If a potential employer searched for you online what would they find? Would it help you get a job, or hurt your chances?
Online Reputation Management gives you the chance to gain an unfair advantage in your job search, by making it easier for you to be found. However, if not managed, your Online Reputation could deliver damage to your job search.
Online Reputation Management has two parts:
Managing Content:
Much press has been made out of companies starting to check job seeker’s profiles on social networks. How could this be damaging? These tips aren’t meant to suggest you don’t use online services, just that you make sure to review what is publicly visible. Google searches can turn all of this up:
1. Inconsistency: Your profile could be inconsistent with your resume. Change your resume --> Change your profiles.
2. Unprofessional Content: Your profile could show unprofessional content – This is more relevant for FaceBook and MySpace accounts, where friends can tag you to pictures, and can post things to your landing page. Make sure you set your defaults so you approve everything that goes to your account. On Facebook, check all your walls and pictures daily.
3. Social Network Dating: Your dating history can show up on FaceBook or MySpace. If you use either of these networks to date, make sure to hide these from your landing page, so more conservative employers don’t have any reason to be concerned that you are a fan of popular porn stars on MySpace.
4. Online Dating: If you use online dating services, your profile can turn up, if you disclose your real name or even the same email address as you use for your job search or social networking. So use a pen name and a “pen email”, and keep your private life separate from your job search.
5. Online Photos: Your online photo album can show up in a search. Normally, this shouldn’t be a problem, unless you’ve joined groups that you might not want employers to see. Again, keep your private life private.
6. Rants: That blog or forum you blasted shows up on Google searches. Will your comments be favorable if reviewed by a potential employer?
Maximizing Effect:
Online Reputation Management can amplify your exposure, and help your recognition as a Subject Matter Expert.
1. Google & Yahoo Ranking: Posting comments, blogs, and social network activity all increase your Google & Yahoo Search engine ranking. My name, Phil Rosenberg is more common than you’d think. I’ve heard of 6 in Chicago alone, and there are hundreds nationally. Social networking helped launch me personally from page 15 on Google last year to #1 on Google and top 4 on Yahoo (depends on the day), via my LinkedIN and FaceBook profiles.
2. Promoting your Subject Matter Expertise: Getting highly ranked on Google and Yahoo are the easiest ways to promote your Subject Matter Expertise, and to show potential employers that you have solved their unique problem. Top consultants use this technique to keep their project pipeline full.
3. LinkedIN and FaceBook profiles are just the first step: Putting up a profile gets you online, not found. Using Search Engine Optimization (SEO) techniques on your profile gets it highly ranked.
So how do you monitor your online reputation? Search for your name with Google & Yahoo – This is a requirement of many employers, prior to placing full time staff. When I was with Robert Half, it was a requirement to do a 6 combination search of a potential full time placement before start date. Why? Basic due diligence, instituted after MSNBC reported that a competitor placed a consultant awaiting sentencing for pension fraud, at another pension client … discovered by an employee Googling the consultant.
In addition, Personal Content Aggregators, like ZoomInfo, Spoke, and Jigsaw crawl the web for information and references to business professionals. Look yourself up, and follow the links, so you know what employers see.
It's your choice…Managed well, your online reputation can give you an unfair advantage over other job seekers. Left to run amok, your Online Reputation could kill your chances for a great job.
Online Reputation Management
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Wenefrido C •This could be a great help to me as a job seeker. -
rosaly l •I know and is true after 55 is hard to find employment no mater your experience
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Jody Enders •While your recommendations are beneficial and correct, high-level executive assistants like myself are finding it very difficult to find employment due to age discrimination which is extremely prevalent. I'm part of a nationwide EA group, and the big discussion right now is discrimination toward the 55-61 age bracket. Corporations seem to want to hire young people right out of college even those they don't have the experience, poise, and professionalism. It's very disappointing!
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Conrado M •This is very helpful guide. Thanks indeed
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Nina N •Great information
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Steven A •One of the best ways to a better life.
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Shirley W •I can understand how facebook or twitter can make and impression of someone, but I do not have either one. I do not even go online to chat. I am not one to provide private information for public display,
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Lori A •Excellent advice. Thanks!Avoiding social media is not the answer; managing your profile is as critical as managing your credit history.
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Buffie •That’s a great post!
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What a joy to find such clear thinking. Thanks for posting!
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A friend of ours had their main picture of facebook as them flipping off the photographer. A potential employer looked her up and was not impressed. She didn't get the job.
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A side-note on potential employers checking job seeker's profiles on social networks...this is becoming more common. A simple job interview is too easy to fake, so of course employers want to know who they are really hiring. A social network page can give employers clues as to whether this person is reliable or not (are they going to be calling in sick because of a hangover?). So note to job seekers...be careful what you put on your social networking pages.
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Kathryn M. •I will institute changes. I knew that FaceBook and other sites have to be monitored, but I did not know that prospective employers went there.
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Dave Semones •Appreciate...Interesting!!
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thank you. for this information. I have concerns in this area.
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walter crosby •Is it a good idea to provide your background report?
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Pamela Guthrie •Recently I submitted an on line application to Career Track for a Court Clerk When I went to sumit my resume there were personal pictures attached already to this sight. I thought I had deleted these photo, as I was shocked they were there in the first place as I had not yet submitted my resume! Then I received your literature about on line reputation and got this sick feeling in the pit of my stomach recalling those ugly photo's that appeared from where I do not know. I have been notified that I will be contacted concerning an interview call which I have not received to date. I am worried that the mystery photos were not removed as I had tried to do. Now I worry that they may have caused my chance to be lost if they actually accompanied my resume. How will I ever really know?
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Smith •Hi,Nice article.Online Reputation Management have become so important with the rise of blogs and forums. Everyone around the globe sitting in front of their computer screen can see comments about you within few minutes. There is a tool AirCheese for ORM. Its worth checking.
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It's quite scary that employers are starting to search for potential employees on the web to find out more about them. You can make sure there is nothing on the internet that you'd rather these people didn't see by entering your name into the world's biggest people search engine, http://www.yasni.com. It helped me to see what type of things were posted on the net about me, which was very useful because I had forgotten about some of them!
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Patti D. •If there is something which is unflattering on the web, how do you counteract this?
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