All posts in Networking

How to Find a Job Using Facebook

by Alessio on March 1, 2012 in Jobs & Money, Networking with 4 Comments

Yes, you read that correctly. If you manage it correctly, the world’s largest network could be an ideal platform to help you find a job. In fact, just more than 18 million Americans found employment through Facebook. That’s more than the populations of Los Angeles and New York City combined.

First things first. If you are going to use Facebook to look for a job, make sure that your professional info is in your profile. And if you have a former colleague as a friend on Facebook, you can tag that person in your job history, and this will be a great first step for a referral. Also, include your educational information. Make sure that this information is consistent across all your social networks. If it isn’t, it will surely raise eyebrows for all the wrong reasons.

You are also going to have to keep your profile clean. Or at least make use of lists and privacy settings. The content that you share with your friends will obviously differ to that you’ll share with potential employers. Choose what you share publicly wisely. Potential employers are doing Google searches on job candidates and Facebook profiles usually appear on the first page of search engine results.

Put up a proper profile picture and try to keep it consistent across all your social networks. Potential employees would probably want to take a look at your Twitter and LinkedIn profiles too.

Be upbeat in your status updates. Don’t be negative about interviews you’ve been to, and face the challenge of seeking employment head on.

Follow the Facebook pages of companies you’re interested in working for. Recruiters like to see that you’re interested in their company and didn’t just look to work wherever you could find a job. The company’s Facebook page would probably also send out updates that they’re hiring and you can make the initial connection online.

Post Notes on Facebook. Notes tend to stay in friends’ feeds longer than status updates do. Keep your friends informed about your situation and let them know of the progress that you’re making. However, don’t overdo it. Friends will help out where they can, but they will also block you from their feeds if it gets too much.

Join relevant groups, just as you would on LinkedIn. Participate in those groups and share your knowledge and expertise. This will position you as an expert. And companies want to hire experts in their fields.

Find interesting articles related to the job you’re after and share the links on Facebook. It shows real interest in the job, above and beyond only showing interest in the company. Besides, you’ll learn something new in the process.

A clever idea would be to post an advertisement on Facebook. Facebook ads are pretty cheap and you only pay per click. You choose which demographics you want to target and what the maximum amount is that you’d like to spend a day.

Have you or someone you know found a job using Facebook?

Why do videos go viral – By Kevin Allocca?

by Chris M on February 28, 2012 in Networking, Video with No comments

Kevin Allocca is the trend manager at YouTube, this TEDYouth talk that he gives discussed why some videos go viral. It’s an excellent talk, lots of funny videos and some great insight that you can learn from. I highly recommend watching:

Domestic-violence order for Facebook unfriend threat

by Chris M on February 27, 2012 in Legal, Networking with 44 Comments

A reader on iMod, Andrew, sent through this story which he scanned from Noseweek, he also pointed me to Bertus Preller’s blog where he covers the story. I wanted to republish this because it’s a really interesting story, one which we can all learn from.

When mild-mannered Bishops old boy Colin Chaplin told his friends that the surprise domestic-violence order the police had served on him at work was obtained by a woman he’d threatened to unfriend on Facebook, many found it hard to believe – there had to be a more serious reason.

trio
Danielle Vermaas
Colin Chaplin

Even more bewildering to the 36-year-old Chaplin is that the purported victim – a woman with whom he’d “shared a kiss or two” in the space of a week, years ago – said she’d been advised to seek the order by his ex-girlfriend, well-known Cape Town attorney Lauren Fine.

The spurned friend is fashion designer Danielle Vermaas, who uses the professional name of Danielle Margaux. Two years after his flirtation with Vermaas, Chaplin hooked up with Fine. Their six-month relationship ended amicably, he thought, in July last year.

“I just want you to know that I have done a search on you and I’m very anxious because you and my ex-girlfriend have several Facebook friends in common.”

The ease with which strangers can connect through mutual friends on Facebook – and the painful consequences for Colin Chaplin – are what prompt his anxious first words when he meets with Noseweek at a restaurant in Newlands, Cape Town.

