If you have not discovered the Job Search Strategy Guide ebook, you can find it here. Below is an excerpt from the fourth section:
Build Your Online Brand
One of the most important weapons in your career management arsenal is your online presence. If you are a serious candidate for a position it is very likely that at some point an Internet search will be done to discover what can be learned about you. To see what others will find, “google” yourself. Enter your name in quotations for a more efficient search, and there you will see what recruiters, hiring professionals, and potential customers will find when conducting a search about you. If you are like most people, there will either be bits and pieces of information, or nothing at all. Here is your opportunity to tell your story and communicate your brand.
LinkedIn.com is a great place to start your online branding and networking. The professional summary is an important branding element. Your career coach can help you develop your message and fine-tune your summary prior to posting. Your LinkedIn profile will optimize your visibility on search engines and will likely be the highest-ranked item on the search results page. An additional benefit is the ability to build your network on the LinkedIn site. You will watch your exposure grow exponentially through your added contacts, bringing you closer to hiring managers in companies of potential interest. Also, members of your network have the ability to write endorsements, so the searcher sees not only your professional profile, but also recommendations that others have made about you.
If you have a more common name like John Smith, it will be challenging to differentiate yourself from all the other John Smiths out there. Experiment with using various forms of your name to see where you have the least competition. Try using your full first name, your middle initial, or full middle name. The point is that when a hiring manager, HR professional, or recruiter searches for you online, you want to be found. You will be lost among millions of results in a search for “John Smith” (unless you happen to be the founder of Jamestown), whereas a search for “Jonathan Reginald Smith” currently yields only one result. Once you have decided what form of your name you are going to use, be sure to use the same format on your resume for consistency.
Zoominfo.com, a data aggregator, is another effective tool for gaining additional exposure. At Zoominfo you may find a profile created for you from miscellaneous information already found online, i.e. association websites, articles you have written or that mention you. You will want to claim any existing profile and add your professional summary and other historical data. If you do not find an existing profile you can build one from scratch.
VisualCV.com is an exciting tool that offers the opportunity to create your own website using resume content, charts, graphs, video and other information. It is a powerful application but requires creativity and planning to take full advantage of the resources offered. You can start by importing information from your LinkedIn profile and build from there.
A strong online presence gives you a significant competitive advantage. These steps will help you communicate your value to people who are inquiring about you.