Uncover your digital footprint, and learn how to wear the right digital 'shoes'

It might sound obvious, but when did you last check to see what others can see about you. Type your name into a search engine and see what information already exists about you... Also. it's worth repeating the search regularly because although you may not have added anything new, your friends and family might have.

How to capitalise on your digital footprint

A digital footprint isn't a bad thing:

• You can build a positive online presence that showcases your skills, experience and interests, and, with some online sites, you can control the information about you that is publicly available.               
• An online profile that includes your CV, for instance on a professional networking site such as LinkedIn, can expand your range of contacts.  
• Professional networking sites can give you access to potential employers, and don't forget that you can check their digital footprint too!

An increasing number of employment sectors in particular those related to writing, advertising, public relations and the media etc. now expect and actively encourage you to have a digital footprint. Many will now actively look for examples of your online creativity on blogs, profiles or videos and it's becoming increasingly common to be asked to link to a blog in order to demonstrate your writing skills as part of the selection process for many jobs.

You can enhance your digital footprint by making carefully judged contributions to blogs, news articles and discussions, or even by adding reviews to sites such as Amazon.

Keeping a positive online presence regularly updated can reduce the impact of any earlier content you may regret, because most internet searches rarely access more than the top few results.

You MUST be aware of your digital footprint

If you use social networking sites such as Facebook, or regularly post photos, videos, blogs and comments, make sure to manage your contributions carefully, since much of the information stored online becomes public by default. Unless you change your privacy settings, your social network page will come up on a web search.

Anyone who finds out enough about you could potentially impersonate you, so be careful about the personal information you make publicly available. Potential employers have also been known to reject applicants on the basis of information discovered online.