Social Media + Job Hunting (1 of 3): Defending Your Online Reputation

Yesterday, I spoke at The Art Institute of Pittsburgh (my alma mater) about the ups and downs of managing your online reputation in this era of Internet job searches.

Also speaking with me was Norm Huelsman (Assistant Director of PR at AIP), who discussed the importance of converting online networking into offline relationships, and why you need to own your work (and your brand).



Tony Corasaniti (VP/Director of Career Services at AIP) spoke third in the lineup -- I'll get his video up soon.

(Note: there are very few visuals in these presentations, so you may be better served by listening to them.)

If you'd like me to speak about social media at your event, you can contact me on LinkedIn or Twitter.

Advertisers Keep Coming SO CLOSE...

... and yet they still haven't found a way to please me.

Or you.

Robert Scoble's post about Nexidia is right: hypercontextual ads in tandem with video content are a great step in the right direction... if you're already looking for THAT information.

For example, If I'm watching a clip about drywall, odds are, I'd love to see an ad for a Home Depot sale. That's the logic that powers TV ad sales, and that's the logic that can now be applied to the web world.

But what about LOST? How many ads for island getaways, Swiss army knives or travel insurance do you see served up by ABC?

So, by comparison, what about Ask a Ninja? Or Dutch West? Or STBD?

What I Want

Is there ever a time in your life when you don't need information about something?

Right now, off the top of your head, you can probably think of 5 things you need a hand with. Maybe you're planning a summer vacation. Maybe you need to buy an anniversary gift. Maybe your old college roommate just asked if you could somehow smuggle a case of Pennsylvania beer to his Houston wedding.

We, as humans, are forever searching for MORE information.

So, if I must watch an ad in order to see a video for free, can't I tell the ad server what I'm actually interested in learning about?

It's not good enough for Google to track my click habits and tell me what my profile is, because all that tells me is who I've BEEN; it doesn't tell me who I AM, who I'm GOING to be or -- most importantly -- who I WANT to be.

Google, please stop thinking you're smarter than me. Instead, all you have to do is ask me: "What do YOU want to learn about today?"

If I could actually obtain useful information THAT I REQUESTED every time I stopped to watch an episode of Tiki Bar TV -- and, hey, it might be about tax preparation, not alcohol or minidresses -- would I not be even more inclined to sit through commercials?