Bad Twitter advice from Advertising Age

It’s disappointing that David Berkowitz (representing the venerable Advertising Age – i.e., someone who should know better) would tell you, in one breath, that the single most important thing you can do when jumping into Social Media for business is to “establish your goals,” and then in the next breath tell you that the one person you should follow on Twitter  is Shaquille O’Neal.

Now Shaq may indeed be a Twitter super-user, and he might even coin more words than Seth Godin. But recommending him as your one must-follow was a waste of an opportunity to give real, sound advice.

The person you should follow on Twitter, if you’re a business owner and really only have time to follow one, is the person in your industry who has taken the time to become a resource for others. This person:

• Posts a ton of links to relevant reading material
• Re-tweets useful stuff – not fluff
• Engages with those who reply to them
• Follows proportionally to their followers
• Blogs passionately about the industry and links out when appropriate to their own incredible blog

Having established that setting goals is “the most important thing” you can do when getting into social media, I’d say that the second most important thing you should do is make sure you’re not wasting your time by connecting with people who can’t help you meet them.

Happiness is a new job

It looks like my “smart questions” strategy may have paid off. Or at least, there’s something very good to be said about having a chance encounter in a parking lot! I’m very pleased to report that last week I accepted a position as Account Executive with a local advertising agency/marketing firm, and am no longer job-hunting. This was quite literally a chance conversation with someone who casually asked how I was doing, and when I reported on my job search she told me about an opportunity she was thinking of offering. We both got very enthusiastic about the prospect of working together. I worked for a short time as a freelancer on a test project, and was offered and accepted the full-time position in the midst of that work.

The position will be a great opportunity to put to work all of my project management skills, and to learn a thing or two about agency life and methods – no doubt it’s changed somewhat in the 23 years since I last worked in that environment!

Interview strategy: prepare smart questions to ask

Had a job interview that went very well this week – I enjoyed talking with the individual who would be my boss, and the position sounded like an interesting combination of project-oriented marketing work, oversight and enhancement of some ongoing advertising programs, and a little administrative support for the small office. The level of autonomy in decision-making, the largely self-directed work, and the healthy marketing budget were all very promising.

The interview itself was an opportunity to put into practice some valuable advice I’d gleaned from recently reading the book 101 Dynamite Questions to Ask at Your Job Interview by Richard Fein. I’ve known forever that it’s a bad idea to not have prepared questions to ask the interviewer, and I’m determined to find a position that’s a good fit for me personally as well as professionally. But how to formulate my questions, and how to determine which questions to ask?

Fein’s book provides a way to break down the job, the company and its industry into distinct segments, and craft questions that will reveal information you can use to make an informed decision should an offer come your way.

For example, as a marketing professional I’m concerned with the company’s level of openness to new marketing channels. I’m personally enthusiastic about exploring online social media channels as marketing tools. So, one of my questions was designed to tell me what’s currently working for them (“What is presently the marketing channel that brings you the most new business?”), and the follow-up would tell me if they were open to new ideas (“What new channels would you be willing to explore to gain more prospects?”). The answers to these questions were very encouraging: the owner named their most productive marketing channel and stated that he would like me to formalize a program for mining that channel more effectively. When asked about new channels, he essentially said, “I’m open to whatever you come up with.” 

Of course, I also wanted to ask about the salary range for the position, but Fein had advised that this question was premature in a first interview. So I approached it another way: because the position also involved a small amount of office support, I asked about the “growth plan” for the job: “Where do you envision it in two years’ time, and how it fits into the company structure?”  I also asked whether he perceived it as an entry-level job, or whether he was seeking a more strategic, experienced marketing person. Again the answers to these were encouraging.

Other good things about this job: a low-stress commute and a small-office atmosphere that relies on committed team players to function smoothly. I hope to be called back for a second interview.

Special thanks to Action Print!

Would like to take a moment to thank my good friend Dan Hansen at Action Print, an awesome local commercial offset and digital printer who donated production of my new networking cards! I’ll be using these not only to directly network with folks who might be seeking a marketing director for their own company, but also for those who might be able to refer me to interested colleagues.

The cards direct people to this website, and on the back they contain my contact information and ‘elevator pitch.’ The pitch says, “A creative, strategic, internet-savvy marketing professional and multi-tasker with strong communication skills, seeking to lead a dynamic company, association or non-profit organization in effective use of internal and external communication tools.”

Thanks, Dan, for making this investment in a friend’s career!

3 best tips for a better resume

I always felt that I did a pretty good job of capturing my work experience into resume format, but certainly over the years I’ve learned that “best practices” can change as the needs of employers – and the search tools available to them – evolve. Here are three tweaks I’ve made recently that I think have really improved the way I present myself on paper to potential employers:

Tailor the resume to the employer
This means reading the job description carefully for each position you’re interested in, and taking steps to show how your past experiences are connected to that specific position. For me, it’s not enough to have one resume for the position of Marketing Director and another for the position of Social Media Strategist – though that’s a good start. Instead, I’m tailoring the document to each individual employer based on the needs they’ve outlined in their individual job descriptions. For example I might put my achievements for each past position in a different order to highlight what’s most relevant based on the job description. Obviously, the cover letter is tailored to each employer too, not just in terms of the identified recipient, but also in the content of the letter itself.

