The new resume today: Social Media Resumes

According to the dictionary, a resumé is “a brief written account of personal, educational, and professional qualifications and experience, as that prepared by an applicant for a job.”  Today, especially with the hardships of today’s economic times, it is important for a person to have different resumes and formats of resumes.  So how can a person be creative but also have a simple resume with key words in their resumé? Companies today are asking for resumes to be submitted via online either on the company’s website or e-mailed to the company address, which is why social media resumes are being popular due to  the social media web 2.0.

Social media is defined in different ways, which I’ve discussed in earlier posts. The goal of having a social media resume is so that potential employers are able to have an easy access to your resumé.  Having a resumé online via social media, the resumé is permanently online, giving other people a chance to view  your resumé.  In other words, a social media resume allows a person to embed a video resume, blogs, articles they have written, networks they are a member of, and other social media assignments a person has accomplished successfully. 

Websites including Weebly allow users to create their own themes, design, and content. I began my social media resume using Weebly because it is easy to use even though it took me about three to four hours to complete my site.  Social media resume is beneficial to students because it is another social media tool that allows students to embed their social media skills into their resumé such as podcasting, video casting, and blogs.

Some social media tools that we have to embed into our social media resume are podcasts, slide share presentations, blog posts, and most of all, the resumé gives students an opportunity to explain how they are keeping current on the social trends.

For our assignment in Social Media & Public Relations online, we are to create a social media resume  including presentations we have on slideshare, podcasts, any publications for a client we have created, and other portfolio materials online.  I really like this assignment because to other social media users, it shows that future public relation practitioners aren’t afraid of new technology and the ability to adapt to change concerning  technology. Companies do look for a characteristic or skill that stands out among other potential employers. Thus, having this assignment does make students stand out and learn new social media skills that we need to have when working with companies in the future. 

what do you think a social media resume consists of?

Shift Happens: Viral Videos

“Just what is it that makes a simple little video like “David After Dentist” become a Viral Video? Also, share links to (or embed) at least two of your favorite videos that went viral.”

People learn in different ways. Some people have to visually see the information to retrieve information while others can only hear it once while the other people only have to read the information to comprehend the information. Thus, is why we as public relation practitioners have to  be able to create podcasts, embed our podcasts and videos in our blog posts. 

Social media is dependent upon people communicating and participating throughout various social media websites. The most exciting part about social media is that people are able to communicate through blogs, Twitter, and other sites. One of the social mediums that is forgotten that people can communicate through is viral videos. 

YouTube allows their viewers to search videos by most popular and by categories in addition to searching trending topics. Videos similar to blogs, have to gain a mass audience in order for it to gain popularity.  Anyone can post a video on YouTube, but only a few videos go viral or in other words, become popular and gain a mass audience.  Like a movie, videos have to be unique, creative, and in a sense, have a good sense of humor. Watch  Evolution of dance, for example:

Evolution of dance has more than 138 million views. Jud Laipply, a comedian is discussed on Time.com.  He became popular because he captures his audience through his personality by imitating various dance moves from Vanilla Ice to the chicken dance to different “Grease” dance moves.  This video made the top 50 best YouTube video list. 

However, on a serious note, I have watched this video in different classes. This Did You Know? video and ,  has inspired me to think more deeply on an intellectual level about technology, intelligence, and other ethnic diversities.  Compare these two videos:

with

What amazes me is that the Evolution of dance video has more views than the  Did You Know? video. Why is that? Why is it that I’ve only seen the Did You Know?only in two classes and has less views than the Evolution of dance? Both videos have a point.  Why do you think Evolution of Dance is more viral than Did You Know? 

 This post is dedicated to all of my professors, colleagues, and Twitter followers who have helped me throughout my public relations career including @Mgroover, @Barbaranixon, @rdfrench, @paullyoung, @chrisbrogan, @kmatthews, @missrogue (The Whuffie Factor author), @GingerCM, among many others and to the creators of Twitter. If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t know what a podcast, wiki, or a blog is.

Social Media Tools Summary

From conducting a social media monitoring report to creating a social media resume to creating a podcast, I have learned more about different social media tools than being an active participant throughout the social media world. First I will discuss the lessons I’ve learned in conducting a social media monitoring report to an explanation of the benefits of having a social media resume to how important it is to know how to create a podcast.

