Category: Internet Presence

Your Internet Presence – Part 9: Big Brother

Leave a comment

 

BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING…ONLINE

Unlike the character in George Orwell’s dystopian novel, 1984, the Big Brother of 2012 tends to incorporate itself into the fabric of our everyday lives, making us comfortable with wearing it and, like a well-worn pair of shoes that fit us so well, we take its presence for granted and often aren’t consciously aware of it.  But, like the omnicient overseer of the science-fiction narrative, our modern-day Big Brother is enigmatic and constantly present in our lives through our presence on the Internet.

Your Internet Presence – Part 8: Facebook Politics

Leave a comment

Politics Schmolitics

I never considered a difference of opinion in politics, in religion, in philosophy, as cause for withdrawing from a friend.
~Thomas Jefferson

One major pitfall of online social networking occurs when voicing one’s opinion on a hot topic.  It’s bad enough when you read many of the viewpoints by strangers who post comments online on The Huffington Post, Yahoo! and Google, especially those that contain profanity, hurl insults and are short on facts.

But what happens when you read differing political beliefs by your friends on your Facebook page?

Your Internet Presence – Part 7: Email Etiquette

3 Comments

     Email Etiquette 

Nothing serves more as an ambassador of your Internet presence than your email. Every email you send is a representation of your image, or brand.

It is estimated that nearly 300 billion email messages are sent each day, with roughly 10% of these being legitimate missives that you and I would send, and the rest comprising spam and viruses.

By contrast, the volume of first-class snail was approximately 72 billion 2010, but I could find no statistics that indicated how many of those mailing were actual letters rather than bills, advertisements and other mailing, but my guess is a small percentage were actually letters or greeting cards. 

But, I believe we can agree that the Internet – email and websites – have replaced snail mail as the way most people communicate, socialize and conduct business.

With this in mind, an understanding and mastering of email etiquette is vital to your brand and online presence, so you need to get it right.  Developing good habits in composing emails will serve you well!

Following are some guidelines to help ensure that you are email savvy:

Your Internet Presence – Part 6: Technical Vs. Social Skills

Leave a comment

 

Technical versus Social Skills 

To maintain your good, or positive, online presence, it’s necessary to balance your technical talent with your social expertise.  You need both to demonstrate your online prowess.

Dictionary.com defines these two skills, as follows:

Social:

  1. Seeking or enjoying the companionship of others; friendly; sociable; gregarious
  2. Living or disposed to live in companionship with others or in a community, rather than in isolation

Technical:

  1. Belonging or pertaining to an art, science, or the like
  2. Skilled in or familiar in a practical way with a particular art, trade, etc…

Your Internet Presence – Part 5: LinkedIn

1 Comment

Making the Most of Your

Guest posted by Lyn Nelson

LinkedIn is the leading online professional networking tool. No matter which industry you're in, or at which stage in your career, networking is still the #1 way to land a job, and LinkedIn is the best way to leverage your network online.

Whether you're a LinkedIn beginner or pro (or are still staring wide-eyed at it trying to make sense of the chaos), here are a few tips for why and how LinkedIn can work for you, without eating up your life.

Your Internet Presence – Part 4: A Good Impression

Leave a comment

The Good

There are many ways to make a good impression through your Internet presence.  Although we are focusing on business etiquette, your overall presence is essential to your professional image.  And, remember, everyone is involved in business in some way.  A student’s business is focused on schoolwork and school-related and extracurricular activities, getting into college, earning a degree and preparing to launch a career.  No matter what stage of life you are in, establishing a good professional brand is a worthy goal.   

Your Internet Presence – Part 3: Avoiding Disaster

Leave a comment

  The Bad & The Ugly Continued…

Six Disaster Areas to Avoid!

 As you strive to clean up and improve your Internet presence, using your SWOT analysis, let’s delve a bit deeper into some of the possible weaknesses and threats to your Internet presence.  In last week’s post, I suggested that you assess your headshots and other photos that are posted to your Facebook, LinkedIn and other sites.  Here are some other online issues you should address and assess:

Your Internet Presence – Part 2: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

Leave a comment

 

   The Good, The  Bad & The Ugly

 

The Internet can be a good thing.  But Bonnie Prince Harry -- who was caught literally with his pants down in photos that have resulted in massive exposure (so to speak) on the Internet this past week – has learned that the Internet can also be a very badplace.  And, as the Royal Redhead’s Las Vegas photos have apparently resulted in damaged relationships, expected disciplinary action by the British Army and an anticipated dressing down (sorry) by Her Majesty The Queen, The Prince of Wales has also discovered that the Internet can have its ugly side. 

Your Internet Presence – Part 1: The Fishbowl

Leave a comment

 

The Fishbowl called the Internet

Establishing a presence on the Internet is akin to having your life displayed in a fishbowl.  While maintaining a positive presence can be a very good thing, if not handled properly it can be a very bad thing.  It all depends on how you craft your Internet image – or brand – whether your presence goes swimmingly well or it sinks you!  

The following are among the current media that project you onto the Internet:

An Un”Friend”ly Request

2 Comments

Are Employers Crossing An Ethical Line By Requesting Facebook Passwords?

To Americans, the right to privacy is a precious freedom.  But, Constitutional issues aside, is your interviewer crossing an ethical line in asking you to provide your Facebook password?    

This dismaying development in the job-seeking process was first reported in March by the Associated Press and has generated a flurry of media commentary in ABC News,  The New York Times and Forbes, to name a few. 

As if your job search wasn’t stressful enough!  Now in addition to constructing the perfect resume, developing your marketing plan, networking and prepping for that hard-won interview, it’s possible that you’ll also be asked to share your Facebook password during the interview and hiring process.  Alternatively, you might be asked to log on to your Facebook page right then and there so the interviewer can take a tour!