Thursday, September 17, 2015

"There's a new resume in town, and it's called Google."

Google Is Your New Resume
There are 4 important things you MUST do about your Google resume

Previously, the only way an organization could obtain information about a candidate was through your paper resume.  The candidate could edit and remove whatever information they didn't want their future employer to see.  Today, an organization can Google your name and obtain a ridiculous amount of information about you.  A large number of employers (91%) are using Google to visit job hunter's social media pages.  These employers (69%) are using Google to weed out unwanted candidates based on what they find.  

Things that can get you rejected:
  • Bad grammar
  • Gross misspellings on Facebook or LinkedIn
  • Anything indicating you lied on your resume
  • Badmouthing of previous employers
  • Any signs of racism, prejudice, or screwy opinions
  • Anything indicating alcohol or drug abuse
  • Inappropriate content
The first step is to Edit your Google resume.  Google your name and fix what you find.  If your embarrassing Myspace page from high school is still up and running, delete it!  Or at the very least, disable it.  After you have Googled yourself, go over everything Google has pulled up and make adjustments.  Remember to check ALL your social sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube.  Pretend to be a private detective and remove all the embarrassing items and things from your past you may regret. 

The second step is to Fill In.  Fill out your LinkedIn profile completely and leave no blanks. Remember to keep your LinkedIn up-to-date as well.  Having an outdated profile looks very unprofessional.  (Note:  WCIYP mentions Twitter and Plaxo as being important profiles to fill out also.  If your Twitter page isn't very professional or related to your field of work, skip it.  I wasn't sure what Plaxo was, but I googled and found this page.)

The third important step is to Expand your internet presence.  There are several ways to do this by using forums, blogs, twitter, videos, etc.  LinkedIn has many professional groups to join.  If you intend on doing this, participate.  If you do not, you may be removed from the group.  The goal with forums is to be seen as a specialist in your field.  Employers will see that you are knowledgeable and an expert in your field.  

Blogs are another great way to expand your internet presence.  If you already have a blog, but the topic isn't related to your field I suggest starting a new one.  I wrote an article about blogging here.  The article covers what blogging is, why it's so important, and a few SEO best practices for blogging.  

Twitter is important because employers will search through hashtags.  If you know what they're looking for they may be able to find you if you're speaking the same language.  If they're looking for specific hashtags that you have used on Twitter, they can find you.  Some savvy employers may use Google to search through Twitter hashtags, others may use Twitter itself to do so.  

Hashtags Come to Google Search Results  This article discusses searching through hashtags within the Google Search Results page.  

Videos are another way to expand your presence.  Many employers want to see you, not just read you.  Recording a video of yourself and posting it to YouTube is a great way for employers to see you.  The video should be related to your field of work, otherwise skip it.  

Here is a great example of using video.  This is a video of an optometrist teaching how to insert scleral lenses.  

The final thing to do to your Google resume is to Add your old type resume somewhere on the internet where Google will find it.  LinkedIn is a great place to add your resume.  You can also send it to an interested employer. 


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