Does Social Media Help Job Candidates Stand Out?

I’ve really wondered if posting on social media helped with getting a job, in a non-random way. Of course, we have heard stories of people who got jobs from their posts on social media. The real question is, did they get those jobs by design or by chance?

Chibuzor Obilom
August 22, 2024
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Briefs

I’ve always wondered if posting on social media helped with getting a job, in a non-random way. Of course, we have heard stories of people who got jobs from their posts on social media. The real question is, did they get those jobs by design or by chance?

By Chance

How many attempts did they make before the post that worked?

These questions are borne out of seeing people post every day on social media. While some posts are really good, most of them leave a lot to be imagined.

Is it worth the effort?

Can the outcomes be controlled as against waiting on serendipity?

By Design

Does posting on social media help me stand out when I am a candidate in a job choice process? What are the chances? Can a recently laid-off professional improve their chances of getting a job by posting on social media?

I believe it is impossible for a recruiter to follow all potential candidates. This includes recruiters, HR officers, business owners, and recruiting managers. It is unmanageable for them to keep track of every candidate for every role they will ever recruit.

There are millions of posts on social media published on a daily basis. Timelines reload at a second’s notice.

Posts are fleeting.

When people hire, they adapt to this conundrum by using social media for fact-checking and search-based sorting.

My questions for anyone who constantly recruits for job roles are:

  • Do you follow people who are potential candidates for job roles you’d recruit for in the future?
    • Is this a common or rare practice amongst people who recruit other people?
  • Do you check published posts of potential candidates for a job role you are recruiting for?
    • Is this a common or rare practice amongst people who recruit other people?
  • How relevant is posting ‘knowledge’ on social media to non-technical recruiters?