Should Staffing Firms Use Social Marketing Agencies

Should Staffing Firms Use Social Marketing Agencies Social media is maturing and becoming a core part of business for many organisations. Should it managed by an agency or is it better looked after in-house? We spoke to  Rylan Holey  to find out what he thinks. Ryan is a music blogger, a cellist, a member of the London Philharmonic Choir, speaker at #smlondon LIVE!, London operator for #FollowTheSun and of course the EMEA Partner Manager at Hootsuite in London. Check out this weeks  podcast interview below and be sure to subscribe to the Employer Branding Podcast. Do brands need agencies for social media? I think where we saw social really, really accelerate has been largely through agencies. I think they were the ones  who saw the capabilities of social first, for brands. And they were the ones that said, Look, we should be doing this. You need to innovative. This is a great way to reach the audiences. Its an interactive, existing audience. And because of that, theyve got a lot of advantage and a lot of knowledge around social. Social has moved a little bit more in-house, whereas in the past, you would  see a lot of agencies doing complete outsourced work for community management, the whole process have been in one agencies thats changed. Agencies are still being involved but in a different way. And to answer the question; brands still need agencies for social. The reason why I say that is because agencies are the one that are able to create the content which makes a much more impact than often anything that can happen, anything that can be done by in-house. What could go wrong when an agency runs social media for a brand? I think theres several things. A lot of agencies have different ways of working, but I think from a branding point of view, if I put my in-house hat on, I used to work client side for a law firm in the city, and my fears of handling over stuff to an agency to do community management for a law firm, for example, would be theres a little bit, people were at risk. So giving access to a social network without having any knowledge of what they are writing for example, maybe a lot of people in agencies, it changes quite regularly. The workforce in agencies, so people can leave and they potentially have the passwords and all these kind of stuff. And then also on top of that, its about the voice of the brand as well. How can you ensure that the agency is consistent with your brand voice? What role should agencies be looking to play with brands? I think the important thing that agencies really need to focus on is moving more into the consultative space. Taking what have they done from advertising and different marketing, all of that, and taken that skill set into necessarily here, where theyre looking at creating content Well, first, strategising how an organisation can manage social across the business, so one thing that if you can look at Actually one of the other pitfalls I was going to mention was around the cost of social being outsourced. So as social is spreading across the organisation, I think what would also happens was that agencies were starting to do customer service more and more. But that becomes quite a big cost for, not only for the agency but also for the clients when theres a big team, potentially, at the client side that can do a lot of the customer service. Youve got to find ways, as an agency, to help the client be more efficient around customer service. How can you, as an agency, help triage the conver sations to the right people, and how can you bring that all in light with an organisation key business objectives. Should the focus be on producing content, rather than daily management? Were seeing in this industry now, this battleground forming, lets say between the traditional consultancies and system integrators, those are the likes Accenture, Deloitte, KPMG, who have seen the opportunity here, because this is their bread and butter, the consultancy side of things. Helping organisations transform digitally is massively important. And these guys have bought digital agencies to pick up their offering and actually build out teams which can deliver this kind of transformation on a digital level and buying these skills in. At the same time, were seeing the likes of Ogilvy, SapientNitro, DigitasLBi, the big agencies and the big agency groups who are also doing the same thing, who were kind of buying into this consultancy space, delivering more consultancy outside of traditional advertising and helping organisations transform, because I think its key for agencies to help their clients transform, because the sooner they can do that, the more data they could collect about everything. So imagine if youre a brand and you were able to If youre a bank and you managed to get every employee in your organisation to share content. And I know Link Humans was talking about employee  advocacy. If youve got all of your 50,000 employees to talk about what youre doing every day and the deals you have, the loans or the great stuff that HSBC does, for example, youd be able to tap into a much wider network. And you can potentially have more data about the audiences out there. So I think the potential is huge for agencies to really help organisations on this path to being social businesses. What will happen next in the social media space? One of the things Im really interested in, is around employee advocacy for sure. I think the opportunity of a brand to be able to empower everyone in the organisation is going to be enormous. Maybe not for every brand, I cant see it particularly that successfully unless its for HR, for example. But someone like Hootsuite, B2B, is going to be huge and agencies need to be all over this, because not only can they tap into a much wider data set, they can also help with the transformation part, the education part. If youre a brand and youre able to empower every employee to be able to share content in the right way, then youll be able to collect much more, have much larger reach and be able to effectively tap into networks of networks which is a bit of a Holy Grail. You have your own best influencers in your organisation. And I think it really helps, not only on an employee branding side. Connect with with Rylan on Twitter  @holeytonal  and  be sure to subscribe to the Employer Branding Podcast.