Although lawyer-talk first alerted Noseweek to the story, it took some sleuthing to identify Chaplin, and then numerous emails through an intermediary, to set up this meeting.

Noseweek had been tipped off that two of Chaplin’s exes – Lauren Fine, a one-time ballerina and now a partner in a top Cape Town law firm, and Danielle Vermaas, a local designer who goes by the name of Danielle Margaux – had purportedly teamed up to have a Domestic Violence protection order slapped on him, on charges that were patently without substance.

A domestic violence order is no trivial thing but lawyers, policemen and even magistrates have all contributed to trivialising it. (See editorial in this issue).

Fine and her partners at well-known law firm Bernadt, Vukic, Potash and Getz have since been briefed about the facts of the case, but have refused to meet the victim of the outrage.

Chaplin finally agreed to see Noseweek as a last resort in a system that has failed him. “I’ve exhausted every avenue to clear my name,” he says.

After matriculating at Bishops, Chaplin went to England where he obtained an LLB (Hons) from the University of Buckingham. Back in Cape Town, he has for some years been working in the property development industry.

His story:
“Several years ago I met a girl called Danielle Vermaas at a dinner party. We became friends and kissed once or twice, but nothing serious happened between us. It was a very brief fling. I did not take it seriously from a romantic point of view. Quite simply, she is not my sort of woman.

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Easy Way to Quickly Crop Your Facebook Timeline Cover Photo

by Chris M on February 24, 2012 in Equipment, Networking with No comments

With most people using Timeline now on Facebook I’m seeing more and more cover photographs (the big photograph on a persons profile), most of which look really awful, this is no doubt due to most camera’s not taking photographs at a size that fits properly and not all of us are Photoshop wizzes who can quickly crop and resize.

Aviary has just announced the launch of their new Facebook application, which actually let’s you perfectly cut out your cover photograph, the steps are this easy:

  1. Go to apps.facebook.com/aviaryeditor
  2. Choose any of your photographs
  3. Choose the crop tool
  4. Choose the cover photo inside the crop tool
  5. Drag to select an area
  6. Apply Save
aviary-2
aviary-1

Done!

Standard Bank and FNB go head to head!

by Chris M on February 23, 2012 in Networking with 10 Comments

Woah, battle of the banks started today when Standard Bank tweeted out, “We instruct attorneys to lodge complaint with ASA against FNB for advertising that misleads the public.” – this in my opinion is a textbook example of the worst thing a brand could possible do when it comes to social media.

I’ve been watching Twitter closely, following a search.twitter.com on @StandardBankGrp and all I can say is that the entire Twittersphere is jumping on and slinging negative comments at Standard Bank, possibly the worst thing any brand could ever wish for.

Standard Bank claim that FNB’s adverts are misleading, but the public feel that Standard Bank should focus on fixing their problems rather than worry about something trivial. Afterall, I have no doubt that Standard Bank are moaning purely because FNB has embraced marketing and made a huge success of it, leading them to a market share which is growing rapidly in comparison.

This could really get ugly if Standard Bank don’t slow down, remember Durex when they messed up.. that.

Finally, have a look at what the FNB social media team put together:

The Top Twelve Social Media Apps for iPhone

by Alessio on February 23, 2012 in Equipment, Mobile, Networking with 1 Comment

As you may have noticed, most of the social networks I review have apps for the iPhone. I’ve compiled a list of the top twelve iPhone apps that I use on a daily basis to stay connected. Because only twelve apps fit in a folder.

Facebook is a definite. With nearly one billion people using the social network, and more people accessing it via their mobile phones everyday, the world’s biggest social network definitely has a place in my Social folder. The app has come a long way from being a pretty simple application to one that shows  Timeline views, lets you manage lists, lets you tag people and places, and even share links. All from a device that fits in your pocket.

Facebook Messenger is another confirmed app, for me at least. While the Facebook app has messaging capabilities built into it, I like to keep it separate. Handy and convenient.

