6 Tips to Manage Your Digital Brand
You are likely familiar with the famous Will Rogers quote: You never get a second chance to make a first impression.
That is probably never more true than when interviewing for a job. Earlier in my career, a typed or hand-written application, cover letter and hard copy resume were a candidate’s first impression. Interestingly, an organization’s impression of a candidate was based purely on what the candidate presented. There was no social media or on-line searches. A candidate was invited to or denied an interview purely based on the information the candidate supplied to a recruiter.
Of course, today, a single search on Google can produce dozens, or even hundreds, of pieces of information about a candidate. Our digital image is often the first impression an organization has of us. It is critical to be diligent about your digital footprint. I will not suggest so much what that impression should be as much as I will encourage you to be sure that it is how you want future employers to see you.
The first step to a strong digital footprint is creating your own personal brand. Determine how you want others to perceive you. Most of this depends on the career you are pursuing. If you are looking for a role in the creative space, your on-line presence is going to reflect your creativity. If you are searching for a professional corporate role, your presence will likely carry a more serious tone. A role in serving professions such as health care is going to going to elicit a more caring personal brand.
Once you have identified the role you are seeking and the corresponding brand you want to project, consider your personal strengths that you want to convey in your on-line profiles. One of the most important things you want future employers to see is consistency. Be sure the brand follows you through your entire digital profile. You want the same personal brand to be represented wherever you have a presence.
I think about personal digital content in two ways: Offense and Defense. Offense is what I want to promote about myself and defense is auditing my digital footprint to avoid negative impressions.
From a defensive point of view, I am not going to suggest to you what to say or not say on-line. Rather I want to encourage you to be aware of your impact and be intentional about what you say and how you represent yourself. The most important aspect is that your personal brand represents the image you want potential employers to have of you.
What makes a positive impression?
Start with a strong LinkedIn profile. Before starting your job search, be sure it is up-to-date with your most recent experience and education. Complete your profile as thoroughly as possible with exactly what you want others to know about you.Be sure you have a recent professional headshot. This is not the place to show off your good looking boyfriend or your beautiful kids. You want to make a positive, professional impression of yourself.While you are updating your profile, also follow the organizations with whom you are interviewing. It will help you have the most current information if they call you in for an interview and they may notice whether or not you are following them. Showing you are interested enough to follow on social media indicates you are engaged in the process. Go a step further and engage in their content by posting meaningful comments. It’s a good way to get noticed as a candidate.
What makes a negative impression?
Type your name in the browser and see what shows up on-line. Go through each entry, deleting old or irrelevant content and especially content that does not match the brand you have chosen for yourself.Check your security settings and make sure nothing is set to public that you do not want made public. Then ask yourself, “If I don’t want the public to see it, should it be there at all?” It may be wise to delete some accounts all together or re-brand yourself with a new account.From this point forward, be sure that everything you comment on or “like” is consistent with your personal brand.
I don’t recommend deleting yourself completely from having any on-line profiles. They can be valuable for networking, researching jobs and helping promote a positive personal brand. Future employers are likely to look, so be sure they find you making the best possible first impression.
Creating a personal brand and communicating your brand positively online is one of the early steps to Crush Your Career.
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By Dee Ann Turner
