Networking Strategies to Improve your Job Searching
1. Prepare yourself for Networking
Networking requires proper preparation. In order to get professional success through networking, you must need to know how to communicate, and deal with people and make it easy for them to remember you. You need to anticipate how to locate key contacts and how can they locate you.
Pre preparation for Networking
Before using networking strategies, you need to complete following tasks first:
- Prepare yourself for the process
- Make your personal business cards
- Google search and review your information. Update your professional profiles, social media to share your current information
2. Search and Join Professional Organization
The most effective networking strategy is to join professional organization and association. By participating, you will be able to meet many people with shared interests and professional aspirations.
Meetings, conferences, and social events are the main source of your contact where you can talk and introduce your skills by taking on leadership roles. These sources can help your to find an access to a membership directory that provides contact information fo many prospective members of your network, employee at companies and organization where your would like to work for.
Build your profile on most popular networks in your local organizations and associational by answering questions, connecting with influencers and recruiters.
3. Volunteer
Volunteering for networking strategy works. During your volunteering, you get chance to introduce your self and mingle with like minded people. Volunteering opportunity can develop and demonstrate your new skills.
4. Attending Conferences and Events
Organizational and associational events and conferences take place regularly, giving you a chance to meet many people including guest speakers and high-powered attendees of your job interest. These conference and gathering can help you gain your experience and making one of the more important networking strategies.
5. Attending your Local Social and Networking Events
Many organizations and associations host monthly gathering and conferences for member. These are social events where you can meet guest speakers and others for networking.
Social media such as Facebook and Meetup.com are great places to find about upcoming local events. Visit nearby communities to get more access of these events for your networking. Try to utilize your expertise and turn and offer yourself as a guest speaker. This will expose your capabilities and expertise in front of your professional peers. Attending these local events can be one of the most powerful networking strategies.
6. Business Networking
There is a good chance of your meeting with a business network through Chamber of Commerce in your area. These groups meet regularly which makes it easy to connect with others.
7. Join Job Club
A job club can provide significant support especially in a difficult economy. Networking at job clubs with other Job seekers to share job search advice and tips on who’s hiring. If you can’t find a club? Reach out to a job search coach or organization recruiter with the idea of starting one.
8. Social Media a Networking plate form
It’s important in today’s job market to maintain a positive, personal brand-building online presence so that employers and recruiters can find you. Remember, though, that online networking should augment your face-to-face networking, not replace it.
In order to find professional success through networking, you need to impress people and make it easy for them to remember and help you. In order to do that, you should be able to anticipate where these key contacts (and their contacts) will be and how they can research you.
However, it’s easy to get distracted and waste time online because social networks often mix business with pleasure. So, to get the best results from your online networking efforts, focus on the following:
Where do relevant, local employers or their recruiters hang out online? Pick two or three Facebook groups, LinkedIn groups, or forums, and participate daily. It’s OK to limit your time online to only a few minutes each, such as to ask questions, share news articles, or to respond to questions involving your expertise.
Which social network is most popular in your local industry? Build your profile on it as a local expert by answering questions, sharing good articles, connecting with influencers and recruiters, and more. If you have the time, cross-post to the second most popular social network as well.
By Jacob Share