In our increasingly online world, anyone searching for a job will most likely have a recruiter or a hiring manager looking at their social media accounts and websites as research. Here are some important ways to boost your remote profile and make sure you present yourself as the best possible candidate for the remote job you’re looking for.
8 Ways to Boost Your Remote Profile & Land That Job
The professional world in the digital age is dynamic. With millions of talented individuals honing in on a remote job, standing out from the massive pool of applicants becomes complicated and arduous. Compounding problems is a remaining trend from the pre-digital area regarding reskilling and building relevant skillsets. About 90% of the baby-boom generation believes training is the responsibility of employers, and two-thirds of millennials and Gen Zers share the same thought.
Although there’s little debate that successful companies should supply training materials and modules to their employees, the roughly 30% to 35% of applicants who put the onus of education on themselves ushers in cutthroat competition and new opportunities.
The successful remote worker adapts. They learn as much as they can, when they can. This isn’t necessarily for better job-hunting prospects, but rather, because they must stay on top of the expanding competition.
If you’re an aspiring remote worker or even a veteran of telecommuting, you may come across a time when you struggle to find new employment opportunities or career advancement. That’s why you should constantly discover ways to boost your remote profile. From learning secondary skills to earning certifications, the next step in your professional relies on your online presence and skills. Here are some effective ways to boost your remote profile.
1. Create a Website
Employees may not understand the value of a personal website, but crafting one is a genius step toward creating a savvy online profile. Whether you’re the sole employee of your small business, a freelancer, a contractor, or a person searching for remote employment, a website helps you stand out from the competition and step up your remote profile.
Even if you’re a technophobe or technically challenged, creating a website is easier than you may think. Drag-and-drop website builders such as Weebly, Wix, and Squarespace provide a simple interface that allows beginners and novice designers to put together a simple website. Including a bio, portfolio, relevant experience, and even a blog on this website can help supplement your resumé and boost your remote profile.
But your website can also help you pass a Google background check from potential employers. This allows you to choose what information you share and may boost your attractiveness to potential employers based on your extra efforts.
2. Clean Up Your Social Media Profile
According to a Jan. 2020 Glassdoor study, 54% of employers have eliminated a candidate based solely upon their social media profiles. In most of these instances, individuals had been removed from the applicant pool because of objectionable, discriminatory, or retributive posts.
Unfortunately, this means you may have to go back and erase those photos of that college keg party that was “off the hook” or those objectionable hip hop lyrics you loved back in 2009. In short, you’ll need to scrub and scour your Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and any other social media that may pose a threat to your employability. On the positive side, you’ll hopefully only have to do this one time. To make this easier in the future, you should also ask friends not to tag you publicly in any photos deemed insensitive or objectionable, or better yet, abstain from such activity.
3. Beef Up Your Social Media Profile
Now that your social media profile is as clean as a whistle, it’s time to beef it up for potential employers or clients. With any luck, your LinkedIn profile should already be squeaky clean and the outlet you choose most often for finding work. This makes it the ideal starting point for boosting your social media profile. To create a high-visibility LinkedIn page, include:
- Recommendations from clients, bosses, and co-workers
- A compelling headline
- Work experience that pertains to your current industry
- Certifications and education that can heighten your employment opportunities
If you’re searching for a job in digital marketing or social media management, your profiles on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram are integral to your job prospects. Creating a professional profile in addition to your personal profile can showcase your social media marketing skills, as well as give you a forum to test your knowledge early on in your career. Freelancers should also strongly consider professional profiles on social media to bulk up their Google searches and provide more information about their skills and past work experience.
4. Retool Your (Online) Resume
A strong resume is often a deciding factor whether or not an employer hires you. Yet according to studies, you only have six seconds to wow a hiring manager. The six-second rule isn’t necessarily a result of a poor resume — it’s a demonstration of how many applicants most employers get for a remote job opportunity. As such, you need to touch on a few points to keep the reader interested. When retooling your resume to pass the six-second test, highlight:
- Experience with reputable or well-known companies
- Keywords from a particular job description or job role you’re applying for
- Subheadings or section headings that “pop” with keywords or relevant adjectives, i.e. “project management skills” instead of just “skills”
You may also want to include a small section about your interests. While many resume experts say this is superfluous or unnecessary, you never know when your love of skydiving or Settlers of Catan can separate you from an equally qualified applicant.
