10 Original Ideas to Find Work Through the Internet

By Jessica - FlexClip

It is true that taking into account the current economic situation, the search for employment is not easy at all, but there are always original ideas to find work through the Internet. Success is not one hundred percent guaranteed, and we have to be realistic. But I think that, if we really want to find a job, precisely that search must involve our "temporary job", that is, we must invest time and dedication, not just stick to the well-known job search websites and wait for our resume to be chosen. Likewise, I don't think we should limit ourselves to sending messages to company websites or their profiles on social networks. Do we have to try? Yes, of course, but keep in mind that companies receive hundreds of emails from users applying for jobs every month.

Applicants must think of themselves as a brand, which is known as Personal Branding. Like any brand, your goal is to differentiate yourself from the competition, spread your qualities, experience, knowledge, skills and attitude. The advantage of the Internet is that it is a multimedia environment, so why not take advantage of it? Sending resumes continues to be the preferred method, both for applicants and companies, whether on paper, via email or by filling in the data on the job search websites. But even in the most negative situations, there is always something positive to extract, and the difficult economic situation inevitably produces a change of mentality - or should do so. In a way, today creating a job is a "risk" for the company. Neither an excellent resume nor a successful job interview guarantee that the candidate is the ideal one, that is added to the value chain of the company, and that supposes an asset. In theory, we are all perfect. Then you have to demonstrate the skills you have and something that I consider very important: Attitude.

This is not only a question for job seekers but also a suggestion for companies. We must change the attitude. Gone are the years of degrees and experience, age or gender requirements. Web 2.0 is full of talented people, young and not so young, men and women, with experience and training or perhaps without experience and training, but with the skills and attitude, we are looking for. 

 

10 Original Ideas to Find Work Through the Internet

Here are a few suggestions, or "original ideas to find work on the network", a title that seemed right to me, although pretentious, because it places me as an expert, something that I am not. Actually, none of us are experts in anything and these suggestions are the result of constant analysis of Web 2.0 trends, due to my work. You probably know several of the websites or social networks that appear on the list, and surely, you have read some of these ideas on more than one occasion. Any other suggestion that comes to mind, any website or social network that does not appear on this list, is welcome, so I invite you to share it with us by leaving your comment.

1. Create a blog: You have probably seen this suggestion many times, but the truth is that it is very effective. Did you know that many bloggers have found employment because they are influential and have gathered many followers, thus attracting the attention of companies or headhunters? Creating a blog is easy, and it's even free, with services like Blogger, Tumblr or WordPress. The difficult thing is to maintain it, dedicate time to it, and update it with new posts. It is really a job and if you want to get achievement, you have to invest effort. You can write a blog on the subject you master and aimed at the public or the professional field that interests you: Content marketing, economics and business, journalism and opinion, computing, education consulting, DIY, gardening, science, medicine, cooking, beauty, fashion, architecture, etc. In short: any field or speciality.

In addition to your blog entries, do not forget to include a static page in which you briefly introduce yourself and summarize your speciality, experience or your professional goals, with a contact form and links to social networks. Despite various interests trying to convince users that blogs are no longer popular, nothing could be further from the truth. Blogs emerged strongly between 2004-2006, and in the last three years, they still have experienced spectacular growth, turning some bloggers into popular characters or influencers-even with media appearances.

The blog has many advantages, and one of them is that you can earn advertising revenue while your community grows, through Adsense or affiliate systems. Many bloggers receive a more or less "decent" income depending on the influx of readers, and some have even made it their livelihood, dedicating themselves to it full-time. If, in addition to making money from blogging, you receive collaboration proposals with other companies or a job offer, much better!

2. Creating a free or paid personal website is an alternative to the blog: The personal site is well structured and does not limit itself to highlighting your qualities, knowledge or experience, but also demonstrates it through some articles, information about your skills, goals, including a portfolio of work done or your resume. Google offers you the possibility of creating your website for free and with the advantage of being very well indexed, taking into account that the search engine par excellence is the one that offers you the possibility, through Google Sites. An interesting tool is Wix, with the option to create your website for free or with very attractive price plans, if you need more resources. In addition, it has flash effects.

3. Create a profile on social networking networks: Linkedin is the best known, with a perfect marketing strategy that has made it the most complete. You can make important connections, exchange ideas, view job openings, display your skills and resume so others can see you, join groups, create groups, and even create a page dedicated to a specific topic. Xing is another of the best-known and most effective networks. Not forgetting, of course, Yammer is also a nice alternative choice. On all these websites, you can establish important contacts, and show them that you have the qualities that make you worthy of a job. Do you want to know how to optimize a LinkedIn profile? Read: Optimize LinkedIn profile for sales.

4. Submit articles to content networks like Wikihow, Scoop.it, or Hubpages, etc.: Each of these networks has its own operation but, in general, it boils down to the fact that users like users are the ones who create content, in exchange for visibility and the promise of benefits. Something that few achieve, to be honest - but the important thing is visibility, that the largest possible number of users read your articles. 