Tips for Using Your Star Statements For Resume Writing

Tips for Using Your Star Statements For Resume WritingThe use of star statements is a very common and effective way to highlight the main points of your resume. However, if you want to stand out from the crowd, you need to be careful when using them. Unless you are aiming to change the focus of your resume, it's not good to use this as an additional means of highlighting the things you really like about yourself. There are many other things you can do to make the most of your star statements.Most employers understand that there are certain things they want to see on your resume that they can only find in your star statement. They also understand that they are better off getting a short outline of your job history and accomplishments so they can cover everything in one spot on your resume. Therefore, their focus is naturally on what they want to read on your star statement.Therefore, it is important to make sure that the elements of your resume that employers are looking for are prope rly highlighted. A few of the more important factors include your educational background, your job experience, and your professional associations. If any of these items are missing, it can overshadow the items that are intended to highlight them. Therefore, it is imperative that you make sure all of these elements are included.If you have no real experience as a bookkeeper or an accountant, then you might want to consider listing a specialty on your resume. You might be considered someone who likes to work with computers, so list that as a specialty. Likewise, if you are someone who likes to take pictures, list that as a specialty. By focusing on the tasks that you are actually capable of doing, you will be able to highlight all of the skills that you have that employers want to see.You should also consider making sure that the elements of your resume that you included in your star statement are actually part of the rest of your resume. For example, instead of listing your high scho ol diploma, list all of the past jobs that you held after high school. If you are listed in a list of arts majors, list all of the jobs that you held that involved the creative side of art, such as painting, drawing, and sculpting. This is a great way to focus your star statement and it's a great way to focus your resume as well.The majority of resume writing tutorials focus on the sections of the resume. In order to be successful, you should ensure that the elements of your resume are highlighted properly. In order to make sure that you are doing this, you should spend some time thinking about the overall impression that you want to leave your potential employer.Also, if you have information about yourself that you are hoping to highlight, write it down and then add it to your resume. This makes your resume look like an organized work of art because it can easily be interpreted by an employer.When you consider how to maximize the use of your star statements for resume writing, it i s important to keep in mind that the elements of your resume should be highlighted properly. In addition, when you emphasize these, make sure that you are giving enough attention to each element so that it stands out and makes your resume stand out among others.

Ten Things Successful People Do During Their Lunch Breaks (INFOGRAPHIC)

Ten Things Successful People Do During Their Lunch Breaks (INFOGRAPHIC) Being successful at whatever it is you do can take a long time, and the only way to really get there is to work, work and work some more. However, there are always little ways that you can cut some corners and become a success that little bit quicker. For example, are you currently making the most out of your lunch break? If like most people, you usually get an hour a day, this adds up to five hours a week, or 1,300 hours a year! The guys at Noticeboards Online have put together this infographic looking at ten things which successful people do on their lunch breaks. They raise some pretty interesting points, and a lot of them are really easy to take on board! For example, they recommend swapping out any junk food for a healthy snack, or maybe going out for a jog to help fuel your brain! For some more work-related tips they suggest things such as socialising with you co-workers to build up those workplace relationships and getting on with some of those menial tasks which you always put off. So if you’re wanting to put those five hours a week to better use, you can check out the full infographic below.