For our Social Media & Public Relations Online class, we were required to conduct a social media monitoring report. I had many thoughts running through my head such as how am I going to do this, what is a social media monitoring report, and of course why do we have to do this.  We had the option to pick a Fortune 500 company, which I chose Verizon and Att&T. The goal of this assignment was to understand how people and consumers are talking about organizations and companies and how they were talking about the organizations or companies.  As I was completing this assignment, I used various social media tools and advice including Addcitomatic, IceRocket, Samepoint, Social Mention,  tweetgrid, Twazzup, along with Google Alerts and Twitter Search.  I got these social media sources from Professor Kaye D. Sweetser, PHD, APR.  To my surprise, I got an A on this assignment because I took the time to become familiar with all these social media tools and what each one had to offer.  Having to a social media monitoring report shows that I’m not afraid of new assignments or technology and it is a project that can be in my portfolio.  I wasn’t aware of how many social media tools there are even though I’m a social media junkie.

My class is required to have a social media resume, which I already have.  I created my social media resume using Weebly.  It took me about three to four hours to complete last summer.  Like any other resume, it can be improved and has work that needs to be done to my resumé. But, when I show or discuss my resumé online, it impresses other potential employees because I took the time to stand out and not just have a traditional hard copy resume, but I have an online resume as well. Today, most companies or organizations only take resumes via e-mail or through their website submissions. Therefore, it is vital for today’s job hunters to be comfortable using the Internet to market themselves by creating a resumé online.  I wasn’t told at the time that I needed to have an online resume. Instead,  I took it upon myself to use my knowledge and skills to create my page using  Weebly.  To be creative and determined and to use my knowledge my professors have provided me with, it is only in my best interest to do something without being told to better myself professionally and to further my student career.

Not only is it important to be able to be knowledgable of what a social media monitoring report is to creating a social media resume, it is also essential in understanding how to create a podcast along with posting it to blogs.  At first, I thought there’s nothing to creating a podcast. It’s just recording yourself, but in reality it’s not.  There are a lot of strategies into creating a podcast.  Similar to writing a paper, a podcast also has to have an introduction, some main points, and conclusion. In a podcast, you as the author have to tell your listeners when the next podcast will be published, where it is located, and how your readers can post comments about the podcast topic.  The benefits of a podcast are that listeners can subscribe via RSS feeds, and be able to listen to the podcast through their cell phones, Iphones, Ipods, and through blog posts.  Thus, podcasts give listeners and understanding of who you are, and gives you the author an opportunity to relate to your listeners. Futhermore, podcasts are a tool in which can enhance a person’s visibility within the social media world.

Lessons social media websites have taught me

I’m an active LinkedIn user, Twitter user, along with other websites before I enrolled in Social Media & Public Relations online class with Nixon.  What I didn’t understand was the power of a background on twitter, twitter usernames, and what information is on certain social media websites can be extremely powerful.  For example, I chose my username Leh1185 from my e-mail account because I was not comfortable using my first and last name on all these websites. In a way, it is my trademark name since my username is used throughout all the websites I am on.  Of course, some people might disagree or criticize my username, but it works for me and makes me stand out throughout social media. LinkedIn is similar to having a resumé online. I didn’t understand why we had to get a LinkedIn account until I began to use it to my advantage.  For example,  I was in the hotel business room lobby finishing up some schoolwork which is when I met the vice president of Ameristeels in Florida while I was out-of-town for my sister’s soccer game. The first question he asked me was do you have a LinkedIn account? Of course I said yes, which was then I thanked my professor for requiring us to have a LinkedIn account.

Another lesson I’ve learned utilizing and being active in the “social media world” is that you have to understand why you’re using various social media tools and websites, what the purpose is, and how you can relate to people who follow you or read your blogs. In other words, not just having followers for “follower statistics for bragging rights,” you have to understand why do you follow those users and know their professional background.  I use Twitter to ask other professionals, professors, and fellow colleague  questions about various topics from resume tips to assignment questions, to general questions such as should you have a ring back on your cell phone when you are job searching or job hunting? .  LinkedIn however, is beneficial to me because it allows me to have various widgets and applications which my friends or connections can look at along with my resumé.”  One application I have on Linked In is amazon reading book list so that my connections can see how I am staying up to date and current within social media trends. PROpenMic was the first website I used in researching for internships.  It allowed me to discover what general public relation agencies and companies are looking for in potential interns, who’s hiring, and what skills I need to have or improve to market myself for that particular internship or job.

Blogging has been a challenge for me due to my writing since it is a weakness of mine. I didn’t know how to blog, what to blog about, and not knowing what to put into a blog. But, since blogging is a requirement for my Social Media & Public Relations class, I became better at blogging. I am coming to understand that blogging does improve writing skills along with understanding that blogging can consist of videos, various media tools, and widgets. Blogging gives me an opportunity to express myself through my unique writing and to discuss what I’ve learned throughout my college career.  I am now able to link my blog post to my Twitter, LinkedIn, and Weebly account so that others can see my personality and challenges that have helped me grow and become more professional and not just being portrayed as a “college student.

