The document provides tips for managing your social media image as a young professional. It discusses how social media can negatively impact both personal and professional lives through several case studies where individuals lost their jobs due to inappropriate social media posts. The document advises setting strict privacy settings, monitoring what is said about you online, and being cautious about what you post regarding politics, religion, lifestyle choices and conflicts in order to avoid social media harming your career and relationships.

1. Managing your
Social Media Image
as a Young Professional

2. We live in an increasingly
connected world

3. According to a Cross-Tab Research
Study – “Online Reputation in a
Connected World” in April, 2010:

4. According to a 2010 ExecuNet, Inc.
Research study, “The Executive Job
Market Intelligence Report”

5. Things go viral, quickly
• The most viral video of
2013, According to
Mashable.

6. Including when
things go wrong

7. People are frequently
hurt personally AND
professionally by social
media.

8. Real World Horror Stories

9. Applebee’s Waitress Loses
Job over Receipt

10. An undercover cop with loose
lips
 An Atlanta police officer was terminated in
December 2012 after posting sensitive
information about his job on Facebook. Among
his alleged leaks: his current cooperation with
the FBI on a drug case; explicit times when he
would be working as a plain-clothes cop; and the
fact that he was frustrated at work. The officer’s
Facebook account was private, but that
didn’t stop the department from booting him.

11. Teacher Sets a Bad Example
• Ashley Payne, a teacher at
Apalachee High in Winder,
Ga., posted some off-color
language along with photos of
herself traveling, and drinking,
throughout Europe. That’s not
exactly the kind of example the
school principal thought she
should be setting, and asked
Payne to resign. Payne later
sued the school district; the
suit is pending. It’s important to note that she had her
privacy settings on HIGH and this was
still found.

12. Radio DJ Blogs About Work
 A woman I knew back in Madison, WI
worked as a DJ at a local radio station
 She complained about work on her
personal blog – which didn’t have her
name on it, but enough information
(overnight Madison DJ, etc.), that they
were able to identify her
 She was fired

13. Even Lawyers Get it Wrong
Last look, he was
no longer
mentioned on their
“staff” page.

14. Shea Allen

15. It’s not just Facebook
and Twitter anymore.
In fact, several of those
examples included
YouTube and blogging.

16. Instagram
He made it easy for
cops to find stolen
weapons and over
$250,000 in stolen
jewelry and other
goods.

17. What you post online can
and will be used against you
– and not just in a court of
law.

18. Pinterest
 Copyright issues: People copying
photos/content and pasting directly,
instead of providing direct pins to your
content
• Can hurt your website as Pinterest has more
links/traffic and you will look

19. Pinterest, cont’d
 There were also issues with the terms &
conditions
• Whatever you pin to Pinterest, you are
supposed to be able to show you have the
right to pin – Pinterest has no responsibility
• When you upload a photo to Pinterest, you
are granting it a "perpetual" "irrevocable"
"royalty-free" license to use your photos on its
site and "application or services."

20. Inappropriate Materials
 Just like with other examples, having
“inappropriate” materials pinned can get
you in trouble
• “Favorite bars”
• Quotes – vulgar
• Profanity

21. Risky behavior on Social
Media can lead to:
 Having trouble finding a job
 Losing your job
 Hurting your relationships
Even if you get a lot of online sympathy,
and even if your employer comes off
looking like a bad guy, this hasn’t been
good for you.

22. “Think before you tweet.
Don't be a boob on YouTube
(especially now that it is tied
to your Google+ identity).
Facebook can get you fired.”

23. Social Media may
be personal but it
is NOT private.

24. What I know about you

25. Red Sage researches
potential employees

26. You may want to believe that
once you are hired, your
employers are no longer
looking for you. But they are.

27. Opting Out doesn’t help

28. Ross
 From Dallas
 Likes Stone Temple Pilots
 House #7538
 Wife Rebecca

29. Meagan
 Another Meagan Terry in Decatur
• She’s a pre-school teacher

30. Think about who else can
view OR post things about
you:

31. WHAT CAN
YOU DO
???

32. Use caution when posting
about:
Politics and/or
Religion
Lifestyle
Choices That
May be
Perceived
Negatively
Online
Conflicts or
Negative
Attitude

33. Be cautious in your
connections
 I have a very strict policy about not
friending clients
• I will connect via LinkedIn, but not Facebook
 I didn’t friend a single co-worker until after
I left my previous three positions
• I finally friended people at Red Sage after I
had worked there two years

34. Protect your accounts from hacking
– strengthen your password
I saw Florence + the Machine in 2010!
becomes
IsF+tMi2010!
You can customize this by website account
– add FB to end for Facebook or AE to end
for American Express

35. Know your default privacy
settings.
Facebook’s default is public. So is
Instagram’s. Pinterest tracks
everyone by default – which isn’t the
same as privacy, but should be
checked.

36. Then Change Them
 Setting STRICT Privacy Settings is not a
fail-safe way to keep you out of the hot
seat as I have already shown, but it does
help
 Every time your phone or computer
software updates – check them again.
Some settings revert to default then.

37. Check your “Share” Settings,
too
 Sharing between social media accounts –
especially Instagram and Facebook – is
very popular right now. But just because
your photos are protected on Instagram
doesn’t mean they are on Facebook.

38. Monitor what is being
said about you
 Pay attention to family and friends posts
 Hootsuite or Tweetdeck can track mentions

39. Create a Google account
and sign up to receive
Google Alerts

40. Go direct to the source
 If you see something and you
know who posted it, remove tags
and ask the person directly to
remove the post!

41. Manage your
online identity
 Reserve your name on LinkedIn, Twitter,
Facebook, etc. even if you don’t end up
using these accounts
 Build your own professional resume
website (GoDaddy, Network Solutions,
SquareSpace)

42. Use a third party solution, if
you run into any trouble
 ReputationDefender.com
 And others…

43. Let’s Connect!
(256) 560-0098
Amanda Andrew
aandrew@redsageonline.com
Facebook.com/RedSage
Twitter.com/RedSageAL
Linkedin.com/pub/amanda-andrew/36/331/93/
www.redsageonline.com