On the Job by Anita Bruzzese What the Brady Bunch Can Teach You About Finding the Right Job

On the Job by Anita Bruzzese What the Brady Bunch Can Teach You About Finding the Right Job Like most people, I was broke when I got out of college. Flat broke.That meant than instead of getting a cool apartment to go along with my first job, I had to take what I could afford: A place that looked like the Brady Bunch had exploded all over it. Crushed orange velvet sofa. Orange, yellow and green wallpaper with flowers bigger than my head. Olive green appliances.You can imagine that as soon as I could scrape together more money, I jumped at the chance to rent a better place. When I saw the apartment, I fell in love. It was in an old Victorian home that the owner had converted into three units. High ceilings, a claw-footed bathtub and no olive green appliances. I immediately grabbed it and put down my deposit.But after moving in, I began to discover some things that I had not observed in my first starry-eyed inspection of the place. There were only small, gas heaters in each room. Hmmm....never used anything like that before. Upon my first bath in the cool old bathtub, I disco vered that hot water was in short supply and the water pressure so low it took about two hours to fill.As time went on, I discovered all the summer heat in the old house went straight to my second story place, making the kitchen floor so hot I couldn't walk across it in bare feet. But then, funny enough, the heat didn't rise in the winter and I was forced to live in one room because I couldn't keep the entire place heated.I put on a brave face for my friends -- my new apartment was awesome! It was near work, had a nice porch overhanging the front yard (that I couldn't use because the floor was rotted and I was afraid I would plunge through it to my death) and had two built-in bookcases 9that were so crooked my books all leaned to the right like drunken soldiers).As I huddled under blankets during the winter with that small gas heater spitting out about as much warmth as a lizard's burp, I thought longingly of my Brady Bunch apartment with it's hot water and great water pressure and central heating and cooling. What was a bit of shag carpeting after all?When it came time to relocate for a new job, I had several friends competing for the right to live in my awesome apartment. I gladly gave them the landlord's name, waved goodbye to the toilet that always leaked and headed for better digs.I learned a valuable lesson from that apartment debacle. I learned that no matter how good something looks on the surface and no matter how much I may believe I want it, I need to take a deep breath and look a little closer.I think it's that way for many people who get caught up in interviewing for a job they really, really want. They are so excited about it, they forget to check out whether underneath the sheen of joy there might be a leaky toilet or rotted roof.We all know that when we interview we're supposed to ask intelligent questions about the job, the company, the industry, etc. But let's look at some other things that you need to examine:* Eye contact. Do people look on e another in the eye when they speak? Does the manager look directly at employees, and vice versa? Do employees look each other in the face when they speak? If you don't see that eye contact, it could indicate that there is a lack of trust or respect among the employees and managers.* It's too quiet. While you wouldn't want to work in an office that resembled a three-ring circus, a lack of talking -- and laughter -- could indicate an unhappy atmosphere where everyone avoids any contact with one another.* It's sterile. One of the first things I notice in any office is the personal mementos that everyone displays. You can tell a proud papa by the numerous photos of his children or the avid gardener who has homegrown flowers in a vase. If workers don't seem to have anything personal around, it could indicate the management may have little support for employees having a life outside the office.* Body language. Look at how employees behave as they work. Are there nervous or unhappy gestu res such as slamming down phones, biting fingernails, chewing lips, constant sighing, etc.? Do employees not look well? Deep eye circles, unhealthy skin pallor and disheveled clothes might indicate they are overworked and overwhelmed.* Interaction. I've already mentioned that a lack of eye contact or talking casually might indicate problems, but do you see employees interacting around the coffee pot or in the lunch room? Or, is everyone eating at their desk or while their nose is stuck in a newspaper? While some people may want to be alone during lunch, you also want to see a bit of camaraderie among workers to indicate a relaxed, friendly atmosphere.* Doors. While management may say there is an open-door policy, is there really? How many doors do you pass that are closed?* General upkeep. Ask for a tour of the facility and be sure and note whether it seems to be in good shape. Unkept bathrooms, overflowing trashcans, broken furniture, dirty floors and piles of papers may indicate n ot only a disorganized workplace, but one that might not be financially able to afford a good cleaning service. It can also reflect a general lack of pride by the workers in their company.I'm not saying you should reject a job offer because of any of these things, but I do think it's a smart idea to look beyond the surface, and make sure you won't wind up feeling uncomfortable in your new job.What are some other things a job candidate should look for when interviewing? del.icio.us

