Did you know that 70% of employers use social networking sites to research job candidates? Of that 70%, 57% of employers have found content that caused them not to hire candidates. And nearly half of employers (47%) say that if they can’t find a job candidate online, they are less likely to call that person in for an interview.

Social media profiles can be great for your personal brand, and give hiring managers valuable insight into who you are as a person and a chef. So not having a social media footprint isn’t the solution. It’s being mindful of the pitfalls around using social media when you’re looking for your next chef job.

Key social media pitfalls to avoid

Lying

A potential employer will very likely Google you and check out your social media pages before calling you in for a chef interview. What you post across social media will be fair game for interview questions. Want to talk about that time you cooked for The Queen or catered the Fyre Festival? Fine – but make sure it actually happened.

Discrepancies

Your chef work experience as shown on LinkedIn should match the CV that you send to employers. Your information should be consistent across all networks. Any inconsistencies will work against you and present you as a dishonest candidate.

Oversharing

Social networks encourage you to share information but there are limits. Know what to share, when to share it and with whom. Maintain a level of professional aloofness by limiting the content you upload. Think quality not quantity!

Being negative

Employers are looking to hire chefs who will bring positive energy, a team spirit and a good attitude. They’re not looking for whiners and complainers.

Being offensive

Don’t set off any red flags that you might be an HR headache. If you think something could be offensive, don’t post it on any of your social media accounts.

Joining questionable groups or discussions

If you are actively searching for a chef job, joining industry related discussions and groups is a great way of showing initiative and passion for your field of expertise. However, be careful about the more ‘casual’ groups you can join. If you belong to the ‘I don’t get drunk, I get proper wasted!’ group, you may want to consider leaving it before your next chef job search.

Badmouthing

Don’t air grievances about past or current employment situations on social media without considering the consequences. If you give someone the impression that you’ll badmouth them once you part ways, it’s unlikely they’ll even consider hiring you. Likewise, revealing any snippets of confidential company information is 100% off-limits.

Incomplete profiles

The hazard of maintaining multiple social media accounts is that you may at times forget about completing all your profile details. Be mindful of how this can send the wrong impression that you don’t finish what you start.

Now let’s look at the social media pitfalls to avoid regarding profiles on the big four social platforms.

Using Social Media as a Chef Jobseeker – LinkedIn

The bulk of professional engagement on social media occurs through LinkedIn, so here are some top tips to ensure your profile presents you in the best light.

Use a professional headshot in chef uniform for your profile photo.

Make sure your contact details are up-to-date and are appropriate to a professional hiring environment, drunkchef@gmail.com isn’t going to be humorous to a hiring manager, and it will be a red flag about your suitability for a job.

Write a brief profile summary that’s relevant to your current employment situation.

Avoid posting anything non-work related as LinkedIn is not Facebook.

Using Social Media as a Chef Jobseeker – Facebook

Facebook is meant to be fun. There’s certainly nothing wrong with posting photos from your family hike, your most recent holiday party, or the fun weekend you’ve just had. But posting photos in which you look drunk and slovenly may give hiring managers the wrong idea about your work ethic.

Not surprisingly Facebook is the social platform where mistaken posts most frequently appear. Take these steps to ensure your Facebook profile does not negatively impact you during your chef job application process.

Enable tag review on your profile, to ensure that no inappropriate photos or posts end up on your timeline. If in doubt change settings to list who can post and see posts on your timeline.

Change the privacy setting regarding who can look you up using your email or phone number to Friends only.

Facebook offers the facility to view your profile as a member of the public who is not on your friends list. Use this feature, as it will allow you to see your profile as a potential employer would, and thereby enable you to adjust your content accordingly.

Using Social Media as a Chef Jobseeker – Twitter

This is another platform that can frequently trip people up. There being many examples of people losing their jobs over interactions on the site.

Suggestions to prevent personal fallout on Twitter would be:

– Do not post any extreme social or political views on the site
– Do not post anything relating to your current/former employers
– Avoid using any crude or vulgar language or images
– Any images of you/any of your associates engaging in anti-social/illegal activity should not be posted.

Of course, setting your profile to private will prevent anyone who you have not approved, viewing your profile in a job application process.

Read: Find Chef Jobs on Twitter

Using Social Media as a Chef Jobseeker – Instagram

If you have any doubts with regards to how appropriate the photos you choose to post are to others, don’t risk it and set your profile to private.

Read: How to use Instagram to Find a Chef Job

In conclusion

While social media platforms have become integral to our personal lives, they’re also a powerful recruitment tool. It will harm your chef job hunting prospects if you don’t pay attention to what you’re posting and whether it can be seen by unauthorised viewers.

Always remember that what you post gives out an impression of you. Avoid the common pitfalls of using social media platforms and if you are in any doubt about what’s suitable, don’t hit the post button!

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