Up All Night

As promised in the first post in this series, Why Use Twitter? Part I – Personal Use, I wanted to present some professional reasons one might use Twitter.

Here is a list of possible uses, or reasons, why people may utilize Twitter for professional reasons:

1. Networking – First and foremost, many people use Twitter as a resource for online networking with other business professionals.  You don’t have to be in the social media profession to network. People with many different professions can be found on Twitter. Just dive in and start following and engaging with others in your profession. Build a network of people with similar professional interests as you, and your Twitter stream will soon be full of valuable information you might not otherwise had found.

2. Share knowledge and learn more about your career field – By networking with other professionals in your career, not only can you swap information and stories, but you can also ask for other people’s input quickly. Have a question? Ask it on Twitter and get a response quickly. You will find that your ‘tweeps’ can sort of feel like your coworkers, or even, friends sometimes. You can also use hashtags (#) to increase the chances of others who aren’t following you to see your tweet (i.e. #eventprofs).

3. Job hunt - Twitter is a great resource for job hunting. Not only can you often find job openings posted on Twitter, but you can also network (see #1). Networking is always fun, and doesn’t hurt when you’re job hunting!  Setup a keyword search for job titles, companies, or words related to your job search and see what’s out there. Mention in your Twitter bio that you are on the hunt for a job, too.

4. Communicate live at events with others sharing the experience – Many conventions, trade shows, and seminars/workshops are using Twitter as a way to interact with people attending their events. People attending these events are also using Twitter to communicate with one another. Events can set up a hashtag (i.e. #SpringFlingSEA) and people can track what is going on at that event by this hashtag, whether they are at the event or not. Meet-up with someone for lunch while attending a convention; talk about the event via Twitter; share what you’re learning at the event, etc.

5. Track your reputation – Setup a keyword search for your name on Twitter. You can use this information to see if people are talking about you, and what they are saying. You can always address anything you’d like fast and easily by setting up a keyword search.

This is not an exhaustive list, by all means. However, these are great ways to utilize Twitter and get more involved with social media and others like you. What are some other ways you like to use Twitter for professional reasons?

Tagged: job hunt, job search, reputation monitoring, share information, social media, Twitter

§ One Response to Why Use Twitter? Part II – Professional Use

• Why Use Twitter? Part III – Brand Use « Up All Night says:

  May 6, 2011 at 10:22 pm

  [...] up my series, “Why Use Twitter?” (See Part I and Part II), I’m presenting why brands should be and could be utilizing [...]

  Reply