Resume For Freelance Writing Jobs - How to Write a Good Resume

Resume For Freelance Writing Jobs - How to Write a Good ResumeIf you want to get the freelance writing jobs you deserve, you need to find the right resume for writing jobs. This article will help you get the job you deserve.Freelance writing jobs are everywhere. Most freelance writing jobs will be posted on the internet. If you are looking for a job to start your career in this field, you need to be able to write a great resume.Great resume is one of the most important things that you need to remember. No matter if you are applying for a job in online marketing or online business writing, it is very important to make a good and effective resume.Most employers will need to see that you have all the necessary skills for the job you are applying for. Your resume should be updated, should contain all the needed information about you. If you forget something or you did not write the resume correctly, there is a chance that the employer will reject your application.Some of the things that you need to remember when writing a good resume for freelance writing jobs include; you need to include your name first, then describe your position, then state your experience. You can also add your location, the company where you are applying for, the department where you are applying for and also the position that you are applying for.When you apply for a position, your resume should be able to highlight your expertise in the work that you are applying for. You should not just include your name, you need to add your name in the end of the resume. In order to do this, you can write in the area where you do the work, the company that you are working for and even the position that you are applying for.Writing a resume for freelance writing jobs is not a difficult task to complete. All you need to do is to create a great resume that can showcase your expertise in your work and this can help in getting the job you want. If you do not have time to write a great resume, you can simply h ire a professional resume writer to do the work for you.Good resumes can be written with all the help that you can get. There are many professional resume writers that can help you in writing a great resume. It is not only you who are required to write a great resume, but there are many people who will benefit from your great resume.

To Blog or Not to Blog

To Blog or Not to Blog Creating a blog is an excellent way to begin developing your brand and start managing your career. Ive been speaking with several people recently about starting one. I truly believe any one can do this and have fun with it. There are some things to consider before testing the waters of blogging (and by no means am I the expert on this, just a practitioner sharing her thoughts.) Why do you want to blog? Do you want to blog because you want to create an online presence? Do you want to share your expertise? Do you like writing and are looking for a format in which to do this? Do you care if anyone reads it? In other words, is there an audience who would be interested in reading what you have to say? When I started, the only one I knew reading my blog was my Dad. He would send me emails critiquing my work. There were others who began to read it but few commented on the blog. It was like hearing crickets chirping and I wondered, is this even worth it? How often will you add to your content? There is no wrong or right answer here, however, the experts say that building a lot of content can increase your Google Search rankings. What will you blog about? This is probably the most important point. What is the brand or reputation you are trying to create for yourself? You want you topics to be on brand or related to the type of work you want to be known for. Sure, it is OK to go off-topic or off-brand once in awhile, but, if the purpose of blogging is to increase the awareness of you, I would recommend that you write about something that will promote you professionally. How will you let people know about your blog? You can add your blog to your LinkedIn profile. You can share your posts on some of your LinkedIn groups, you can put it on your business card and you can Tweet it. Just to let you know, Ive seen a large increase in my readership since I started using Twitter. These two tools are very symbiotic. If you are truly serious about taking your blogging idea to the next level, you will probably want to speak with people who are blogging. You will also want to read about blogging. Here are some of the resources that were recommended to me to help you learn more about blogging: ProBlogger. This post on 5 Steps for Planning the Direction of Your blog is super! The Blog Catalog I would like to provide two additional thoughts about blogging: Blogging is supposed to be interactive. Ask for comments and feedback. Anyone can read what youve written, so be aware.

