LIBR 246-04/13 Web 2.0 (Fall 2010)

What really made me understand what personal branding actually means is the statement that Google is an online reputation-management system, not just a search engine. Reputations are now built online, whether it is my own reputation as a person or future librarian, and also those of libraries. I had realized this intuitively, since I practically grew up alongside with the Internet. Afterall, I googled my own name out of curiousity and learned there was a LOT of people named "Helen Bui" living in the United States. I figured I'm not the only one who searched his or her name on Google.

Personal branding…not something I have thought a lot about until now.  I have been marginally aware of my online identity, if only to control what little personal information is put out to the masses.  As someone who may soon be looking for a professional position in a library, however, it makes sense to have a positive and professional presence online.  I appreciated the steps that Berlin (2009) lists in protecting one’s online reputation.  What I thought was most impressive in this article was the proactive approach of self-generating positive search results to edge out any negative ones

As someone with an extremely common last name, managing my reputation online hasn't been a major concern of mine since it would take a lot of work and luck to actually find me on Google based on my name alone.  In fact, there are so many Caroline Davises that I once created a Facebook group dedicated to others that share my name (18 members right now, but I think I initially sent invites to over 80 women named Caroline Davis).  With such a common name, I haven't worried very much about potential employers or others finding negative content about me online because it would be difficult to de

Am I still nervous about establishing an online presence? Oh yes. Do I feel a little bit better after this week’s lecture and readings? Oh yes. Am I ready to establish my own online brand? Oh yes.

In developing rules for library staff around the use of social media, I’d first want to review the library’s existing policies around conduct, code of ethics, and communications, which hopefully exist. The social media rules should address posting on social sites both on behalf of the library and for personal use.

For several years I have been conscious of the need to create a positive online personal brand for myself, and I continue to slowly work at implementing the steps of this online transformation.  Not only must I continue to find and delete anything undesirable that I may have posted on the Web in the past, but I must also work at proactively marketing myself to the online world. 

The steps I have taken thus far:

An organization must respond quickly when it discovers negative things being written about them online.  It's true that if you ignore it, the comment might fade away.  Maybe no one will be interested.  Maybe you have enough good will out there to cancel it out.  But it will still be read.  If the company does not respond, then anyone who reads the attack will only get to hear one side of the story.  If the attack is compelling enough, users may link to it, re-tweet it, or otherwise share it with the world.

When I first thought about personal branding at the start of this week, I thought it was something that I hadn’t really given too much thought to. But then I got to thinking about it, and I realize that I have been considering my personal brand for quite some time now without labeling it as such. I will be graduating this coming May, so job seeking has been on my mind for a while. Given the state of the job market, of course I want to put my best face forward both online and offline.

I’m not so sure libraries have been successful at building a strong online presence. Library websites tend to be non-existent or poorly maintained or designed, and there are few advertisements on social networking sites for events or services.