Managing Your Online Image Across Social Networks

Today, we are launching a new version of Reppler, which adds support for Twitter and LinkedIn, among other things.  But before we get into the details of the new version, let us explain the big picture problem we are addressing.

We recently conducted a survey of 300 professionals who are involved in the hiring process at their company to understand the use of social networks for screening job applicants.  The results of this survey are shown in this infographic:

So what do these results really tell us?  From our perspective, there are three key takeaways:

1. Whether you like it or not, hirers are using social networks to screen job applicants.  This means it is important to carefully manage your image on these types of sites.
2. Facebook and Twitter are being used a lot to screen job applicants.  On Facebook and Twitter, we believe hirers are trying to get a more personal view of a candidate, rather than the resume-like view they will see on LinkedIn.
3. Hirers are looking at the social networking profiles of candidates very early in the process.  This means that job seekers need to have their online act in order before they begin looking for a job.

The bottom line is that it is important for users, whether they are looking for a job or building up their professional reputation, to manage their online image across the different social networks they use.  And this is the big picture problem we are addressing with the new version of Reppler.

The features in the new version of Reppler include:

• Support for Twitter and LinkedIn – Reppler now supports Twitter and LinkedIn, in addition to the support for Facebook it currently has.
• Cross-Network Analysis – In addition to monitoring each of these services to provide you feedback on the tone of language used, inappropriate content found, and other potential issues and risks identified, Reppler provides cross-network analysis in a couple areas.  It looks at all of your connections across the social networks you use to inform you on the makeup of your connections.  For example, Reppler will show you how many of your professional connections on LinkedIn are also friends of yours on Facebook.  Reppler also provides a comparison matrix of your profile information on each social network so you can see if there are any inconsistencies in how you are presenting yourself.
• The Reppler Image Score – Reppler calculates what we call the Reppler Image Score, a measure that takes into account a variety of elements that can affect your online image – the completeness of information in your profiles, the consistency of your information across different social networks, the tone of your content, the appropriateness of your content, the number of people you are connected to, etc.
• Weekly Updates – Reppler automatically sends you a weekly email that summarizes activity across your social networks that could affect your online image.  This keeps you abreast of any issues and gives you the opportunity to take action before it is too late.

That’s a quick overview of the new version of Reppler.  Now you can effectively manage your online image across the different social networks you use.  Reppler is a free service and you can sign up by going to www.reppler.com.  If you have any feedback or questions, go to our Facebook Page and leave us a message on our Wall.