Social media can be a great resource. But a tool is only as useful as the hands wielding it. Here is what you need to be doing online to help your accounting career offline.
It’s hardly news that having a strong, well-crafted social media presence can be a boon to your career in any industry. It can certainly work wonders for your own accounting job.
But how do you ensure that your presence on sites like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Connect paints you and your accounting skills in the best possible light, and continually draws prospective clients to you? Follow this primer of things you need to be doing on social media as a professional with an accounting job.
1. Do post original (and not just recycled) content
Following, or connecting with, the right people in your industry on Twitter or LinkedIn is crucial. But if your social media activity exclusively consists of retweeting and linking to quotes or articles from others, you’ll never be seen as an accounting or financial services expert in your own right.
Be sure, then, to at least occasionally chime in with your own observations and commentary about your industry. And post things that are vaguely personal – but not too personal! – every once in awhile (e.g., an anecdote about your workplace “spouse” or your career plan). It’ll humanize you and make you seem increasingly compelling.
But if your social media activity exclusively consists of retweeting and linking to quotes or articles from others, you’ll never be seen as an accounting or financial services expert in your own right.
2. Do spend at least 15 minutes per day on social media
Twitter and other social platforms can be a major timesink. And you can’t afford to be spending all day at your accounting job intermittently fussing over your various social media profiles.
Instead, designate roughly 15 minutes each workday at your accounting job for updating your status or posting relevant things.
3. Do track people’s responsiveness
Keeping track of how frequently and enthusiastically people are responding to your various postings should give you a sense of the sort of content they gravitate towards. It will also clue you into what kind of social media activity brings you more followers and views – and eventually, more accounting or financial services contacts. When a posting is well-received and is liked, linked to, or re-tweeted, make a note of it; that’s the type of material you will want to reproduce in future.
Offline, keep track of how many business or client meetings, phone calls, or proposals have come about as a consequence of something you did on social media; you want to know what kind of real-world results you’re producing. Also, just as importantly, monitor who unfollows or unfriends you, as well as when, to figure out what you might be doing on social media platforms to put people off.
Monitor who unfollows or unfriends you, as well as when, to figure out what you might be doing on social media platforms to put people off.
4. Do follow successful people in both your industry and others
It goes without saying that you should subscribe to successful people holding jobs in accounting or financial services on LinkedIn, Twitter, and the like. But you should also subscribe to, connect with, and follow the feeds of successful professionals in the general business community, along with other fields you find interesting. Networking across industries is always important: you never know where you might find yourself in the future, what connections could come in handy, or what you’ll need to progress in your current accounting job and overall career.
Social media can help you build a better accounting career if you use it carefully. Get online, get active and get connected. Just remember to follow our tips and avoid the downfalls of social networking.
Stay tuned for the next instalment on social media “don’ts” for accountants!
Let us know what you think! At Clarity Recruitment, we’re always interested in hearing from accounting and finance professionals like yourselves, who are ready for new, exciting opportunities that can take their careers to the next level. And be sure to follow us on Twitter (@clarityrecruits) and connect with us on Facebook for more great tips and advice!
