Blogging To Opportunity

Blogging is a way to broadcast your value, insights and perspective to peers, hiring managers and recruiters, not to mention influencing others. Key statistics show that 75 percent of bloggers have college degrees, while 30 percent hold graduate degrees. There are many ways to start a blog, however, you must first choose your blogging platform. Blogger, (www.blogger.com) and WordPress, (www.wordpress.com) both offer free blogging templates. Below are a few tips and tricks to help you establish a successful blog online.

Good to great: Successful presence begins just like your résumé. Blogs must have clear objectives, offer quality content and showcase professional thoughts and ideas. Use analytics on your blog to track who is visiting. Google Analytics (www.google.com/analytics) is free and offers statistics. Clicky, (getclicky.com) is a bit more complex but offers real-time reporting.

Not pro nor con: Until you've developed a successful readership base, try to stay away from political undertones or articles that may sway hiring managers from calling you in for an interview. Remember the name of your blog speaks volumes. The better you showcase your brand, the more readers you'll draw.

It's about the content: Your following can only grow if you offer different and unique material. Blogging isn't about making money, if your blog is treated as a moneymaker instead of a site for great articles and insight, you'll miss out on important page views.

Don't forget to link: Your job search is like your marketing plan. Great marketing captures the attention of all different types of people. Remember that your blog should be linked from your Twitter, LinkedIn and even your Facebook accounts.

In the Twin Cities area there are many bloggers to follow that offer creative job search strategy and compelling articles. Here are a few to follow in the local blogosphere:

www.mnheadhunter.com is a blog written from the perspective of local IT Recruiter, PaulDeBettignies.