If the Blog is the new resume then the “Google Me” is the business card?

Categories: Search Strategy, Social MediaPosted on April 19th, 2007

Josh observes that Blogs are the new resume. Of course only a fraction of internet users blog, let’s not forget however that the next generation of workers are using Social Networks (From MySpace, Facebook, as well as uploading their own videos) so this is a trend that is not likely to go away.

I know several people that have gotten jobs primarily because of their blog, it had a lot to do with me getting my job too (read the comments from my CEO). Employers can see what someone is like, how they think, how the write, but more importantly what others think about them by checking out trackbacks and how people deal with disagreements, comments, etc.

So if the blog is the resume, then Jim Turner’s analogy that folks are not handing out business cards as much because they tell folks to “Google my name“.

If you Google Jeremiah, I come out fourth (sometimes higher, sometimes lower), I get beat out by the Wikipedia page, and that failed TV show with Luke Perry. To prove it’s not an ego thing, I find it more valuable that I come up first on terms like “Social Media Measurement“, “Customer Reference Media“, and of course, “Web Strategy”

Update:

As usual, Adam does a great job with this analytical post summarizing this meme.

Ken Kaplan discusses the Video Resume as another option to consider.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, April 19th, 2007 at 1:18 pm and is filed under Search Strategy, Social Media. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Blogging is the new resume for sure. If someone is blogging I will look at that before a resume. You can’t bullshit on a blog but I’ve seen my share of creative writing on resumes. Also if someone can generate an audience and links they have proven credibility and authority on whatever topic that is being talked about.

Posted by John Furrier on April 19th, 2007 at 3:01 pm

So John…how about a job?

Posted by Jim Turner on April 19th, 2007 at 4:04 pm

For those that don’t know, John hired me at PodTech!

Proof that the blog is the new resume –at least for my industry.

Posted by Jeremiah Owyang on April 19th, 2007 at 4:16 pm

It’s easier to say “Google me!” with a less-common name…

Now, my name … Jim Johnson turns up 622,000 pages as a phrase and 22.6 million pages as two words. If it weren’t for my personal blog on Florida politics - State of Sunshine - you might be hard pressed to find me.

The blog is #6 on the phrase search an #8 when searching as two words.

Oh, and I have a friend (who shall remain nameless) who is actually not on any Google pages. None. Imagine that - someone who is still actually anonymous.

Posted by Jim Johnson on April 19th, 2007 at 6:08 pm

I would add to John’s comment from both sides (if I were researching on the individual or if I provided a prospective employer a link to my blog to learn more), professional blogs help a lot. By reading your blog, it is easy to see what your values, sincere interests and personality. They way you write, the topics you choose and your voice help to build trust or connection within the information shared. Meaning, yes, this person really is into XYZ and spends time to deliver value content, etc.

Though, my blog is still new and needs time to get momentum and needs to wait till I get time to post more frequently and fully optimize it, I found it is very helpful for networking. Even if someone I know professionally references my name and resume or some type of verbal description, the recepient still has a choice or even to be precise a probability of 50 % “not to connect the dots”. But, once they visit my blog, they have more trust and informational balance. Thus, blog becomes a connection tool/point for further engagement into the relationship and I think it is one of the best benefits of social media = connecting people = breaking the barriers. At the same time, like any social interaction, enhanced with web or not, it requires commitment to the basics of building trust, being consistent with your words, actions and values.

Posted by Yulia on April 19th, 2007 at 8:44 pm

Interesting topic!! There are a few points to look at here…..and yes I have been recruited from my blog several times (nothing more interesting then EMC yet).

I think it depends on the blog…. some people blog about their private life vs. their professional life, others blog about both, and others blog about just their professional life. So where do you draw the line on evaluating the person based on the blog?

If a person’s life is a little odd, yet they are professionally a genius, do you not hire them because they are weird?

Are recruiter types searching for industry experts in the blogosphere? If they are, are the jobs they are searching for really worth the time?

In situations like John’s hiring his entire staff after reading their blogs….is it the main deciding factor to have further discussions or is it a combination of referrals (direct or indirect) + the blog + the resume?

I don’t think the blog stands alone, there are certainly aspects of people’s lives and experience or potential that are never apparent on the blog. There has to be several factors (with the blog being one of them).

