Investigate how personal branding on social media could positively impact employment opportunities

In recent years social networking sites have transformed the way society communicates and interacts with one another. Thus social media is a very current and popular topic of research; however there has been little study on whether personal branding on social media can positively impact one's career. With employment on the decrease, it is important to maintain this, thus this study will focus on how personal branding on social media can help employability. This article outlines the history of social media, whilst examining how social media is currently being used in everyday life and in the employment sector. An online ethnography, involving an online survey, two interviews and an online analysis of a blog, have been used to produce a critical discourse to support the argument for the involvement of social media in a job search. Without specifying the impact that social media can have on each individual case, this study raises awareness and reveals evidence on how success can be achieved with online personal branding. The article advises that academics conduct further study on how different social media applications can be used to benefit diverse job roles, as well as raising awareness on the benefits that online networking can have on an individual's future.