There’s no doubt that the internet has opened up so many doors in so many different industries. As the title of this post might have already suggested, the jobs sector is one of these.
Put simply, the process of applying for a job has changed considerably. It’s gone from bits of paper, to a completely digital process (in most cases at least).
Not only that, but applicants have to be more vigilant than ever before when it comes to their background. In short, anything that they have done in the past tends to be visible for all to see and naturally – this can create a whole host of issues.
This is the reason it is so important to initiate a people search by checkpeople – to ensure that there is nothing out there which might harm your character. What do you mean, you might ask? Let’s take a look at some of the big stumbling blocks for job applications through the course of this article.
Your social media content matters
Let’s get the most obvious point out of the way first; the content you publish on social media can come back to haunt you if you are not careful. Those embarrassing videos, usually involving alcohol, might get a lot of likes and might be hilarious at the time. However, for some potential employers, it is a step too much – and it’s something that will discard you from the recruitment process immediately.
Not only should you be careful about what you do publish to social media, but perhaps consider locking it off from the general public anyway. Even if it is perfectly clean, there really is no reason for strangers to see your posts.
What happens when you Google your name?
Initiate a quick Google search for your name; what do you find?
There are a lot of cases of people sharing a very generic name, only to find that this prompts a whole host of results that they don’t want to be associated with. It’s here that you need to look to build out your profile online; and look to rank your name (as well as the city you are based in) in these search results. Some basic techniques can be used here, and the power of Facebook and other large platforms means that the results should be quite fast as well.
It’s again something that can guard against those very worst case scenarios if a potential employer does take a look on Google prior to making a hiring decision.
The official details
There can be occasions where you get rejection after rejection, yet don’t have a clue why this is the case. One big reason is your official records. A people search engine can bring up all sorts of official documents, ranging from arrest records to even your criminal background. You may have initially thought that these weren’t available to see for anyone, but if they are you might need to “rebrand” yourself, or at least get ready to explain what happened in the past.
