Over the course of this semester, I’ve learned so many things about my social media presence and how to improve my social media brand overall. Some of the main social media networks I use are Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram. These are the networks I use the most and the ones I’ve decided to reflect about. I never knew how important social media is in today’s society and job market and that they’re not just for entertainment and connecting with friends but also a great way to connect with future employers. Your social media can really play a major role in determining your future career and employer as businesses do look at these and are a first impression of you.

 LinkedIn is probably the most popular social media network when it comes to employers and companies seeking future candidates for positions with their business. Before this semester I really didn’t use LinkedIn for anything but an extra social media network I connected with friends and coworkers. Now I’ve posted a more professional looking profile that shows my work and education history in a clear and simple format. I believe that a profile that is simple and to the point but yet showing some specific information and details is what employers want. If your social media page or profile is loaded with tons of information, photos and postings then people may not take the time to look through and find the important things about you. Also, my profile image is just a nice photo of myself, not with friends, pets or eating food. This portrays a more professional image of yourself. The challenges I faced with cleaning out my LinkedIn profile and starting fresh was that I wasn’t sure where to begin. I basically erased everything and started fresh, which really helped me declutter and put the focus on myself. Now my LinkedIn profile is to the point and makes it easy for coworkers, companies and potential employers to see me and my professional background. Since doing this, I’ve noticed a large increase in LinkedIn profile views as well as professional connections. It seems as though my LinkedIn is being seen by more people and the more my connections grow the more people I potentially can connect with.

Facebook and Instagram are really for more of an entertainment use and way I keep connected to friends and family. I have made a few changes though and improved some things on both social media networks. Facebook I’ve had for 10+ years and I still use it daily. It’s my number one source for posting photos, comments and updates with friends and family as well as seeing what’s going on in the world. What I’ve done in terms of my Facebook network is that I’ve been more cautious of my postings and watching things that I post and share because once I post it’s out there for the world to see. I’ve never posted anything extremely horrible or bad but I’ve tried to be more professional and adult. I’ve realized that when I post, comment or share content that these could potential damage my brand and people could judge me in a negative way because of these. Also, I’ve been more careful on who I connect with and become friends with. I think it’s so much more manageable and easy to keep your connections and friends as just that and not to add several people that you don’t know or have a friendship with. Of course Facebook is a great way to meet new people but I don’t have to add everyone as a friend. This was my greatest challenge, going through and removing people I’ve never spoken with and filtering through friends that I actually have a friendship and connection with. Now I’ve noticed that I’m able to focus more on the people important to me and connect with quality people over quantity. Instagram is really just a fun social media app that I use to post photos and connect with friends and see what my friends, family and favorites companies and celebrities are posting. Before this semester I posted pictures of whatever and really didn’t think much of it. Now after learning new strategies of social media and branding, I’ve really made Instagram an outlet of posting photos of myself with friends and family instead of pointless items and things. I’ve gained more followers and liked images because of this. I really didn’t experience any challenges but noticed a big difference over the course of this semester with my Instagram account. By posting more quality images and experiences I’ve been able to connect with new friends and networks.

          This past semester has been both exciting and educational in terms of social media branding. I’ve learned several new techniques and strategies that have made improvements in all of my social media networks. It’s also been a great way to declutter my life and have a fresh start. I’ve felt that with the changes made to my social media networks based on what I’ve learned this past semester, I’ve grown my social media and myself into a young adult and put my high school social media times behind.