Don't let your social media keep you from getting that new job
HOUSTON -- If you're looking for a job, you're going to need to do a lot more than spruce up your resume.
As part of their screening process, potential employers will likely scour your social media accounts.
That is why Consumer Reports says there are a few things you can do to put your best cyber-foot forward.
We all know you have to bring the resume and references to a job interview. But even job seekers with perfect paperwork may lose out if they ignore their own social media footprints.
The wrong thing online can be a deal breaker for some employers.
"I look at the name and I go to Google," said Ashley Small with Medley Incorporated.
Her first step before hiring anyone at her Houston-based company is to look at the person's social media posts.
"I want to know who this person is because that says a lot about how they may represent the company," said Small.
And she's found plenty of red flags.
"I'm concerned when I see things that are related to night life, party pictures, you see beach pictures. There is a way to do beach pictures and a way not to do beach pictures," said Small.
Small says most young people are getting it right. Jeanette Torres learned the value of keeping social media clean in grad school.
"The very first thing they told us was 'change your email, clean up your Facebook because we have checked, and your future employers will check also,'" said Jeanette Torres.
Small says the 30 and over crowd are frequently forgetting to edit their social media pictures and posts because most older applicants do not think a job search will include any online detective work.
But a CareerBuilder survey this year found 70 percent of potential employers are screening social media and more than half did not hire someone because of what they saw.
"My best advice is to think about it then post, maybe think about it three times," said Small.
Small suggests a quarterly review of your online posts and deleting ones that are suggestive or deal with extreme political views.
Her advice when posting is to ask yourself if you'd want your grandma to see it.