Posted by Josh Maher on April 19th, 2007 at 9:07 pm

Wow, I haven’t really google’d myself in a while….number one on my name and number 4 for “Seattle Messaging”…. not too bad, I guess googling me works, I should add that to my resume

Posted by Josh Maher on April 19th, 2007 at 9:11 pm

Josh, I can see your point and yes, one cannot use a blog as the only point of reference. It is just another tool or method to get an insight. Like any type of research data, you have to make an assumption that there is more that you cannot find yet. But if you use a number of sources, things happen = patterns evolve as people are normally consistent in their behaviour and if they are not, you got your answer. I also believe that personal life is irrelevant when making a judgement regarding the competency to do the job. Of course, there are social biases and I subscribe to some too, but I always have my own ethics code that I find useful while matching my judgements. I think mixing personal and professional is not ethical or very no-no at the minimum. It is just is.

P.S. You have good content on yours!

Posted by Yulia on April 19th, 2007 at 9:34 pm

[...] Finally remember what happens online it fairly permanent and can be found in most search engines by a half way decent recruiter or employer. Who can forget last year’s Miss Universe publicity. There is lots more discussion on this topic. [...]

Posted by Can your blog be your resume?? at Michael Specht - discussions on HR and technology on April 19th, 2007 at 9:48 pm

Hi Jeremiah,

As you can see from my post on the blog, being that I work in the employment industry, I think the correct thing is to view the blog as (a) an extension of your resume, and (b) as extending your personal brand. An employer is still going to want to check references, fact-check past employment,make sure you are a culture fit, etc.

Note: As I also noted in the blog, folks that work as web developers can most certainly help position themselves favorably over other candidates by blogging. Got mad skillz (intended bad spelling)? Show what you can do with web technologies!

The resume will never go away. While it may change formats down the road, employers do have to follow certain federal regulations relative to applicants (EEOC, etc.). Blogs also don’t entirely tell the story about “soft” skills, or skills that don’t have to do with working with a tangible product.

Posted by Damon Billian on April 19th, 2007 at 10:22 pm

Damon

Thanks for this level headed information! I do think there are things that a resume can never capture, it is just a ‘conversation starter’!

Posted by jeremiah_owyang on April 20th, 2007 at 6:09 am

[...] Jeremiah writes about how “Google me” is the business card and how he was hired essentially from his blog. I know several people that have gotten jobs primarily because of their blog, it had a lot to do with me getting my job too. Employers can see what someone is like, how they think, how the write, but more importantly what others think about them by checking out trackbacks and how people deal with disagreements, comments, etc. [...]

Posted by Traces of Inspiration » Blog Archive » Roundup of “The Blog is the New Resume” Discussion on April 20th, 2007 at 7:32 am

Thanks!

I hope people don’t read it as they shouldn’t blog to help their careers (they should!). It helps with visibility, recruiters /employers looking for passive candidates & with making sure your name (read as vanity search) shows up high in search engines. It can also really differentiate you from other candidates…

Side note: I guess you and I are both lucky because we have relatively uncommon first & last names;-)

Posted by Damon Billian on April 20th, 2007 at 10:24 am

Enjoyed your story; from my blog reading, http://www.bankerinindia.typepad.com is an example of the quality of blog that could serve as a resume.

Posted by Karol on April 20th, 2007 at 11:36 am

Jeremiah, thanks for talking about this here. I knew your crew would generate some great responses. This is good stuff.

In my original post, I did say that “every serious tech professional” should blog. It’s absolutely not for everyone. But techies? There are a ton of us, so this is a way to stand above the rest.

@Josh

So where do you draw the line on evaluating the person based on the blog?

I’m a pretty transparent guy. I’ll post some thoughts on baseball and photos of my daughter in with my more serious posts. I figure any potential employer that might have a problem with that is someone that I don’t want to work for.

That’s probably a good rule of thumb. When posting something “off-topic”, think to yourself.. “will I feel good about this post six months, a year, two years down the line?”

I have thought about whether or not I should go off-topic on my blog. But my blog is different than Jeremiah or Joshua. Jeremiah is the web strategy expert. Josh is the social web design expert. I am totally into both topics, but I don’t particularly have one single interest like that. I am still in the stage of my career where I want to write about Microformats, web standards, design, CSS, blogging, information architecture, digital preservation, etc. So, I figure if I throw some personal stuff in there, it’s not like I have a reader base that is expecting a single specific topic.

Odd, and professionally a genius? Can you forward me this person’s resume?

Posted by Adam Darowski on April 20th, 2007 at 4:28 pm

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Posted by Bram.us » The Blog is the new Resume on April 20th, 2007 at 4:37 pm

Great post Jeremiah. I absolutely think that your blog and other connected content are the new resume.