Below is a summary of what I’ve learned:

• Usernames and backgrounds can impact your professional background
• Understand your followers, who they are, and what their professional background consists of
• Blogging is an opportunity for anyone to express themselves and improving their writing skills
• Blogging allows anyone to discuss their topics using various media tools such as videos and widgets
• Being active on different social media websites has increased my professional skills, confidence, and to show others that I’m not afraid of new social media or technology tools.

Implementing Social Media Tools without knowing it

 It is difficult to get lost and be invisible within the Social Media Web.2.0 era, but there are helpful and free (yes free) social tools that are helpful to publishers and companies to become visible within social media. The tools  I will be discussing are widgets and badges.  I was unaware that I was using widgets and badges without knowing what these tools are provided by WordPress.  What is a Widget? According to A Survival Guide to Social Media and Web 2.0 Optimization, widgets are used to add interactive features to blogs or websites  that can be customized.  For example, I use sidebar widgets such as  my calendar posts, search box, archives, tags, categories, and blog subscriptions provided by WordPress.  I was not aware of how many widgets  that have  specific functions.  Widgets are interactive because they can be customized, help visitors find your site through the social web, and suggest other related content your readers would be interested in. Some of these widgets are Digg, Delicious, and Lijit. I have not heard of Lijit until the required text A Survival Guide to Social Media and Web 2.0 Optimization.  Lijit is a widget that operates similar to a search engine for the readers. The catch is that you are able to decide what will be included in the search engine.  One among many benefits in using  Lijit is that it allows readers to search all over the social web for your content.  Widgets are a valuable marketing tool  if they are popular and can be used in different ways.  Widgets are different from badges, which will be further discussed below.

A badge “is an icon or logo that has a link back to its source, which serves as a way of  displaying one’s membership or presence in a community on the Social Web,” according to  A Survival Guide to Social Media and Web 2.0 Optimization.  I really thought a badge was more difficult to explain than that, but it’s that simple.  For example, if you’re a PROpenMic member, you have a badge so that other users are able to see that you are a member and can connect with you.  So what’s the difference between widgets and badges is what you’re asking yourself. Badges are logos that can be used as widgets and both social media tools have the same purpose, which is to provide additional interactive features for your readers (blogs) or for your customers on the company website.

Learning From Our Blindside: we all have one

 

After finally being able to watch the film “The Blindside,” (yes starring Sandra Bullock and Tim McGraw) I couldn’t help but to think about this: we all have a blindside, which is not understanding what it’s like in walking in a different person’s shoes.We are so preoccupied with our daily routines that we tend to forget or don’t want to see what is going on around us. In other words, we don’t want to visually see for ourselves others’ difficult life struggles. This theory goes back to what I’ve learned throughout my public relations practicum class  interview discussion. Our professor further explained how companies will react to how other potential interns or employees interact with other company employees.  

Why is it important to interact with other employees within the company?  The answer goes back to the saying “you don’t know what it’s like until you walk in their shoes.”  If potential employees interact with other  various departments within the company, then maybe those future employees will have a better understanding of their internal office environment creating a positive atmosphere within the company as well as being able to express appreciation and not taking the full credit of the company. For example, if a potential intern/employee is waiting to be interviewed and is rude to the secretary, the secretary will report the  inappropriate behavior  which could lead to disqualification for the job as a result.

For example, in “The Blindside,” Michael has a different lifestyle than his legal guardians.  But, throughout the film, Sandra Bullock’s character is persistent in trying to understand Michael by asking tough questions about his childhood so that she can become a better person and to connect with Michael more on a personal level as if he was her own son.   If we take the time to learn from one another and communicate on a personal level with each other, then we are creating a positive work environment and being appreciative of other employees’ hard work and creative skills. The public relations field encounters various duties and difficult responsibilities, but the most important to me is to be able to understand and communicate effectively with other people who have various backgrounds or lifestyles that may not seem normal (depends on how you define normal). 

So I leave you with this to think about: What is a bad day to you compared to those who have it worse than you?

Behind the Scenes of Social Media

    Being able to collaborate social media and traditional  public relation skills  is one task  that public relations students need to carry out and bring to the table since that is what public relation agencies, companies, and organizations are looking for today, according to Co-Founder and President of Palette Public Relations Inc., Martin Waxman. Throughout the interview ( an-interview-with-martin-waxman), Waxman discusses the importance of traditional PR, life in the PR agency, and the digital footprints that are taking place.

      Integrating social media strategies is the biggest challenge Waxman faces with his clients because clients have to know their target audience ( who they want to reach) and what type of community are they part of, which are all traditional public relation strategies. Understanding how to use social  media tools is just as important as the company has to understand their target audience. For example, just because your target audience is using Twitter, doesn’t mean the company has a deep understanding of their target audience and are able to use Twitter in one day effectively to reach their target audience. With various social media tools that are available, you (the client/company) have to understand what social media sites stand for, the purpose of the site, and most importantly,   how people are utilizing the social media tools and are communicating to each other.