Focus on Accomplishments
Speaking of past achievements, I’ve learned that it makes a huge difference if you take the opportunity to focus on the results of your work rather than your job responsibilities. In my present position as Executive Director of a small non-profit membership organization, I’ve grown membership by 30 percent; in past positions I’ve proven my ability to strategically grow website traffic from x to y. These achievements receive top billing because they are significant and show measurable results.

Use Keywords
With the advent of electronic search tools such as online resume databases, it’s more important than ever to think like an employer and use words in your resume that the employer will use when searching for candidates. With some search tools, your resume may actually be ranked in the search results according to the number of keyword matches it contains when compared with other candidates. CareerPerfect.com has a good article to help you identify the parts of the resume where keywords fit naturally.

In remembrance

Featured post: New book captures the spirit and diversity of women riders

Below is the lead to a guest post by author Christina Shook, who has just published a photographic essay book, Chicks on Bikes. The full post is linked at the end of the excerpt; the full article originally appeared on Biker Chick News.

Sisterhood. A community. Of women. Not a sewing circle, not a women’s auxiliary club, not a mom’s club. There is a community of women bikers. Today women have formed organizations for every interest under the sun, no longer limited to domestic, nurturing or supportive activities. These women have taken up a lifestyle that is still a largely male domain and claimed their space and culture within it.

Few groups have the high-impact visibility of a pack of women riding up on their bikes. Few events have the singular sense of power that wells deep within as dozens of women roar their engines at the beginning of a group girl ride. It is a screamingly , throbbingly, wonderful feeling. It’s awe inspiring and fascinating to behold.

Read the full post on Biker Chick News.

Five tips for in-person networking

Those who are immersed in online networking might find it hard to remember that there’s also offline networking – you know, meeting actual people at an actual event?

Here are a few tips for making the most of an in-person networking event:

1. Be authentic – don’t adopt some kind of weird, not-the-real-you persona when you attend an in-person event. Just be yourself.

2. Be genuine – when you’re talking to someone, don’t constantly look over their shoulder to see if someone more interesting is approaching. Give your full attention to the person in front of you.

3. Find a legitimate reason to share your contact info – when talking to someone you haven’t met before, don’t assume they want your business card just because it’s a networking event. Think about how you can be of value to them, and offer your card after expressing that potential value.

4. Ask lots of questions – Making small talk can be agonizing, especially when it feels forced. Instead of the usual weather-related stuff, why not ask some leading questions of the person in front of you? What’s new in your industry? How has the recession impacted your business?

5. Become a resource - Write a short “nice to meet you” note to new people you meet and send it via email, and include a link to an online article that’s relevant to something you discussed with them.

Job-hunt week in review

It’s been an interesting week on the job-hunting front – I’ve accomplished a few things, and raised some interesting questions that I’m still working to answer.

Started the week by updating my resume and doing some hard thinking about the type of position I’m looking for. I actually made two basic resumes, one for the position of Marketing or Communications Director, and one for a position as social media strategist. I’ll tailor the resume for each position I apply for, of course, but these give me a starting point.

I updated my profiles on a few of the larger job-search websites. This immediately prompted phone calls from several companies looking for sales people. Although this isn’t the type of position I’m looking for, I’d much rather have someone read my resume and call me if they think I might fit their needs – for any position – and give me the opportunity to think it over, rather than assume I’m not interested.

I spent some time writing a script for and researching the concept of a video resume. Video production is something I know a little bit about, and I could easily picture myself doing the old “walk-and-talk” in a homemade digital version of my written resume. But I learned a couple things, and I’m still debating whether to do this. The main thing I realized is that I look absolutely horrible on camera. (I should’ve known – I have a hard enough time snapping a suitable profile photo for Facebook!) Now I know this is not a big thing in the grand scheme – I’m a delightful person, and sometimes downright cute. But, the camera doesn’t do me any favors, so I’m very reluctant to pursue this option.

I also applied for one position that I found through CareerBuilder.com. It’s a little tricky when the recruitment ad doesn’t tell you who the employer is or what the job pays – I’m curious as to why that information would not be included, but I freely admit it’s been a long time since I’ve gone through this process so I’m still learning what’s considered normal.

In the upcoming week, I expect that an official announcement will be made about the reduction in hours in my present position, and I will be able to begin networking in earnest among all my present colleagues. Meanwhile, I’ve also been working the freelancing angle. More on that soon.

I’m in the job market

After a difficult few months in an even more difficult economy, my employer has decided that they must transition my present position to part-time. So,  I am officially in the job market looking for a new full-time assignment.

For the past 15 months I’ve worked as Executive Director of a small non-profit that depends on business memberships for its survival. The good news is that I’ve worked hard to grow the membership – by 30 percent since last year. The bad news is that’s still not enough to support a full time staffer, hence the move to part-time. Hard feelings? I can honestly say there are none – I enjoyed the job a lot, and in fact am still in it for the short term.

But, as much as I understand their need to stretch their dollars as far as they will go, they have understood that I must have full-time employment. So it seems I’m really in the best of both worlds – I’m openly in the job market with the full knowledge and support of my present employer.

The last time I was actually in the open market, resumes were still on paper. If online networking existed outside of old-style discussion forums, I wasn’t aware of it. Heck I wasn’t even blogging then, and I’ve been blogging a long time.

This time around, of course, the job-hunter’s tools are completely different. I intend to harness them all, and will start by using this website to blog about my strategies, discoveries, successes and failures. Come on along if you like!

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