Tweetbot is a Twitter app that’s come a long way. Originally it had no push notifications and you’d have to use another app, Boxcar, to push the notifications to your iPhone. It now ties in nicely with iOS 5’s native Twitter integration and allows you access your settings and import all of your accounts. Even though it’s a paid app, it’s well worth the $2.99. It has a slick, responsive interface and using it is an absolute pleasure. The app has become so successful on the iPhone that they’ve even ported it to the iPad.

Foursquare is another one of my favourite apps that gets used daily. I check in everywhere I go. Much of the time to the dismay of whoever I am with. It’s just so addictive. Getting points and earning mayorships is awesome. The gamification of a location-based social network is a brilliant idea. In fact, they also throw some really cool easter eggs in the mix. On Valentine’s Day, Foursquare told me it loves me. They even wished me a happy birthday.

Instagram is another of my favourites. I love sharing my pictures with my followers and seeing the awesome pictures of the people that I’m following. The Popular tab helps you discover the most like pictures, and gives you a pretty good idea who to follow. Even though it’s mostly just pictures shot and uploaded with iPhones, the pictures are breathtaking. Some people obviously have a natural eye for good composition and luckily they get to share their incredible pictures with us.

Pinterest, the fastest growing social network also has a place on my phone. A very beautiful and easy to use application, I don’t really pay it as much attention as I should. Most of my attention gets split between Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and Instagram.

LinkedIn also has a mobile app with a pleasant user interface and many built in functions which allow you to manage your professional network. Similar to the Facebook app, you can also sync your LinkedIn contacts to your iPhone. LinkedIn also has an application out called Cardmunch, which allows you to take a photo of a business card and submit it. The card gets processed and returned to your iPhone as a contact, with all the relevant details completed. From here, you have the option of saving it to your iPhone. Very impressive and useful.

The next two apps I have in my iPhone’s Social folder are Ego and Quicklytics, both analytical apps. Ego is aimed at basic analytics for your blog, Google Analytics, Tumblr, Feedburner, Ember, Mint, Squarespace, Twitter and Vimeo support. Basically, in the case of websites, it tells you the number of hits you had today, yesterday, this week, this month and this year. The Twitter stats tell you how many followers you have, how many people you follow and how many times you’ve tweeted. Very basic stuff.

Quicklytics, on the other hand, is basically a Google Analytics tool that allows you to drill down a whole lot more, as you would with Google’s web based interface. The app is universal and will also work on your iPad. It’s a paid app, but definitely worth it.

App.bg is actually a web app. I find it particularly useful as I get to see the tweets, Instagram photos and Foursquare tips around me. Great for finding new people to follow through those networks.

Buffer is also available for the iPhone. It provides analytics on the tweets that were sent out with your buffer and it gives you directions on how to install a buffer bookmarklet in mobile Safari, so that you can schedule your tweets no matter where you are.

KloutScore is one of my newest additions. It helps me keep track of the Klout scores of all my Twitter accounts, along with my style, my influencers, and the people that I influence. A handy, convenient app that covers the basics.

What are your favourite mobile social networking apps? Do you use Tweetbot for Twitter? Let us know in the comments below.

 

 

 

 

Streamified is Here!

by Chris M on February 23, 2012 in Equipment, Networking with No comments

With the flick of a finger see hundreds of posts cascade vertically down the page. Scroll horizontally to see your Facebook, Twitter, blogs and other social streams. Quickly find and bookmark the posts that are meaningful to you. And never miss a moment in the lives of the people you care about.

Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are supported, Streamified allows you to post to any combination of social networks all at once and you’ll even be able to attach a photo, link or location. Facebook Pages, Twitter Lists and mentions, etc. are all carefully manageable. Finally, you’re also able to subscribe to blogs, Google+ accounts, Pinterest accounts and more!

New Twitter for iPhone

by Chris M on February 23, 2012 in Equipment, Mobile, Networking with 2 Comments

That’s right folks, Twitter have rolled out a new version for iPhone users and this comes just as Twitter gears up to have their 500 millionth user (in fact, they might have achieved that today already!).

