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How To Boss Your Online Presence

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Aug. 16 2019, Published 7:57 a.m. ET

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Let’s be honest, in 2019 your online image is everything, especially as a professional. Before someone hires you, or meets you at a business meeting, it is highly likely that they’re going to put your name into Google. And if they don’t like what they see, then they’re going to carry that negative first impression of you with them.

OK, it sucks, and you shouldn’t have to monitor your online presence meticulously. However, there are some pretty simple things that you can do in order to keep it squeaky clean and on point. We’ve noted down some of them here.

Post regularly

One of the main ways to create a great online presence is to post regularly, and to stay up-to-date with everything that is happening in your field. Whether you’re sharing an article on LinkedIn or tweeting about the latest news, be sure to post consistently, and provide some insight into your opinions on the matter. You don’t have to delve too deeply into things; but those with great online reputations do post regularly!

Clean up the mistakes of past you

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When you’ve grown up with social media being a big part of your life, there is every chance that your life has been pretty much documented online. From old Facebook statuses to those photos of you passed out at college, you need to work on cleaning up your image on social media if it isn’t looking great. Edit your privacy settings, primarily, but also be sure to untag yourself from any unsavoury pictures.

Get a website

One thing that you’re going to need in order to boss your online presence is a website, so that you can get your portfolio out there into the world. Not only does this allow you to showcase your work, but it also means that you’re able to improve your overall online presence, and it’s pretty professional to have your own site, right? Well, we think that it looks amazing on your business cards, girl.

Do it properly

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If you’re going to make a great website, then it’s a good idea to learn a little about back-end web development. This will mean that you can provide the best experience for anybody visiting your site, and if you learn enough about this, you’ll even be able to utilize your skills to create apps. If you’re not sure where to begin with back-end development, start reading up on Node Js vs Golang and find the right tool for you.

Make connections

Networking online is a lot easier than networking in real life, as you have the opportunity to send a thoughtful message that you’ve had a little bit of time to think about. If you say all of the right things, and you’re as down to earth as possible, then you’ll find that you make a lot of connections without even meeting these people face-to-face. LinkedIn is the perfect platform to grow your professional network.

Utilize SEO

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SEO – or search engine optimization – is an invaluable tool for those looking to make their online presence more professional. This is because you can get certain pages to rank higher on Google, so that when people type your name into a search engine, they’re going to see more of the pages that you want them to see. SEO is something that you can teach yourself, or utilize through a specialist company.

Use a professional photo

One mistake that people are still making is using the wrong style of photograph for their LinkedIn and other profiles. You should use one with a white background, where you look as professional as possible. Don’t use a photo of you in a club, or of you on holiday in a bikini, if you want to make a good impression. A high-quality, professional photograph will be perfect for your accounts.

Handle it well

If anything from the past does come around to bite you, and you fear that it’s going to be detrimental to your online presence, then be sure to handle it well. Ask the person to take it down and report it to Google (or remove the content yourself), but make sure that you post an apology, or respond to it with humor and embrace it if it’s a photo of you wherein you’re a little drunk. These things happen, and you have got a personal life.

So, if you want to boss your online presence, then keep these things in mind. It’s not too difficult when you know how, so ensure that everybody gets a pleasant surprise when they type your name into Google!

[Editor’s note: This post is produced by one of our trusted partners.]

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