How to manage your online identity with Google Alerts
02. Jan, 2009 
0 Comments
When you are looking for work and/or interviewing for a job,
the last thing you want is a recruiter finding that risque picture of you dancing naked in the Cayman Islands. (That sort of thing is frowned upon by some employers.)
Well, you could do a search on Google now to see what comes up,
but what if something new hits the web that you are unaware of until its too late?
No worries mate! I have the cure that ails you and its called Google Alerts.
From their website:
Google Alerts are email updates of the latest relevant Google results
(web, news, etc.) based on your choice of query or topic.
What I suggest you do is type in your name in quotes
and any derivative of your name as well.
For example, say your name is John Doe, in the search terms slot I would add:
“john doe” OR “johnathan doe” OR “johnny doe”
Like so…
I would leave the “Type” slot as Comprehensive,
so Google will search for any mention of your name in other places beyond websites (Videos for example).
I would leave the “How Often” slot at “Once a day,”
but that’s a judgement call.
You have the option of making it “As it happens” or Weekly; its up to you.
After that, simply add in your email address and wait.
Google will send you updates about how your name appears on the web (and other places) and you can keep up with your reputation.
Now, one thing that you might be very well aware of
is that you might not be the only person with your name. In that case, I would advise creating alerts that include the city you live in, the school you attended, party places you have frequented and such.
Here are a few examples to consider when using Google Alerts:
- “John Doe” Atlanta “Ga tech”
- “Johnny Doe” NY “Club Infinity”
- “John Doe” “Cayman Islands” (party OR event)
Hope this helps!
-Jim
ABOUT THE WRITER
Jim Stroud is a Social Media Development Manager for EnglishCafe, the premier English learning community for global professionals. Prior to EnglishCafe, Jim Stroud amassed a decade of recruiting experience consulting for such companies as Microsoft, Google, MCI and Siemens. Jim Stroud also produces iLiveOnline, a how-to blog on all things internet.
This is a nice piece of information but most employers would spend more time looking at the resume rather than spending time to look for your personal life. They might even look for your online resume posted on some other site.
In this economic climate you need all the help you can get.
The ResumeBear hasn’t missed a trick
Sometimes we spend so much time dealing with our online resume, our resume templates and dealing with resume tips that we don’t realize all the other information out there describing us. Many have been fired from having unprofessional items popping up about them in places like blogs and social sites; it’s not a stretch to think we might lose out on a great offer because of these things as well. Thanks for the post Jim, its important information for anyone job searching out there.
This is a good article on online resume tracking. i think i will use some resume tricks for my self!
It’s interesting to think that despite all our efforts in creating a professional resume, we can neglect our less controllable online resume that exists out there for all to see. I didn’t know about Google Alerts before, but will look into it now!
It is an amazing and useful feature for all those who want to be updated with their resume. It will help them to keep track of reputation and effectiveness of their resume.
Its a very useful article with good resume tips on submitting an online resume.One can do resume tracking with the features and this will be very highly effective.
These are nice resume tips to have. You wouldn’t think many employers would have time to do something like this, but these days you really never know, and it’s always better safe than sorry! This site has taught me so much about making my resume better! Thanks!
It’s important to remember that just about anything on the internet can come back to haunt you. People are getting fired and sued for comments on their private blogs. Even the big career portal sites just aren’t going to search online resume collections (but they might find out if you have been using a certain resume template that way too). They’re looking for more information on what makes people tick, and a quick Google search on you can be a positive or negative thing.
It is very usefull articleabout resumes. It is very imporatant for peoples who didnt update thier resumes.It is very amazing one.
With more and more employers searching for a professional resume online and job seekers with an online resume looking to meet those employers, this seems like a new piece of common-sense advice. In the past my friends and I would always joke about “googling” ourselves out of vanity, but now, in addition to the requisite online resume tracking, one needs to be very conscious of other information that may have made its way onto the internet.
I agree that in this atmosphere, that employers are being more picky than ever in whom they bring into their offices, and looking for any available information on a prospective job applicant would fit into that.
You can give a perfect resume to anyone, but then anyone you give it to can use it to find out anything they want about you on the the internet, anything that you have left out there to be found.
My advice would be to clean up your online profiles on any website you regularly visit in order to avoid losing out on a decent job through this possiblity.
I think this one is really good. Now in these tough times I think the employers would definitely go for such kind of stuff. They just want good guys to be in their company.
Geee that good post.Ia m gonna set alert too lol
Hello While searching for Blogs about effectiveness of internet job boards I found your site manage your online identity with Google Alerts | ResumeBear Blog. Thank you for the effort you have put in.
Hi, cool site, good writing