Social media has become an extension of our personality and there’s hardly any millennial without a social media account. Our social media account has become an essential part of our identity often referred to as “online identity”. This trend helps recruiters to check the social media accounts of prospective hires to get an understanding of their general personalities. While this can work in the favour of Job seeker who appear professional online, it may spell doom for those candidates Whose online identity seems shabby, sloppy and unprofessional. I have chartered out a 4 step guide to help you build and maintain a smart online professional to impress prospective employers!
BUILD YOUR OWN BRAND:–
No, by the brand we don’t mean a business here. Your brand refers to your profile and how you come across as a person who see your online identity. This identity and brand comprises details such as, status update, pictures, check ins, interactions etc. Here are a few things you could do to build your personal brand: Put a dignified hi-res profile picture where your face reflects a sense of authority ,confidence and smartness. Avoid uploading a messy,lazy,too casual photo as your display photo. Write a concise ‘Bio’ highlighting your strengths . Update your profile regularly, especially in terms of location, place of work, certifications/degrees, activates and events, and interests.
CHANGE YOUR PRIVACY SETTINGS:
Do not mix your work and professional life. Most of the time we can not control our online footprints, but there are privacy setting in every social media platform that allow you to restrict your audience and control who sees what as part of your social media post ! For example , a personal photo album is meant to your friends and family should not be accessible to strangers and the general public online If your post is generally exclusive for your friends than you should put privacy settings in your account.
DO NOT POST OFFENSIVE AND NEGATIVE CONTENT:–
Remember that your online behavior reflects your personality and thus, recruiters can form an impression about you based on your online activities such as commenting, liking, sharing, pages your follow etc. Follow the pages and people who are related to your career field and help you to learn something useful. Have an opinion but do not get carried away with objectionable remake and comments. Use smart witty language for your posts and comments and DO NOT use expletives and profanities or a brash tone of voice in your online interactions.
AVOID POSTING ANYTHING DURING WORKING HOURS:–
The timing of your posts can be seen withoutmuch ado and therefore,it is quite easy for HRs to figure out if you are indulging in social media browsing during your work hours. Posting or engaging on social media during office hours leads to the impression that you are misusing your working time instead of actually working on things that may require your attention. It makes you look unprofessional and may create doubt about your suitability for a job in the minds of your prospective employers. To Conclude :– Professional online Image involves the way you interact with others and handle your social media account. Knowing the importance of image and the way others see you is the best way to project the professional image that will help you be successful.
