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Digital identity

Understanding how to effectively manage your digital identity is vital no matter what stage you’re at in your career journey, whether you’re applying for your first graduate job, building networks with other professionals in your field or are an established figure within your sector or industry.

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Managing your digital identity

Managing your digital identity

Digital identity management has been defined by Jisc as: 

‘The capacity to: develop and project a positive digital identity or identities and to manage digital reputation (personal or organisational) across a range of platforms; build and maintain digital profiles…review the impact of online activity and collate and curate personal materials across digital networks.’ (Jisc digital capabilities framework) 

It’s important that you carefully manage and maintain your digital identity to ensure a professional, up-to-date and positive online presence. Simple tips include: 

  •  Use the same photograph and style of name across your social media channels to help establish your personal brand 

  •  Regularly engage with Tweets, Facebook posts, online conversations, etc. 

  •  Remember that online content will be accessible to others for an indefinite period 

Watch the video below for more tips and advice

Video

  • Managing your digital identity (transcript)

    This video will provide you with tips for managing your digital identity and enhancing your employability by ensuring that you have a professional online profile.

    Your digital identity is all of the information about yourself that appears online and there may be more than you think. It is important to manage your digital identity and have a professional online presence to enhance your career opportunities.

    When engaging with people online it is crucial that you react appropriately to the media and the audience. For example, some people choose to have a personal Facebook account that they use to engage with their friends and a professional LinkedIn account for engaging with their colleagues and other professionals in their industry. 

    Be careful what you say online. Don’t ever say anything you wouldn’t say in public or publish photos, for example, that you wouldn’t be happy for everyone in the world to see! 

    Social media requires an ongoing commitment, so ensure that you are able to manage your social media presence and have the time to update your profiles and participate in discussions.

    There are ways of tidying up your online profiles.

    Hide or delete unwanted posts and pictures, flood google with impressive results, not many people look beyond the first 2 pages of Google search results so push down any less flattering material by having more current information and accounts that appeal to search engines such as Twitter and LinkedIn.  

    Have a managed PR ready profile on these accounts that google ranks highly. If you use Facebook, manage your friends list to control who can mention and tag you in their posts and pictures and regularly check your privacy settings.  And finally ensure that you delete any accounts that you no longer use.

    In terms of employability, social media has created opportunities both for employers as a tool to aid recruitment and prospective employees by providing an extra channel of communication. Take advantage of this user-centred platform to present the best possible version of yourself to enhance your employability.

    Consider how to promote yourself on social media – when writing profiles and biographies select keywords to describe yourself that will develop your personal brand.

    Look at person specifications for jobs in your chosen industry: what skills and attributes do they value? Include these words in your bios to ensure that you are discoverable and, to show that you are the right person for the job.

    So, don’t forget to tidy up your online profile, check your privacy settings, delete any unwanted content, and ensure you have a professional online profile to enhance your employability.

    Create your own personal brand using different social media platforms and, finally, take advantage of social media – apply your research skills to build your networks, showcase your abilities and find jobs

    For more help and information, email us at [email protected] or visit the Library website.

Social Media for employability and professional networking

Social Media for employability and professional networking

Social media and professional networking platforms such as Twitter and LinkedIn can be used to build a professional network, search for jobs, develop global connections and establish your own personal brand. More and more employers now check social media and professional networking sites for information on applicants, so ensure that you have a professional online profile that enhances your employability and attracts potential employers.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a professional networking site which allows you to connect with other professionals in your industry. You can showcase your work experience, skills and achievements and upload presentations. Think of it as your online CV. You can also recommend colleagues and endorse their skills and get recommendations and endorsements in return. You can use it to follow companies, participate in discussions and search for jobs. Many employers now check LinkedIn for potential candidates. 

LinkedIn Learning

You can also link your LinkedIn account to LinkedIn Learning. LinkedIn Learning (previously Lynda.com) is a website which provides access to over 5000 online courses in business, technology and creative skills taught by industry experts. It is available to all Manchester Met staff and fully enrolled students.

See the following Library FAQs: 

Twitter

Twitter provides an excellent opportunity for networking and job hunting. Get instant access to industry news and developments. Follow companies and search for jobs. Many companies will have a Twitter profile specifically for advertising  job vacancies. Share your own links and promote your website or blog and share examples of good practice with your followers.

Watch the video below for more tips and guidance for using Twitter for networking and job hunting.

  • Using Twitter for networking and job hunting (transcript)

    This video will provide you with some top tips for networking and job-hunting on Twitter.

    Twitter allows you to get instant access to industry news and developments by following professionals and organisations in your industry. You can tell your followers about what you do, share links and good practice, and follow companies and search for jobs.

    Make sure you have a photo and a bio on your Twitter profile. People are more likely to check out your profile and more likely to follow you if you’ve added these.

