Social media networking is a prevalent and legitimate market for financial modeling professionals today. If you are looking to find your first financial modeling job, move up in your field, or simply network within your field, social media networking is where it is at. Therefore, savvy financial modeling professionals need to understand social media networking and how to be effective when networking through social media. Following a few of these tips will help you navigate through social networking and help you be the most effective in its utilization.
1- Establish a Relationship – You don’t want to just connect with someone or see how many friends you can have, you want to establish a social media relationship with other financial modeling professionals. You want to provide meaning to the relationship by providing good feedback, advice, and assistance as well as asking for it. Don’t just take – remember to give to the relationship. Be online and active even when you are NOT looking for advice or your next financial modeling job. Create conversations in LinkedIn, join forums and discussions, tweet valuable advice on Twitter, and be professional and helpful on Facebook. Being present, engaged, and helpful can go a long way when it comes to social media networking.
2- Know Who to Know – Paying social attention to the right people is paramount in social networking. As a financial modeling professional, you will want to connect with companies and personnel within these companies that are important to you and your career. Do some research. Find out who is important to know at a company you wish to work for, or a company that is prominent within your area in financial modeling. It doesn’t take more than a Google search typically to find out who heads up the Human Resources department at a company and then you are able to search for them on LinkedIn, Google+, Twitter and Facebook. Seek them out. You don’t have to connect with them right away but you can begin interacting with them and in their circles or networks online to establish yourself. You can do this by providing information, opinions, research, and advice – make comments, retweet their tweets. Interaction is the key to get networking with those you want to know within your field.
3- Ask for Advice – People LOVE to give advice in most cases and the financial modeling field is no exception. Ask for advice from established professionals within the financial modeling field. Asking them for their advice shows them you value their opinion and look at them as an expert within the field. This will help you establish a solid relationship with this person and help you build your network. Additionally, it keeps you engaged. You can ask about your career path, a product or industry, degrees or financial modeling certifications that you are considering. The type of advice is not necessarily the key – it is the fact that you seeking advice and building your network and social media presence within the financial modeling field.
Financial modeling is no different than any other professional field today – social networking is a prominent way of connecting within the field. Whether you are new to the field or an established financial modeling, utilizing social medial networking can be the key to your success within your field.