New York Times Presents “A Pair Of Social Media Predicaments”

You can always count on Jenna Wortham to offer some valuable advice in the New York Times GadgetWise Blog, and today’s column was no exception. Focused on two issues critical to online reputation management and Internet privacy, the first question asks what to do if you have embarrassing information online, and the second question asks how to effectively separate your personal and professional life online.

Check out the two questions, and their excerpted answers below. For Wortham’s full response, check out the column here.

Q) I’m applying for a new job and there is some unflattering stuff on the Web that I would be really embarrassed if even my parents—let alone a potential employer—were to see. But is it really necessary to delete anything that a potential employer might happen to see online?

A) A recent study conducted by Harris Interactive for CareerBuilder.com determined that 45 percent of employers questioned were using social networks to screen job candidates — more than double from a year earlier, when a similar survey found that just 22 percent of supervisors were researching potential hires on social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and LinkedIn.

[...]

If you cringe at what surfaces after a cursory Google search — like photos from that hotdog eating contest you won in 1995 — you could always try creating your own content online, like a LinkedIn account or Google profile, to help buffer it out, but “a better idea is to think twice before posting any public content you wouldn’t want found by potential employers,” said David Binkowski, senior vice president of marketing at MS&L, a communications firm.

Q) My job is really jumping on the social-media bandwagon and strongly encourages employees to use sites like Twitter and Facebook to help broaden our company’s brand and build a presence online. I’m really uncomfortable with combining my personal online life with my professional one, but no one else seems to mind. Can I push back or should I just go with it?

A) Dabbling with building your online brand, both for your company and for yourself, could be a great way to make connections, broaden your professional network and build credibility – so don’t be afraid to join the conversation.

[...]

For starters, keep your personal Facebook profile private so only your friends and family can connect with you – this way you can still trade jokes and photos with friends without wondering about the effect on your company, said Ms. Bury. You could help maintain a fan page for your company and contribute professionally on the platform through that.

In addition she says, if you’re worried about having a personal Twitter account, ask if you can contribute to the company’s Twitter account instead of having a personal one.

[...]

As sites like Twitter and Facebook continue to grow as an essential personal and business networking tool, these sorts of concerns and issues are only going to get thornier.

One good rule of thumb Ms. Bury suggests you remember, however you decide to proceed, is “don’t say anything online that you wouldn’t want plastered on a billboard with your face on it.”