Dear Barbara,
A report from ATM Market Research recently found that 74.3% of consumers use a Google search as their primary option for finding information. When a company needs to hire top talent or an individual wants to advance their career, they are very likely to conduct a Google search.
A digital footprint is the information left behind, based on an individuals online activity. Your digital footprint can be searched, shared, and seen by a very large invisible audience. The way we communicate has been forever changed by social media, and every status update, like, share, retweet, comment, snapchat, video and picture are part of your record.
Start out by googling yourself to see what information is projected about you online. Consider hiding tagged photos on Facebook, Instagram, and other social media platforms. Update your privacy settings, so people can’t tag you, without your permission. Review all your social media profiles from beginning to end and edit to guarantee consistency.
Review your LinkedIn Profile to make sure it reads like a mini sales letter and not a resume. Your Profile should entice prospective clients and candidate to reach out to you. Promote recommendations from both clients and candidates.
Be proactive going forward and begin to populate your social media accounts and twitter feed with positive content that reflects the professional you. After a few months, Google yourself again and continue to do this periodically to review your digital footprint.
There are some other simple rules to follow to consistently improve your digital footprint:
1. Be respectful – don’t post anything you wouldn’t want your client, candidate, co-workers or employers to read
2. Be nice – positivity and encouragement go a long way
3. Professional profile – limit the amount of personal information shared
4. Think before posting – make sure information is appropriate for each platform. Also ask yourself if you are venting or negative and are you okay with everyone reading your post.
5. Use common sense – always remember, information shared is subject to scrutiny
There is a tremendous amount of uncertainty, anger, strong opinions and political opinions flooding social media. You don’t want to lose a great potential client because you were venting on social media. Always remember, when people need your services they are probably conducting a Google Search – you want to control what they read!
To your success,
Barb Bruno