Social Media Stereotypes

“According to a survey of more than 2,300 hiring managers conducted for CareerBuilder by Harris Poll between Feb. 6 and March 19, 70 percent of employers use social media to screen candidates before hiring, up significantly from 60 percent last year and 11 percent in 2006. Some 3 out of 10 actually have someone dedicated to the task,” (Ed Zwirn). Many millennials have various forms of social media that they start when they are young, not searching for a job. On the other hand, people of older generations may not have any forms of social media at all. Society is in a time of transition where it is becoming imperative for companies and employees to have some forms of social media, however there are many restriction as to what potential employees

that employers can find information on applicants. In this essay I am going to talk about what aspects of social media can help and hurt potential job seekers when searching for a job.

Being active on social media is somewhat essential to young people today when looking for a job. “3 in 10 employers have someone dedicated to solely getting the scoop on your online persona,” (Salm). Because of this fact, it shows that it is important to have social media, so there is some info to find. Employers want their employees to be active on various social media platforms in order to make sure they are up to date on recent events happening, so it is important for young people to have developed a social media presence when beginning their job search.

Careerbuilder.com lists specific things that employers look for when they browse through potential employees social media accounts. According to careerbuilder.com, to reiterate what was stated in the previous paragraph, 50 percent of employers look to see if the candidate has social media at all; however, the number one thing they look for is, “Information the supports their qualifications for the job,” (Salm). When people think of social media, they oftentimes don’t think of a profession platform; however, one can have a social media account, on Twitter for example, that is solely dedicated to their job. This would look very impressive to employers. If someone looking for a job is already involved and up to date on the field they are interested in working in, that makes them that much more desireable. Even before someone is hired, they should be following, retweeting, liking, reblogging, and posting about accounts that relate to their desired job field. Almost all companies or organisations have some sort of social media to follow. Even if employers do not look at someone’s social media account, it is still beneficial to follow accounts that relate to their field because that could give them more knowledge to pull from when in a interview for a