Yet. You spend all evening procrastinating, hoping to find an opportunity that speaks to you. You send in cover something, odds are you use social media on a daily basis. You probably spend alot of time managing your online presence and reputation.

Why not use Twitter as a job search tool? Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging platform that job seekers can use to connect with and follow other professionals, recruiters, hiring managers, and leaders in their industry or field. Check out these awesome tips on how you can use Twitter to spice up and expand your job search.

1. Create a professional profile. You want to distinguish between your public Twitter and your professional Twitter. You don’t want the conversations you have with your friends about unprofessional things available to potential employers. Save yourself the hassle. Make a professionally- focused Twitter account.
2. Make sure your Twitter name is professional. You can use your full name or a combination of name and profession. For example, my twitter handle might be @RanatheMarketer.
3. Make sure your profile picture reflects your professionalism. For example, I might have a picture of me in an office setting. A professional headshot could also work. Just make sure the image you select denotes the image you want to present to people looking at your profile.
4. Make sure your profile information includes the top skills you can offer. You also want to include the type of opportunity you are looking for. If possible, add links to your professional website and/or Linkedin.  You can also link to other profiles or hashtags that reflect your skills.
5. Tweet links to interesting articles about your field or professional. Recruiters may be searching the site to see who is talking about what. Also, use this platform to broadcast samples of your work or any other information that reflects your interest. For example, I may share an article I found about how to market company Facebook profiles. Someone who follows me may be interested and grateful for the share.
6. Follow the leaders in your industry. Use the Twitter “search” and “find people” tools to look up people within your industry’s network. I may search “marketing managers in the NYC area” and see what comes up. Or, if you find an interesting article, you may directly tweet this to one of them. Who knows? This person may tweet you back, acknowledging your tweet. This is great way to network online! Also, don’t be afraid to retweet what someone else has shared. RETWEET, RETWEET, RETWEET.
7. Follow organizations, companies, and lists that are in your area of interest. Look for interesting tweetchats or tweetups to join. Tweetchats are pre-arranged chats that happen on Twitter through tweets that include a predefined hashtag to link tweets in the form of a virtual conversation.
8. Search and follow hashtags in your industry to stay current. One of the most important things you want to do is stay up to date on the industry buzz. Knowing what’s hot in your industry will be invaluable when reaching out to recruiters online. Hashtags can also be used to find jobs. For examples, employers recruiting Princeton students on Twitter are encouraged to use the tag #hiretigers when sharing content. Make sure that #hiretigers is one of your saved searches so you can receive updates when someone out there in the Twitter world is looking for a tiger to hire!

I hope you find these tips useful. Want more advice? Click here to see a list of the top 25 Twitter accounts you should be following as a job seeker!

This article was originally adapted from a blog post I wrote for Princeton Career Services.

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Rana Campbell is a branding professional who helps brands succeed in the digital and social media spheres. Check out some of my other work here. Follow me on Twitter, LinkedIn, or Instagram.

Got a question? Send me an email at rana@ranacampbell.com