LinkedIn may be the leading site for professional social networking, but employers prefer Facebook for digging up dirt on prospective hires. Here’s how to avoid embarrassment when it comes time to look for a new job in three simple steps.

Nearly half of all employers admit to checking up on new hires prior to making a job offer. That number more than doubled from 22 percent last year to 45 percent of all employers.

What’s interesting is that employers are starting to dig deeper than LinkedIn profiles that only offer an overview of a candidate’s professional history. By digging through interviewees’ Facebook profiles, employers are starting to get a more personal look at who it is they’re actually hiring.

Follow these three basic tenants when using social networking sites to maximize your career potential:

1. Keep it clean

If you wouldn’t say something in front of your deal old Grandmother, it’s probably best left for a personal email or instant message chat session. You might not even be looking for a job now, but you never know when opportunity will knock and you don’t want to get caught with your pants down.

2. Get it under control

Facebook provides advanced privacy controls so that you can lock down your profile completely or share certain messages and pictures with a select group of friends. If you don’t provide the most basic access to your Info tab, you may seem like a hermit. On the other hand, nobody really needs to see those pictures from spring break in Cancun.

3. Build credibility

Now that your Facebook profile is no longer a liability to your career, start using it as a tool to build your credibility as an expert. Share links and status messages that demonstrate your expertise and passion for your career or for what you want your next career to be.

It’s possible to use Facebook to keep up with friends and polish your reputation at the same time. Facebook also lets others see how interesting you are and not just whether you’re qualified.

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Entry was posted on Thursday, August 20th, 2009 at 9:13 am under Social Media, Tips and advice, Web2.0.

Read more entries by Dave Jeyes.
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