Social media tips for young professionals

Social media platforms are the most powerful tools we have to connect with other people. For reference, Facebook had 1.96 billion (yes, that’s billion with a “B”) active daily users as of Q1 2022.

The reach these platforms give us is unprecedented, which is why they are the most critical branding and marketing tools organizations use to connect with their audiences. Most young professionals are already social media savvy, but we think it’s important to share advice our team has learned first-hand about these massively popular platforms.

Start viewing your social media accounts as an online résumé. 

It’s true, hiring authorities look at your online activity to learn more about you.

Because of this, it’s good practice to avoid posting anything that could be perceived as distasteful, but the most successful candidates take this a step further by using social media to promote their best qualities.

Take the time to post examples of your work, even if you haven’t started your professional career. For example, a student looking to break into their industry of choice may not have work experience, but they’ve likely written papers or conducted relevant studies in their classes. Social media is a great way to display these kinds of projects so future employers get to know more about you and your capabilities.

Superb media literacy gives you a competitive edge over other candidates. 

Having an online audience that knows and trusts you means you can use your platforms to comment on your industry’s latest news as an authoritative voice, or “thought leader.” This is a highly desirable quality in candidates and companies alike, and the most influential social media personalities achieve their reputations by using superb media literacy to filter and interpret online content.

The first and most crucial step in developing media literacy is to know the difference between misinformation and disinformation, as well as being able to identify it on social media.

• Misinformation is content that is unintentionally false or misleading. While there are a variety of trustworthy news outlets and public figures using social media to share information, there are also users sharing unvetted and unverified articles, photos, videos, etc. Verify anything you repost by fact checking it through a trusted source.
• Disinformation is content that is intentionally, and often strategically, false and misleading. Some social media users post for nefarious reasons, like getting people to click on bad links. Sharing inflammatory information that makes you want to click is one way they achieve this, but to a media-literate user it’s usually clear when not to click. Anything that sounds overly sensationalized, contains obvious typos or is trying to elicit an extreme emotional response could contain harmful links.

Unfortunately, misinformation and disinformation continue to circulate on social media at a high rate. Staying aware will continue to be important as you build your brand on these platforms.

Use each platform to your full advantage. 

When you’re juggling accounts on multiple platforms, it’s easy to post the same content across each one. But every social media channel has its own purpose, whether intended or implied. These are the best practices for using Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn:

• Twitter: This platform is colloquially known as the “news app.” It’s frequented by journalists and their readers, and posts that are shorter and snappier mesh well with the overall tone of its users.
• Facebook: The most widely used platform, Facebook is heavy on curated content and videos. When posting, it’s best to appeal to your niche audience and to use visual aids when applicable.
• Instagram: Started as a photo app, Instagram now hosts a myriad of video options as well. The app also gives you a longer word count to use in photo and video descriptions, so users tend to expand on ideas by writing lengthier content.
• LinkedIn: The best way to reach a professional audience, LinkedIn is the obvious choice to engage in thought leadership. Many use this platform to respond to articles or data in their space and explain market trends to their audiences.

Conclusion:

Social media is a valuable tool for any organization or individual marketing a product, creating a brand or building a reputation with their audience. Running successful social media accounts can help you stand out to future employers and teaches you the skills you will likely need for any job that requires you to market a product or service.