry updates.
1. Regulate your food
Facebook and Twitter tend to be on opposite ends of the spectrum. Facebook is a much more personalized social media platform used to connect with family and friends, so we’d recommend keeping this channel private, hiding your feed and interactions with others from the view of potential customers . Twitter is about networking with others and therefore should be kept open to the public where possible in order to get the most out of the platform. However, as a result, everything you tweet is public. According to a recent CareerBuilder survey, “70% of employers are now screening candidates on social media.” Therefore, make sure that all the content you have on your Twitter feed is content that a potential customer would be happy to see.
2. Customize your account
Once you’ve done a sweep of your feed and are satisfied that there’s no compromising content, the next top tip we suggest is to make your profile look great so you stand out from the crowd.
Choose a profile picture that compliments your personality without looking too unprofessional. Never leave the default egg as your profile picture, this can make people think that you are not active on the social network. Then choose a few keywords for your summary that highlight you and your skill set. Be sure to include a link to any personal blog, website, or your LinkedIn profile so customers can get a deeper insight into who you are. A great online tool that we would recommend is linktree, allows you to place multiple links within a single page.
3. Professionalize your food
It will always look great in the eyes of any client if you show that you are engaged and passionate about the field in which you work. So, for example, if you’re an IT contractor, start sharing links as retweets (RTs) or quoted tweets (QTs) that include your opinion on IT-related content.
It’s also essential to be consistent with your Twitter feed, make sure you don’t go days without posting or sharing any content.
4. Follow up and engage
The next key step is commitment! Look at hashtags that are trending in your industry, for example if you operate in the financial services industry, is there a hot topic or legislative change worth tweeting about and giving your opinion on?
Make sure you’re following influential people in your industry, including recruiters, key industry news figures and organizations. Engaging with influencers can give you more gravitas that can result in winning more contracts than if you were just putting out a steady stream of content.
5. What works well?
Twitter Analytics is a fantastic tool that allows you to see what percentage of engagement each of your posts has achieved. Building an understanding of the type of content that works well on your profile means that the content you post in the future will be more engaging and in turn look good in the eyes of potential customers.
Remember, Twitter is not only a great tool to showcase you and your industry knowledge to potential clients, but it also acts as a fantastic networking tool. Giving you access to top influencers, recruiters and industry professionals at the touch of a button.
These five top tips will help you make the most of your Twitter profile, making it stand out from the crowd and in turn potentially help you win more contracts.
