Social Networking For A Nonprofit Job

Originally Posted on the NPT Jobs Career Center


Networking is key when it comes to getting a nonprofit job. You can apply for work all you want, but you’ll have a greater chance of success if you can make connections with people in the organization. Thanks to sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn, making these connections is easier than ever.

Social networking sites are extremely useful for keeping up with the latest trends in the industry and finding connections at jobs you are interested in joining. If you leverage your profiles correctly, the benefits can be huge. The key is to show the world the best version of your professional life. That means you should get rid of content that is not appropriate or interesting to potential recruiters. For example, it’s probably a good idea to take down any embarrassing photos from your friend’s bachelor party.

Once you’ve cleaned out your profile, you can start getting down to networking. Here are five tips that will get you on the right track:

• Don’t post for the sake of posting. Make sure all the content you create is fresh, interesting, and relevant to the type of job you are hoping to land. In this case, it will be helpful to write a lot of nonprofit-centric posts.
• Be interactive. If you are browsing a LinkedIn group, answer other people’s questions so that other professionals will see your profile. You will never harness the full potential of social media if you are just expecting people to come to you.
• Avoid spamming. You want people to notice you, but posting too frequently can backfire. At the same time, you don’t want months to past before you make a new post, so you’re going to have to strike a balance here.
• Make your content unique across all platforms. It’s OK if you occasionally post the same content to Facebook and Twitter, but don’t make a habit of it. You want to give people a reason to follow you on the various social network platforms, and they won’t want to if you carbon copy your content.
• Follow-up. Respond to every message, connection request, or question in a timely manner. This will let your followers know that you truly care about them.