Why You Should Google Yourself to Monitor Your Online Personal Brand

These days, it's not enough to have a great resume and cover letter. Employers also want to investigate your online personal brand before offering you the job. However, not all professionals take this fact into account when they search for work — and it could be costing you job opportunities. If you're not managing and optimizing your online personal brand, you could unknowingly hurt your chances of landing your dream job. Today, Google your name, as it appears on your resume, to see what employers will find when they search for you.

After doing so, ask yourself these questions:

Will recruiters find anything else online that I need to be prepared to handle?

If you discover some negative results when you Google yourself, try to contact the website, and see if you can get the mention of your name taken down. If you aren't able to remove or downplay the damaging results, be prepared to talk about the situation, in case a recruiter brings it up during an interview.

Are my personal social media accounts tarnishing my online brand?

Optimize your personal branding strategy by removing vulgar or inappropriate comments or posts you've made about sensitive issues.  Nobody wants to hire someone who's bashing others all the time. Also, avoid dropping/using curses and profane words on your professional accounts.

Did I forget to add any noteworthy information to my professional online profiles?

Some great job tips will be boosting your social media profiles by adding examples of written or design work (if applicable) and sharing details about your volunteer activities and relevant professional association memberships. Post news about current events that are relevant to your field to demonstrate that you're keeping a pulse on your industry.