One quick note here on a related topic, I ran across a site called Ziki (http://www.ziki.com) that works a) as an aggregator of all of your content from posts to photos to comments and b) they buy your name in major search engines so you have top presence. It’s very interesting.

If you search my name ‘Matt Dickman’ in Google or Yahoo you will see my paid link. It’s free and the company is using it to promote the service.

Posted by Matt Dickman on April 20th, 2007 at 8:33 pm

Matt

Thanks for this. I’ll check ziki out!

Posted by jeremiah_owyang on April 20th, 2007 at 9:00 pm

Too Many Ricks and even more Garcias in the world for me to ask people to Google me. Right now I show up only on the 2nd page of Google SERPs. Still, I tend to think the competition for my keyword name “Rick Garcia” may be even more difficult in the future.

Posted by Rick Garcia on April 21st, 2007 at 2:40 pm

[...] “The blog is your resume,” Jeremiah Owyang told me this week over lunch, refering to his recent blog post. A few weeks ago, I wrote about Rohit Bhargava’s story on the Social Media resume. NY Times’ Abby Ellin on 4/21/07 talks about video resumes, which could make “the blog is your resume” even richer, more meaningful and impactful. TV news reporters, anchors and producers have always kept a “reel” of their best work. Their reel was their resume or ticket to getting a new or better job. Other media industry pros do the same. Now since “we are the media,” it seems that short video resumes might be right for anyone with a blog and a career under construction. Why not create a good self-made video interview where you answer/address thoughtful questions any potential employer may ask? [...]

Posted by Blog as Resume, How About Video Resume? « Movin’ Ahead on April 22nd, 2007 at 5:29 pm

Google me is great if your name is “Jeremiah Owyant” or “Adam Darowski” but what if it is Joe Smith, Matt Brown or *gasp* John Wilson. A fun project I am working on that led me to your site is http://www.whereisjohnwilson.com . If you get a chance check it out and let me know what you think. I’m trying to bring search engine optimization and blogging to the masses, and your post, and many like it prove why it is so important.

Posted by John Wilson on May 28th, 2007 at 8:26 pm

[...] If the Blog is the new resume then the “Google Me” is the business card? - Jim Turner’s analogy that folks are not handing out business cards as much because they tell folks to “Google my name”. [...]

Posted by modifoo » Blog Archive » SurfFoo for June 17th on June 16th, 2007 at 5:52 pm

Check out my documentary ‘Google Me’, about my travels to meet other Jim Killeen’s. http://www.googlemethemovie.com

Posted by Jim Killeen on June 16th, 2007 at 11:25 pm

[...] Business card. Don’t go with anything tacky or overly complicated. Keep it simple, professional. The fewer items on your card, the better. Really, all you need is your name, your service and your email address, but you can put a slogan or logo if that works for you. Also, some have argued that the new business card is to simply say “Google me”. If so, be sure that you’ve researched your Google results thoroughly. [...]

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Posted by duaxutglwd on July 3rd, 2007 at 12:57 pm

[...] He could be right, as I’ve gotten some people to blog (like Avinash and Mario Sundar) who are both achieving more in their careers. Avinash is now the Google Analytics evangelist, and Mario is the Community guy at LinkedIn, lastly, I got my job, my blog was a big part of it, read what my CEO said in the first comment. [...]

Posted by Web Strategy by Jeremiah » The conversation continues “the five stages of blogging” on July 4th, 2007 at 9:58 am

I love google ………

Posted by Syed Md. Ashequl Islam (Danny) on August 19th, 2007 at 10:08 am

[...] right, I blogged myself into my next job, and I’m not the first, nor the last. You can ever read the first comment from my former CEO confirming it. Blogging is a way to demonstrate to the marketplace of your interests and passions are, and [...]

Posted by Letters to the Editor: Career Pathing to a Web Strategy role on September 29th, 2007 at 5:48 am

[...] If the Blog is the New Resume, Then the ‘Google Me’ is the Business Card [...]

Posted by » How to Use a Blog as a Career Resume : Let a Job Find You Careers 2.0 : Social Networking and Web 2.0 for Careers and Jobs Success on November 26th, 2007 at 1:08 pm

Anyone can be ranked personally on top of Google, 87% of Google’s content network, and Yahoo search when someone searches your name. You also gain a professional bio, online business cards and a bulletin. This has allowed me to become the easiest person to find on the planet - all I tell people is “Google Me Today!” and when they do, what I want them to find is me, right there. This is a cool tool for anyone that wants or requires an internet presents.

