Recruiter asks, “Are you on Facebook?”

Recruiters and HR Professionals continue to turn to social media as a resource to post jobs and source candidates. A number of surveys show this number to be approximately 90%! If you are actively managing your career, you are aware of the importance of Linkedin, the number 1 professional online networking site. Certified Professional Resume Writer's have insisted on including a Linkedin address on professional resumes for over 5 years.

Linkedin currently has over 180 million users. Twitter has surpassed 500 million and Facebook recently reached 1 billion users! With these phenomenal statistics it is easily understood why Recruiters and HR Professionals are embracing Twitter and Facebook in addition to Linkedin. What is surprising is not the fact that a number of clients have been asked by recruiters, "Are you on Facebook?" but that they are unprepared to answer the question.

It is unlikely the recruiter asking the question is not already aware of the answer and instead is leading up to the real question, "Why are you not on Facebook?"

The following answers will not be well received:

• I don't like Facebook
• I have too many friends and relatives that are inappropriate on Facebook
• I lack the technical savvy to set up a profile
• I want to keep my personal life hidden
• I don't know what Facebook is

If you thought avoiding Facebook would be a positive step in managing your career, think again. Ignoring a network of over 1 billion people will send a red flag to decision makers.