We recently added two new members to the 247 Group team without placing an ad, hiring a recruiter or begging friends, associates and near acquaintances for referrals. How did we do it? Strictly by building relationships through Twitter.
I wish I could brag about how cool I am, but the truth is all of the credit goes to my partner Jason Stein. It was he who started a Twitter relationship with Ross Sheingold, who is now our Chief Strategy Officer.
At the time, they were tweeting each other about a variety of subjects, sharing common interests and commenting on society. This virtual banter allowed them to form a genuine friendship. So, when we had an opening for a Chief Strategist, Jason knew exactly who he wanted and Ross knew he could trust and work well with Jason. Ross has been with us close to a year now and will soon be heading to L.A. to open our new office (we have several West Coast accounts).
This week, we hired a Senior Account Executive, and we found him exactly the same way. One of our community managers was Twitter friends with this person and informed him of the opening. We met with him the same day and extended an offer within 24 hours. We did not feel the need to review his resume or ask for his references. His Twitter and Facebook profiles told us everything we needed to know. So there you have it.
This is an exciting, easy, cost-effective way to find and hire someone terrific. Geez, do I love social media.