      Not only do you have to knowledgeable of how to use various social media tools, but students and future public relation practitioners must  have   a general understanding of the major communication bloggers, who  the top communication people are, and stay current in what’s happening within the social media world.  For example, even though I follow @paullyoung, @Peter Shankman, @chrisbrogan (just to name a few), I must know what they are discussing, how they communicate/”tweet”, and what  type of professional work they do or have accomplished and not having them just as followers.  Also, after completing a social media monitoring report, I am now aware of what types of social monitoring sites are available. However, just knowing and having a general knowledge of those sites won’t effectively help me know how to use the sites. I have to explain which site to use and why, which has been an interview question.

     Three vital characteristics that his company were founded  upon are simplicity, energy, and integrity.  In other words, simplicity meaning to make it easier for both his clients and for his agency. He won’t give up on his clients until he or his clients get results, which defines energy.  Out of all these qualities that Waxman founded his agency upon, I believe that the last one “integrity’ is the most important quality, especially today.  According to Waxman, “integrity” is being up front and honest with your clients. Having integrity is essential in becoming more transparent in social media.  ” When we started agency, media relations at our core” said Waxman.

Students’ Benefit Utilizing PROpenMic

   PROpenMic’s demographic is  public relation students, faculty, and practitioners where all can take part through various applications such as blog list, forums, upload/post videos, and add photos. Once someone becomes a member, that person can update their statuses, add music application, and invite their friends to become members. What is so unique about this site is that it allows its members to engage in various ways than just blogging or adding photos. However, I believe that this site is similar Twitter and LinkedIn in the sense that this site is a potential networking site. In other words, it isn’t a place to not be professional.

I became a PROpenMic member  (LaurenHopkins) last year for a class requirement thinking to myself “great another site I have to keep up with in addition to my class projects.”). Last summer, PROpenMic came to my rescue by having the  intern-search that lists various public relation jobs along with the job description and location. For example, I am a member of the jobsinternships which was created by Robert French (@rdfrench). The purpose of the group is to see what jobs or internships are available and to send an internship/job seek request. This group is also automatically shared via Twitter so that members are able to view it in two different sites.

In addition to all the great applications this site offers, I was able to send Robert French a personal message with questions thinking I wasn’t going to get a response. However, I was in for a surprise when Mr. French responded to me in that same day.  Just by asking him questions without hesitating, I’m able to follow him on Twitter and he follows me in return. Thus, creating network connections and just by him following me, I have other professionals like him following me as well.  This site has benefited me so much that it was hard to list just a few benefits I have experienced utilizing PROpenMic and in using social websites in general.  With that being said, I can update my status on PROpenMic which will then be automatically generated on Twitter. Thus, participating one on social networking site can lead to other numerous connections on other sites such as Twitter.

Word-Of Mouth Marketing to Podcasts

       We have all heard of downloading podcasts from iTunes..but exactly what is podcasting? Podcasting is a downloadable audio from iTunes on cell phones, computers, and iPods that people can listen to on their own time. As I have studied and researched this topic for my Social media & Pr online class to create my podcast, I am having a better understanding to why  podcasting is an essential feature that is becoming a phenomenon that’s taking over the communication field. Companies can now create their own podcasts so that their customers and employees can access the podcast through Twitter or email, which people can receive via cell phones.  Furthermore, podcasts are another way of being informed in real-time and engaging with customers. 

     It is not uncommon today that companies are implementing social tools such as blogging and viral videos for their company purposes along with social monitoring and tweeting. With that being said, podcasts can be uploaded to the company’s website or blogging website which then can be automatically linked to Twitter. In other words, once a company creates a podcast, the company can then upload the podcast link to their company website or blogging website. Why would a company want to upload the podcast to their blog? Well, we all know the benefits of blogging, but customers and the company’s employees can respond by leaving comments to the podcast blog giving the company instant feedback.  Linking the podcast into the blog and having it automatically generated to Twitter increases blog traffic and online visibility. What does this all mean?  For example, if I see Coca Cola’s blog link with check out this new podcast about our product launch on twitter, I can not only give feedback, but “retweet” the link to my “followers” giving the site more online visibility similar to the traditional word of mouth marketing. If I share the link with one follower, the word will spread rapidly.

 Let’s recap why podcasting is an essential social  tool companies can benefit from:

1. Podcasts can be uploaded on a company’s website or blog post
2. Podcasts can be shared via social websites, especially Twitter creating instant feedback and blog comments
3. Podcasts are  the traditional “word-of mouth marketing”

Twitter Power Trade Book Review

Trade Book Review