WTF is Personal SEO?

WTF is Personal SEO? April 2010 By Ben Cotton [email_address] www.twitter.com/bencotton www.socialwebthing.com www.linkedin.com/in/bencotton

Introduction
Studied BA (Hons) Public Relations at Leeds Met and graduated in 2008
Worked in the Leeds Met press office, Yorkshire CCC PR dept and PR research centre
Been at Edelman Digital since Feb 2010
Won blogging award in Feb 2010
www .social web thing. com

A quick vote www .social web thing. com

Personal Brand “ the creation of an asset that pertains to a particular person or individual; this includes but is not limited to the body, clothing, appearance and knowledge contained within, leading to an indelible impression that is uniquely distinguishable.” (Tom Peters, 1997) www .social web thing. com

Outdated? www .social web thing. com

Personal Brand vs. SEO
Personal brand is pre-google
1997 vs. 2010
People mention personal brand or digital footprint, they are often referring to something that is better described as personal SEO
People describe what happens when someone Google’s your name
Having good stuff come up is the essence of personal SEO

What is Personal SEO? www .social web thing. com

March 2006, Business Week
www .social web thing. com You are what you post

Why is it important? Stephen Waddington, MD Speed Communications, 2009: “ Inevitably employers are using Google as a personal reputation engine and scrutinising these types of sites to review an individual’s career history and work ahead of hiring an individual.” www .social web thing. com

Why is it important? Stuart Bruce, MD Wolfstar, 2010: “ As more and more people use Twitter, Facebook and blogs we know far more about people than we’ve ever done before. The first thing that I do when recruiting someone is check them out online. It’s a matter of few minutes to go back and read hundreds of their previous tweets and find out far more about the real them than any CV, reference or interview could ever reveal.” www .social web thing. com

Potentially a much larger audience
Show understanding of SEO
Show you ‘get’ digital
Enhance your reputation
www .social web thing. com Why?

www .social web thing. com Why?

Where to start? www .social web thing. com

Blogging
Voice your opinion
Improve writing
Google loves blogs
Familiarise yourself with industry issues

Blogging
Guest blog
Make use of a good title, tags and first sentence
Promote!
Networking opportunities

Real Work
Presentation decks
Examples of writing
Clippings and coverage
CV

Real Work
E-portfolio?! Show digital skills
Bridge the gap between academic and practical
Great for search
Impress employers

Networking
Social networks
Agree/disagree with people
Let them know about your blog
Let them know you are looking for a placement/job
Find out about industry issues

Networking
Great access to senior PR people
Find out what senior PR people are thinking!
Build up a reputation online

Write for other blogs/websites
Privacy settings
Make your work sharable
Make yourself contactable
www .social web thing. com Other considerations

Tag
Title
Promote
First Sentence
Description
Share
www .social web thing. com Practical tips!

Jed Hallam, Wolfstar
www .social web thing. com Success stories

Matthew Watson, Speed Communications
www .social web thing. com Success stories

Success Stories Dave Turnbull, Skywrite Communications: ‘ I believe that being able to produce something a little different, whilst also demonstrating proficiency with technology is something that appeals to employers.’ www .social web thing. com

Pitfalls
Client confidentiality
Personal privacy
Extremely public
Could look stupid and damage reputation

Conclusions
Look after your personal SEO
The Y Generation are increasingly expected to ‘get’ this stuff
You have a fantastic opportunity to allow employers to know lots of positive info about you - before they meet you

Q&A Any questions? www .social web thing. com

Thank you Contact details [email_address] www.twitter.com/bencotton www.socialwebthing.com www.linkedin.com/in/bencotton

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WTF is Personal SEO?

by Ben Cotton

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