A friend of mine Just said “Google Me Today” I follow the link to his profile and then click on the globe atop his page…that’s what I did. Now you can “Google Me Today” Jim Cobb

Please feel free to share with those you know – tell them to “Google Me Today” and you will see that now anyone can exist on the internet.

Posted by Jim Cobb on January 28th, 2008 at 11:38 pm

I would like to show everyone something that I found that is really working for a lot of my friends, new and current business professional and other people searching for a job. This is an awesome website that places you on top of Google (and 87% of it content network) and Yahoo. The interesting thing is the price point Go to http://www.askjimcobb.com and take a look at it. I would also recommend you do your due diligence and search my name Jim Cobb on the following search engines: Google, Ask, Yahoo, AltaVista, Alltheweb, and Lycos.

Thanks you for your time and I look forward to see Google Me at the end of you name.

Google Me Regards,

Jim Cobb - Google Me

http://www.askjimcobb.com

Posted by Jim Cobb on February 19th, 2008 at 9:56 pm

I hope people don’t read it
I know several people that have gotten jobs primarily because of their blog, it had a lot to do with me getting my job too most of the blog seems to their resume
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Blogging is good for career. A well executed blog sets you apart as an expert in your field. Employers regularly Google prospective employees to learn more about them. Blogging gives you a way to control what employers see, because Google’s system works in such a way that blogs that are heavily networked with others come up high in Google searches.
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Posted by Lonet on November 24th, 2008 at 3:47 am

In a world connected by the internet, the free-flow of information may be the best way to stand out in a crowd. However, professionalism does play a role as I am sure Jeremiah did have to give out a resume requested by the CEO of his current company.

Posted by Resume Writing Services on November 25th, 2008 at 9:05 am

[...] where there isn’t bad press or content that I don’t want people to view. My friend, Jeremiah Owyang, states that your Google results are your new business card. Your results are a depiction of who [...]

Posted by Twitter, Facebook, Digg: Can You Join Too Many Networks? on December 16th, 2008 at 9:40 am

[...] “Pageranking telt” Volgens Schawbel is PageRank uitermate belangrijk voor je personal brand. Het geeft je namelijk controle over eigen Google-resultaten. Deelnemen aan social networks met een hoge pagerank (meestal gecombineerd met een groot aantal leden), zorgt ervoor dat de “slechte berichten” over jezelf naar achteren in de resultaten worden gedrukt. Immers, volgens Jeremiah Owyang is “Google het nieuwe visitekaartje”. [...]

Posted by Frank-ly » Blog Archive » Hoe sociaal kun je zijn? on December 18th, 2008 at 12:16 am

[...] also states: Jeremiah Owyang, states that your Google results are your new business card. Your results are a depiction of who [...]

Posted by Social Media Madness, Web, and Google on January 8th, 2009 at 10:59 am

With the birth of Google Profiles, it will surely be the next business card to have for most professionals in the near future.

I must admit that blogs will have a major supplemental value for resumes. Blogs dictates transparency in knowledge, skills, and experience. It shows a continuing profession of any individual.

Posted by Blogger for Resume Builder on April 28th, 2009 at 2:41 am

[...] SEO/Google/Search Engines: Yes, search engines will most likely be picking up the URLs. Why not? Since it already picks up Flickr, Linkedin, Twitter, and Friendfeed. If you’re on these services, see for yourself, and search your name as Jeremiah suggested in his post If the blog is the new resume, is “Google Me” the new Business Card? [...]

Posted by Facebook Usernames: What’s Going To Happen? SEO will… « eBizz by Chris Salazar on June 9th, 2009 at 4:31 pm

[...] Google search, which has even further-reaching possibilities. As so eloquently put by Jeremiah from web-strategist.com: “If the Blog is the new résumé, then is “Google Me” the business card?”. [...]

Posted by Upstream Connections – SEO » Facebook offering vanity usernames from 13th June on June 11th, 2009 at 7:06 am

Blogging has certainly “taken over” many aspects of networking, communication and overall job searching tactics and abilities. Does anyone share my, shall I say old-school, way of thinking that using a physical business card (still) feels right? I find myself carrying cards with me everywhere, certainly calling attention to my online resume as the trend seems to be moving towards. However, and I hope you don’t mind me posting this link here, but I found a site a few weeks ago that filled a need I was looking for for a few years. I was able to take the important info from my resume and create a physical card, done online of course. I purchased cards and so far, so good. http://www.thumbnailresume.com/

Let’s also remember that if you’re searching for a job, keep your blog clean. Too many people have been passed over for a position because what their so-called personal blog said about them. Not saying it’s fair, but it happens.

-Andrew