Maximizing the Productivity of Your Remote Workers

Maximizing the Productivity of Your Remote Workers Remote work is a source of great excitement across a variety of industries. The developments in technology has meant that companies can now offer remote working as one of their most lucrative perks. Some companies love to sing the praises of being able to save money on their overheads, hire freelancers who take care of their own taxes and be able to have a remote team working that is made up with global talent. That’s the other thing about encouraging working remotely in your business; you are able to reach out to talented individuals across the globe instead of just looking in the local area for the best employees. Telecommuting is one of the best things to happen to businesses over the years and it’s one of the best things to happen to people who crave a work/life balance. There are, of course, those who don’t agree with it, preferring to have their team on site at all times to be able to watch and wait as deadlines are hit and growth is achieved. Don’t worry though, there is still an amazing amount of evidence that suggests that remote working increases the productivity of your employees massively. This can happen, but only if you manage your remote workers correctly. You should be thinking about the individual remote employee and how they work, how they like to achieve. You should think about how you can reach your remote workers during office hours and how you can train them to access the company cloud based storage so that everyone is on the same system. People who work in their own time on their own deadlines, without being micromanaged every second of the day, are more likely to be successful in their job and are more likely to be more productive each day. Productivity is so important for management teams in business, because the better their staff work, the better the company does. It’s in your best interests then to ensure that you are doing everything possible to make your employees as productive as possible. Employees crave freedom and flexibility when they are stuck in the office, but if you can learn to manage remote workers correctly, you can maximise their productivity and benefit from their enthusiasm. There are some jobs out there that are far better for remote work than others. You can’t exactly allow nurses to work remotely, because patients don’t live in their homes. However, you can allow administrative staff to work from home as all they require is internet access, a telephone and a computer to work from. If you have the capability to allow teams of people in your office to work from home, you should look into it. By clearing most of the desk space, you are going to be able to save a lot of money on commercial office space and funnel that cash into your IT systems and security. This can mean that you are putting the budget that you have against the things that are going to do well for your business. Trusting your staff to work from home on their own schedule is not a foolish idea; in fact, employees are more loyal to those who give them a little autonomy and trust in their own schedule. The next question that you should have to ask yourself is whether remote work is good for the people who work for you. Not everyone wants to work remotely. Some people need the social interaction and the bustle of an office environment to be productive in their roles. Not everyone has that discipline to sit down and work their schedule without the micromanagement. Before you decide to go remote with your staff, why don’t you sit down and discuss the option with them? You can’t do better than asking those you would like to give this perk to if they want it or not. If you need to save your budget, you could offer remote working on a trial basis and let them test the waters. It’s your responsibility to maximise the productivity of the individuals that work for you and understanding the way that these people work is the first step. It takes a lot of respect on your part to allow people to make this choice for themselves, and your reputation in the industry will be massively praised by allowing a choice. If people do decide to plough ahead and work from home, you need to make sure it’s worth it. Teams of people need to have access to online chat and file sharing facilities. You don’t have to pay out tons for a fancy service, but it can benefit your business to find the programme and software that is the most efficient and works the best for everyone. Schedule training days to ensure everyone is up to speed on how to use these systems before you let everyone loose to work from the comfort of their own home. If team members have the chance to collaborate together online, you’re going to give them a much smoother remote working experience overall. This is going to reflect back on you, because you’ve done everything in your power to increase their motivation, productivity and you’ve given autonomy to people in your business. To be able to have a successful remote workforce, you must ensure that they have a proper office set up to work from. If not an entire room with a desk and a chair, you need to be able to give out office technology to your staff to work from home and access internal business systems. All the effort that you put into your business is going to pay off if you put the same effort into your employees. There’s no doubt that managing a remote workforce that you don’t see very often is a challenge, but that doesn’t mean that it cannot work. Sit down and make a plan, then share that plan with your staff. Lastly, sit down and wait for the magic to happen.