I constantly run into this massive brand management mistake involving Social Media profiles; they forget to claim the profile’s custom URL. When you forget to claim the Social Media profile custom URL, but spend millions of dollars promoting your new tagline or product name you can end up in trouble.

The Hunger Games buzz on Twitter is in full swing,  but did you expect to see complaining tweets about skin color? “Fans” of the popular novel series are making some bold statements with their 140 characters.

This past March LinkedIn announced 100 million members worldwide. So it is safe to assume there are at least hundreds of individuals on LinkedIn with your same job title and perhaps thousands within your specific industry. We are all very aware LinkedIn is mined by job recruiters looking for new candidates all the time. This is why understanding LinkedIn search is critical if you want to appear ahead of your colleagues or competitors on the LinkedIn search results page (SERP). For some I might need to explain what a SERP is before diving deeper.

LinkedIn is your virtual representation of your professional life. It is also the best solution for networking online professionally. I often get asked who do I personally add as a connection either by accepting connection invites or sending invites to others. Lets start with the easy one.

There are many slices of Digital Marketing that can drive traffic to your website or blog. Search Engine Optimization is the best way to capture search engine referrals organically. Search Engine Marketing or paid search is the best way to funnel eyeballs to your site if you want to pay for each set of eyeballs. Social Media is the art of distributing, sharing and consuming content by users via their own online social presence. If you have a blog and a Twitter account then I suggest you take a good look at a relatively new Social Media tool; Triberr.

I am a recovering attorney that made the jump into Digital Marketing when SEO was very new to the legal community. My firm was ahead of the game and retained an SEO consultant to train me and that he did over the course of two years. From there I picked up Social Media, Community management and paid search. Even though I am no longer in the courtroom or wear a suit to work I do keep in contact with my attorney friends. They in turn tap me to improve their online presence or to ask I audit the work of their current SEO or Social Media consultant.

Defining the “proper etiquette” for the use of a Social Media tool or online community is very subjective. How you use Twitter may ruffle the feathers of some and how another uses Twitter may ruffle your feathers. I tend to be blasé when it comes to Twitter use by others. I understand there are dozens of ways to leverage Twitter and that there are hundreds of motivations for being on Twitter. However, there is one use that really gets my goat. Begging people to follow you or to follow another account in a Mention is sad.

My discussion with Dan Contreras, a ten year plus veteran IT job recruiter, continues in this post with a focus on LinkedIn. Dan answers a series of questions on how he conducts job recruiting with LinkedIn. Find out what recruiters look for when they review your LinkedIn profile and if LinkedIn is the correct place to post your virtual resume. Dan also provides a valuable hint on what you should not add to your LinkedIn profile; some forums are not meant to air all your laundry.

Here is part two of my interview with Dan Contreras, an expert IT job recruiter. Learn how he leverages Social Media and online communities to source new candidates and reviews referrals. He provides great insight into the world of job recruiting and how Social Media and online communities support that industry. If you have not read part one of this conversation, How an IT Job Recruiter Uses Social Media for Job Recruiting, then I suggest you read that article first.

Dan Contreras is an expert IT recruiter that has been in the business for over a decade. During that time the advent of Social Media, online communities and networking in cyberspace has exploded. Being a Social Media and online community addict I have seen how both have assisted many find their dream job. Even I have used Social Media and a few online communities to build relationships and make contacts to land job interviews. Clearly, recruiters discovered the value of Social Media and online communities when sourcing candidates for opportunities, so I grilled Dan about the convergence of Social Media and job recruiting.