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Our online personas are ever-more important. As much as 80 percent of employers admit to Googling a candidate before calling them for in for an interview. And why not? In many cases a quick Google search can yield a pretty intimate look at a person.
The good news is, with just a little work you can pretty effectively hack the system and show prospective clients or employers (or people you meet on Match.com) just about any picture of yourself you want. Want some proof? Google me (Anthony Sodd), and I bet a horribly Photoshopped image of me shaking President Obama’s hand shows up as picture #13.
- Google yourself: It may sound self-absorbed, I mean, looking yourself up on the internet is totally vain, right? Nope. Everybody else is going to do it, you should know what happens when they do. Think of it like intelligence gathering on the current state of your online persona. Open up an incognito window and Google your name. Figure out what shows up for you, and then you’ll know what you need to change. Still have a MySpace page from 10 years ago? You might want to delete that.
- Upgrade your photos: Control what people see. That epic photo of you winning a beer pong contest? Maybe that shouldn’t show up in your Google Images search. Love cats and have a Pinterest board full of them? To each their own, but your potential employer might find the infinity of cat gifs that come up with your name a bit… off-putting. At the very least, your Twitter and LinkedIn profile photos should be professional. If you really want to up your game, put on some professional clothes and have a professional take a headshot.
- Clean up your profiles: Get on LinkedIn with a friend and really think about what you want your profile to say about you. It’s really hard to see how you’re branding yourself clearly, so doing this with a friend will help. Delete anything that’s not flattering; highlight only things you want people to know. Nobody needs to know about your job at Kentucky Fried Chicken in 1996 – delete it.
- [SLEAZY BONUS] Look important on Twitter: Is it a little sleazy? Absolutely. But, it’s a nasty little secret that lots of people buy Twitter followers (myself excluded). It makes sense if you think about it. To a complete stranger who is Googling your name, a Twitter account with 10,000 followers looks more impressive than one with 120. There are a multitude of fairly shady options for accomplishing this. Do a quick Google search, but be aware of scams.
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