Looking for a new job is never an easy task. One can spend hours sending out resumes, calling for appointments, sitting down for interviews, and still not get that elusive offer.  One of the ways that candidates say is the most consistent way to find that new position is through networking, and many of the new social media sites are turning into great places to update and maintain your network. One of the mostly widely known is LinkedIn. This site is designed to keep you, and your business network, updated and in touch on a regular basis. When you create a profile on LinkedIn you add the companies that you have worked for and the skills that you have developed. Then you can create links with people you know that you have worked with. Every connection you make also gives you access to the other persons network greatly increasing your ability to reach out to new connections. Linked in also provides a host of job search tools allowing you to search jobs and see if anyone in your network may work there or know people there. It’s a great way to increase your exposure and put yourself in front of companies recruiting candidates for new opportunities.

Chances are you are already using Facebook so why not use it to help in your job search? While Facebook is not a job site it does allow you to keep your friends up to date on your job search and enlist their help in finding your next great job. The best way is to keep posting updates that your friends see such as when you have an interview. Often your friends or friends of friends may know an opportunity they can send your way. Its also a great source of encouragement and support, which can be important when you are looking for a job. Facebook also has a “Marketplace” that lists jobs gathered from other sites that are close to you  and you can search there.

Utilizing social media sites also allows you to expand the way you search for a job. Instead of relying on the simple one page resume that you have, consider taking advantage of the social media sites, to create video presentations that you can upload to Youtube and send to recruiters. You can also create a PowerPoint presentation that introduces you and your skill set and upload it to SlideShare.net. Include the link to your presentation as part of your email signature when you are contacting companies you are interested in.

For those of you who want to learn all the ins and outs of taking advantage of social media sites to incorporate into your job search there is also the recently released  “Job Searching with Social Media for Dummies” available from Amazon or a bookstore near you.