"What you are seeking is also seeking you."
~ anonymous zen master
Have you checked your web presence lately? You have one you know. Or didn’t you know? If you have an account with any of the popular social media sites, or your name has ever appeared in an article, website or offline phone directory – you have an online presence. And since your name is already out there, sites are compiling information on you for others to view.
How do you check your online presence?
It’s a good practice to do a monthly check to assess your online presence. Sites are always indexing information so they are constantly adding new information.
Google Search
The quickest way to find out where you’re mentioned online is to do a Google search for your name. If you have a common name, say Karen Smith, then be sure to put your name in quote (“Karen Smith”) plus do searches on keywords that describe you. For example, “Karen Smith” + “Accountant” + “Los Angeles”. This will help narrow the search and find information on just you.
People Directories
You should also do a search on some of the popular people engines. These are sites that crawl the web gathering information on specific individuals.
PeekYou adds to your search capabilities by allowing you to search by usersame as well as given name. ZoomInfo allows you to claim your personal profile so you can update it yourself.
Phone Directories
To further investigate your online presence, search for yourself in online phone directories. Here are some of the most popular:
If you see information online that you find erroneous, sometimes you can have it fixed. All the directory sites have procedures for correcting listings. Usually you can find the information if you click on FAQs or Customer Support links on the site. If you see information in an article, blog or website that you feel is erroneous, you need to contact the author of the piece. They may or may not change it, but it’s always worth asking.
Are you ready to win?
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