Wikihow is the best known globally and on its front page, you will see articles on medicine, science, business, finance, sports, opinion, and so on. The articles are voted on by other users and gather a "niche" audience. The Scoop.it does not require a formal introduction. With its content curation tool, Scoop.it helps professionals and businesses research and publish content. 

Another alternative is the well-known Hubpages. I place it last because of its lack of interest in facilitating publication to the immense and because of its tendentious articles, which try to convince us that "blogs are dead". 

5. Share your knowledge in text or graphics: Your presentations, infographics or text documents are displayed in slide format. Slideshare is the ideal place to upload and publish PowerPoint presentations or infographics, although you can also upload documents, PDFs, live or automated webinars. Scribd, however, is more geared towards the written content. It's a huge library where you can upload ebooks, the first chapters of ebooks- to capture the reader's interest, magazines, comics, graphics, etc. Both Slideshare and Scribd have millions of readers and excellent diffusion on social networks. You can even download the presentations, documents or other content that you like. There is also the possibility of inserting them into your blog or website, with a code similar to that of the videos.

6. Teach an online course: Teach an online course, interesting and also has acceptance, will give you excellent credentials that you can add to your resume. You can even make a profit. In Market Courses, for example, you only need to write your course, upload it to the web and have Skype to attend to your students. You decide the price of the course based on its length, interest or complexity.

7. Publish an ebook: Like the online course, publishing an ebook will add excellent credentials to your resume. It has the advantage that it can be read from any device and you can even earn money. It's easier than you think. You just have to write, and convert your document to PDF, epub or Mobi. There is software that does this process, and choose the option that you think is most appropriate. 

(I) You can upload it to your own website or blog and enable its download. 

(II) You can edit it in a more professional style and publish it on Scribd or put it up for sale on Amazon. 

Experts recommend starting with short, a few-page tutorials that are free to download, and then crafting an ebook. If you find it difficult at first, to simplify the process of creating ebooks, there are online tools such as Blurb or Swifdoo.

8. Create video tutorials (Screencasts): You only need the right software, screen recording software like Camtasia Studio, Screenrec or specialized presentation software like Powerpoint, Wondershare Flash Slideshow Builder or the video programs that come included in your PC or Mac. Once you have recorded your video tutorial, you can upload it to YouTube, Pinterest or Dailymotion, even create your own channel on these networks or post it on your blog. If you want to keep things simple, there are online solutions. The simplest choice is the FlexClip screen recorder. It is a web tool specially created to carry out screencasts and that facilitates the process, not only of recording video but also of editing it with a built-in video editor and sharing it on social networks. Another alternative is Screencast-O-Matic, although they only allow free plans of at most 15 minutes.

   An important addition to this tip, considering we mentioned social video networks, is to create your own channel. As you know, well-known video bloggers have managed to capture the attention of major companies. The power of social media is especially manifest on YouTube. The best known or, rather, striking cases are those of singers or actors. But beauty consultants, foodies, movie directors or web designers, to give a few examples, have attracted the attention of users and companies willing to hire them. On YouTube, there is room for everything and everyone, perhaps too much space, which increases competitiveness, but also ensures considerable popularity if you gather subscribers.

    

   9. Collaborate as a guest in blogs and other online publications: There are many blogs and online publications such as magazines or newspapers that allow you to collaborate by sending your articles or even offer you the possibility of creating your own blog, such as cosmopolitan.com. In Cosmopolitan, they have enabled the possibility for their readers to send them articles through a form -and, of course-, keeping the author's name or even reporting on their own blog or their knowledge.                                                                                                       
   10. Participate actively in specific social networks: It would be fair to identify them as vertical social networks but, to avoid getting confused with too many terms, we refer to social networks aimed at a specific audience with common interests. Dribble, for example, is a social network geared toward web designers, graphic designers, illustrators, icon artists, typographers, logo designers, and other types of creative professionals. DeviantART, is aimed at photographers, graphic designers, painters, writers, crafts, etc. It is a community aimed at artists from practically all fields. Soundcloud or Last.FM is designed for music lovers and, of course, new groups or singers. 

   Vertical social networks are an excellent segmentation tool to publicize "your personal brand", targeting a specific audience:

   • Professionals like you.
   • Fans of the work you do.
   • Companies that can see your talent.

As for massive social networks like Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest should not be ruled out either. The advantage is that they bring together millions of users, and the downside is precisely the same. The ideal is to establish your own personal marketing plan or, to keep things simple, your own strategy. Choose the most appropriate channels, combine these channels -linking to your various profiles on the various websites or social networks in which you show your professional skills- and, in short, obtain the greatest possible possibility.

Do these 10 original ideas to find a job mean success? As we mentioned at the beginning, I think we should be realistic but not pessimistic. And above all, don't throw in the towel too soon. The chances of success increase the more points we accumulate.

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