After just a few days of being open to the public, Google+ has nearly 3.5 million members and counting! With its multiple features and easy to use platform, you can already tell it’s going to be significant in the future of networking and job searching.
Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter take some time and patience to learn but Google designed Google+ in a way where it’s clear-cut and self-explanatory—even my mother understood it immediately. There’s also no need to create two profiles, one for your professional life and one for your personal life, since you can separate these in multiple “circles”. Simply drag and drop your contacts into buckets, one at a time or multiple at a time, to form these groups or circles.
Once Google launched this social network a few weeks ago, they also released the +1 button. Google stated: “When you click +1, you’re telling your friends, your family and the rest of the world, ‘this is something you should check out!’” The +1 button is essentially the “Like” button on Facebook, but instead your ‘+1’s’ are collected in your profile and presented to your connections. When you share articles, videos, and other information, you decide who gets to see it—select ‘public’ if you want it to be visible to everyone, or select certain circles to post it to.
Google+ also gives you a chance to network face-to-face with employers, experts, and recruiters, by incorporating the ability to “facechat”. Skype is already a popular form of interviewing, but when you include a profile filled with articles and work history; this gives the interviewer a greater idea of your interests and expertise!
Lastly, make sure your profile is complete and honest since this is what hiring managers and recruiters will be seeing first. Make sure you add a professional profile photo, work history, and links to your current blog, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, etc.
Good luck in your Google+ adventures!
Dustin Willoughby
Marketing Department