Even if you pass the six-second test, the widespread use of applicant tracking systems (ATS) can cause your resume to become overlooked. An ATS is a type of software used by medium- and large-sized businesses to collect, scan, sort, and rank applications for a particular position. This means that in some instances, human eyes will never look at your resume. To overcome the ATS debacle, use these tips:
- Use a simplified template
- Place keywords from the job description into your resume
- Upload a compatible file type (.pdf or .doc, typically)
- Exclude graphics, charts, and pictures
If you don’t feel confident managing your resume, use Virtual Vocations’s resume writing service. With a team of experienced, resume-writing experts, you’ll have improved chances of landing your next job.
5. Get a Recognized Certification
The internet is rife with certifications for all types of remote workers. Whether you’re a programmer, copywriter, or digital marketer, you can find a certification from an accredited body or school that can boost your remote profile. However, you should properly research each credential to ensure its validity in a particular industry.
LinkedIn Learning, Udemy, and Coursera are some of the top online providers of certification schooling. And at a more affordable price than online universities, they’re a bargain for a similar curriculum. Many of these online learning platforms also pair with universities such as Northwestern, Harvard, and UC-Irvine for affordable specializations and certifications for remote working adults.
Online learning platforms and universities aren’t the only places to find extra credentials. Google, Hubspot, and Facebook all offer certificate programs for analytics, inbound marketing, and advertising. Chances are if there’s a leader in the industry, you can find a remote program that suits your needs for career advancement.
6. Learn Supplemental Skills
In some industries, employees stay with their employers for 10 to 20 years or longer. However, a new job can help you learn skills, keep you engaged, and take on new challenges. As a remote worker, the only problem is that your employers may not offer training programs to suit your hunger for knowledge. That means the addition of skills is up to you.
For remote freelancers and contractors, learning supplemental skills is integral. Unlike traditional office jobs where many employees have a single expertise, the remote world values those who can write content, manage social media, and do a bit of coding all in the same day. While you should still have your specific expertise, learning other valuable skills heightens your chances of employment or attracting that next client. Plus, it bolsters your resumé for your next job application.
Even if you don’t feel 100% confident in Python, HootSuite, or copywriting, remember that practice makes perfect — and gives you a unique skillset that separates you from the pack.
7. Network Online
Remote work has ushered in an unprecedented era of online networking. In past years, you’d have to go to seminars, church, chamber of commerce meetings, or networking events to find connections. Today, everything’s online.
To discover and interact with people who can further your career and give you helpful hints, hit up online communities. These industry-specific groups can provide encouragement and tips on how to land that next client or find an ideal job. In some cases, they may also have an overflow of work they can throw your way.
If you prefer face-to-face contact but you don’t have any seminars or events coming up, you can use websites such as Meetup.com to plan impromptu gatherings. The best part is that you don’t have to confine your gatherings to other industry professionals. From skiing to football watch parties, you can network with people who have similar interests, which may hopefully lead to business relationships.
8. Provide Free Resources to Your Colleagues
If you have a skill that’s coveted by others in the industry or you want to gather a following for social media or business purposes, try providing free resources to your colleagues. For example, you could publish videos on how to do some web design for beginners or how to land clients as a social media marketer. The idea is that you’re promoting yourself and establishing credibility among other industry professionals. Even though you’re not earning income, name recognition is worth just as much.
Becoming a highly skilled and coveted remote worker — especially as a contractor or a freelancer — isn’t a simple task. It requires ambition, discipline, direction, and perseverance. So even if you do everything you can to boost your remote profile and you still don’t land that next gig, don’t give up. You may not be everyone’s first choice, but you’ll have all the skills you need to step up when you’re given a chance. Until then, read, study, and work hard. Your diligence will pay dividends.
Are you looking for a new virtual job? Which one of these ways to boost your remote profile will you try? Connect with Virtual Vocations on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to tell us what you think. We’d love to hear from you!
iStock image: MStudioImages
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