They Know What You Did Last Summer: Tips for Managing Your Online Reputation

March 2, 2015 in Career and Job Search Tips

 

 

Fact: potential employers are checking you out online. Recent research shows that:

  • Hiring authorities review potential candidates’ social media profiles very early in the hiring process. Nearly half (47 percent) of recruiters use social media to screen applicants before they ever even talk to them.
  • Forty-five percent of employers go beyond social media profiles and use search engines to research potential candidates.
  • This same study also found that over half (51 percent) of employers who use social media to research candidates passed on someone because of content they found online.

Will what potential employers find out about you online help your chances of landing the job? Or do you have information lurking in hidden corners of the internet that you’d rather they didn’t find?

As a professional food & beverage job seeker, it’s your job to make sure that HR and hiring managers see what you want them to see. Use Kinsa’s tips to proactively manage and build your online presence:

  • Search yourself. Spend some time conducting a thorough search of your own name. Don’t stop at a standard Google search; dig a little deeper by: using multiple search engines; searching for common misspellings of your name; conducting a separate blog search (since blog posts don’t always rank highly in standard search results).
  • Clean up after yourself. Delete old or unused accounts. Set to private any information you don’t want prospective employers to see. And if you can’t personally remove unflattering online content, reach out to the poster or site administrator to request that the information be taken down.
  • Leverage the sites you use. Once you’ve streamlined your digital footprint, make the most of the sites you use. Choose appropriate screen names and profile pictures. Complete your profiles, so that they accurately reflect the value you offer a potential employer. Periodically post relevant industry news (or, if you’re a strong writer, original content) to demonstrate that you stay on top of food & beverage trends related to your functional area.
  • Set up alerts. Create Google alerts for your name (and common variations), so that you know when new content about you is published.
  • Protect your turf. Some job search experts recommend purchasing your domain name and creating a professional website. If you choose to do so, upload a short professional bio, your most recent resume, samples of your work (if applicable) and links to your professional social media profiles.
  • Maintain a great digital reputation. Managing your online reputation isn’t a once-and-done event. It’s an ongoing responsibility. Self-Google and review your profiles a few times a year to update information, catch potentially harmful “data spills” and build a solid personal brand online.

Kinsa – Committed to the Success of Your Food & Beverage Career

With decades of food & beverage recruiting experience, Kinsa has the expertise, resources, technology and contacts to match you with your ideal food & beverage executive or management position. Get started with Kinsa today or search food & beverage executive and professional jobs here.

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