The New York Times reports that social media-based business collaboration and communication will boost the economy by anywhere from $900 billion to $1.3 trillion in the next few years. So why is LinkedIn reporting that growth in “social media manager” hires has slowed by 50% over the last year? The numbers seem counterintuitive in the extreme, which is why the stats beg for a much closer look. So our creative staffing team did just that.
As it turns out, if you’re searching for employment and have solid background in social media experience, the difference between you getting called in for an interview or not may simply have to do with how your resume is arranged and the words you use.
The Bad News:
Quartz reported the odd little quirk that job titles including the word “Twitter” were 22% less popular over the past year. And clearly the demand for “social media managers” is also dropping. So if your resume has either of those job titles listed, it’s time to nix them in favor of more in-demand search terms.
The Good News:
If you have solid social media savvy, your skills are still in very high demand. And that demand is still increasing at a very brisk pace. The tech giant IBM reported that their company saw a 400% increase in sales through a social media program they initiated last year. And their research also indicates that 75% of B2B buyers actually use social media in their purchasing research. So just who exactly is making these exciting numbers happen?
The Resume Secret:
The aforementioned Quartz article also reports that while certain social media job titles are waning in popularity with employers, other job titles are skyrocketing. They note that Indeed.com users who used the title “social media expert” actually saw an increased demand of a whopping 1600%! They also claim that resumes listing “social media” as a skill or experience (rather than a title)—under almost any other job title—saw an 89% increase in employer interest over the last year. So apparently, it’s all in the wording when it comes to getting potential employers to bite on the social media savvy listed on your resume.
Revamping Your Resume
So if you are searching for employment with a social media background, it’s time to reword and reorganize your resume with new search terms. Companies still clearly need and desperately want people who have social media experience and know-how. But it seems that employers are not hiring people who only list that experience alone. They want marketing professionals, writers, and designers etc. who have social media experience as part of a well-balanced skill set.
If you’re unsure of how to go about updating your resume to most effectively highlight your social media expertise, it’s a good idea to get some insight from our creative staffing team. Contact us today to learn more.