Here are the new features you can look out for:

  • By swiping a tweet, you’ll have access to reply, retweet, favourite, share of view the Twitter user’s profile. All these fantastic controls available just with a swipe.
  • Finding friends has been improved, when you select “Find Friends” in the application a notification appears that is clear and explicitly messages the fact that when you upload your contacts’ email addresses and phone numbers, you can quickly find which of your friends are on Twitter, provided they’ve enabled the ‘discover by email or phone number’ setting.
  • Copy and Paste functionality has been re-added.
  • The “share” feature used to just give you the option to copy or email a link to a Tweet. Now, if there’s a link within a Tweet, you’ll see the option to tweet, copy or mail that link, or you can choose to read it later. (Select a “Read Later Service” under Settings > Advanced.)
  • Pressing and holding links provides similar options, along with the ability to open the link in Safari.
  • The design for Direct Messages has been updated and the ability to mark all DMs as read has been reinstated.
  • A new option to control font size has been added under the Advanced settings area.

Not major updates, but I’ll definitely be enjoying a couple of these!

New Twitter is being rolled out

by Chris M on February 17, 2012 in Networking with 2 Comments

If you’re plugged into Twitter, you’ll know that over the past few months Twitter has been rolling out new versions for mobile devices and finally they are rolling out similar changes to web version (twitter.com).

Some of the features you can expect are:

  • Clicking on tweets to view photos, videos, retweets and the likes.
  • Connect, in the navigation, allows you to keep conversations going by seeing who’s doing what and being able to engage accordingly.
  • Discover, based on your interests, Discover will provide you with useful information relative to what you enjoy. This information is pulled based on your location, who you follow and what’s happening in the world.
  • Embeddable tweets! You’ll now be able to embed tweets easily on your website.

Whilst we’re on this topic, don’t forget to take a tour of the new features as well as the Twitter brand pages – @NPRNews and @Audi have done this already!

Do you like the changes?

My Top Six Twitter Tips

by Alessio on February 16, 2012 in Marketing, Networking with 7 Comments

Some of my good friends are finally starting to ‘get’ Twitter, and as a result, I find myself tweeting and sharing more. Below are some of my top Twitter tips for noobs and veterans alike.

Schedule your tweets. This may not make much sense, but nobody wants their timeline filled with rapid fire tweets from the same person. Schedule your tweets with tools like HootSuite or Buffer and never flood your followers’ feeds again. Chances are, you’ll probably end up being unfollowed.

Share news that you’d want to read. Seems simple enough, right? People are still tweeting about their breakfast, their cats and other random things that nobody cares much about. By sharing news that would interest you, the benefits are two-fold. Firstly, your tweets become more compelling and secondly, you will start attracting and interacting with people with similar interests to yours.

Give more than you receive. Social networks are all about sharing. Help other people on Twitter. Give advice where you can, help solve problems and answer questions in areas where you consider yourself an expert. You’ll gain more trust and become the go-to person in your particular field. Who doesn’t like being an expert, right?

Keep it real. Be yourself. Nobody wants to follow users that only tweet links. Spice up your tweets with sprinklings of your own personality. Found a link you want to share? Let your character shine through by adding a short review of the content in the tweet. Don’t be scared to say what you feel and stand up for what you believe in. Also, be honest. Make a mistake? Own it. People are more forgiving if you own up to mistakes rather than making excuses for them.

Remember your manners. Someone tweet a really cool link? Give them the credit by either retweeting them, or tweeting the link and mentioning them with a ‘via @whoever’ in the tweet. On the flipside, if someone retweets you or mentions you, say thank you. A little bit can go a long way. Asking for something with ‘please’ could also make all the difference. Especially if you’re asking for some retweets to get a message out to a large group of people.

If it doesn’t fit into 140 characters, you don’t get it. Tweets are meant to be concise. Short, sweet and to the point. Don’t tweet an essay. Nobody wants to click on a link to be taken to an external site to read your whole tweet. If it doesn’t fit into 140 characters, don’t tweet it. Post it on Facebook. Or Google+.

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