    Be selective in who you follow. If you’re using your Twitter account as a professional networking tool, then there’s not much point in following celebrities. You don’t need to follow everyone – after all, the quality and relevance of the accounts you follow is more important than the quantity of them.

    Companies will often use their Twitter accounts to update the public about what’s new with them, and sometimes even have separate accounts specifically for advertising job vacancies. If you start by following a company you’re interested in, you can then figure out whose radar within that company you need to be on. Following people at different levels means that you will be part of a network and your tweets will be seen by other members of that network. You should also follow industry recruitment specialists to see jobs as soon as they are advertised, and if there is an over-arching body or council for your sector or industry, follow them to boost your professional awareness.

    Don’t just follow, contribute too. If you don’t put stuff out there you’re giving people no incentive to follow you, and you won’t make any impact. If you can share some insight or point someone in the right direction, you can present yourself as an astute, helpful and perceptive individual, who is useful to follow.

    As well as making your own original contributions, you should also retweet where appropriate. This is an effective way to cultivate goodwill on Twitter. It adds validation to what someone else has said and helps that person reach a wider audience. If you are selective with your retweets, people will value them more highly and will also be more inclined to repay the favour, and retweet something of yours.

    Make sure your tweets are relevant and coherent. Not only will this demonstrate your knowledge of your chosen field, it’s also a great opportunity to showcase your communication skills and prove that you can think and write concisely. Plus, if you fill other people’s feeds with pointless content, it’s likely you’ll be unfollowed pretty quickly.

    They say a picture speaks 1000 words, and Twitter is no exception to this. Data gathered by Twitter shows that people are three times more likely to engage with tweets that include visual elements, so don’t be afraid to add a photo, video or even a relevant GIF to reinforce what you’re saying.

    Share links to your own work. If you have a website or blog, Twitter is one of the best tools to use to direct traffic there. This is where all the hard work of following the right people and cultivating followers yourself can pay off.  You can express yourself more fully in a blog and show more of your expertise and flair: so why not use your Twitter connections to promote it. This works in the same way with other types of online content that show you in a positive, employable light. 

    Maintain a balance between self-promotion and dialogue with others. If you think of Twitter as a telephone and not a megaphone, and make sure that you’re engaging in conversation with others as well as shouting about yourself and your achievements, you won’t go far wrong!

    For more help and information about using Twitter and managing your digital identity, please refer to the employability skills guide on the Library website.

Digital footprints

Digital footprints

Your digital footprint is the information left behind when you go online. There are two types of digital footprint:

Active 

Things that you are intentionally sharing/publishing/submitting online. This includes social media activity, emails and online chats, location tags, information submitted to online forms, message boards and forum posts.

Passive

This may include your IP address, browsing history, purchasing habits and online behaviour. This data can be used to build customer profiles and customise users’ online experience.

Remember that it isn’t just your actions that can impact your digital footprint. Anything that anyone else posts about you online can have an impact including photos and statuses your friends tag you in, and even reviews you leave on shopping websites such as Amazon and eBay.

Digital wellbeing

Digital wellbeing

Digital wellbeing can be considered in these four contexts: social, personal, learning and work, and has been defined by Jisc as:

 ‘The impact of technologies and digital services on people’s mental, physical and emotional health.’ (Jisc digital capabilities framework).

The prevalence of technology in our lives can be overwhelming and it is becoming increasingly difficult to ‘switch off’. Why not use social media timers to enhance your digital wellbeing? These are available for both Apple and Android phones/mobile devices and work simply by sending you notifications when you’re approaching, or have exceeded, your screen time limits. This video explains the principle behind them in more detail. A couple of timers that you could try are Offtime or Freedom.

You might also want to monitor your screen time by using the inbuilt features on your smartphone/mobile device. Find more information on using Screen Time on an iPhone/iPad and Google Digital Wellbeing.

Digital identity and wellbeing online courses

Digital identity and wellbeing online courses

FutureLearn is an online education provider of a diverse selection of high quality courses from leading universities and cultural institutions from around the world. Manchester Metropolitan has also recently partnered with FutureLearn.

Many courses are offered around the topic of digital identity and citizenship, covering areas related to evaluating information online, social media, filter bubbles, personalisation and much more.  Here’s a selection:

Learning online: managing your identity - reflect on how you want to present yourself online and take positive steps towards these goals.

Learning in the network age - What does it mean to learn in a networked world? Find out, and discover how to make use of your own personal learning network.

Digital wellbeing - do digital technologies affect our wellbeing? Explore the concepts of health, relationships and society in the digital age.

You can also find similar courses via a range of other online education providers including Coursera and LinkedIn Learning. Here are just a couple of examples:

Manage your digital footprint - focus on the different dimensions of a digital footprint, including developing an effective online presence, managing your privacy, creating opportunities for networking, balancing and managing professional and personal presences (eprofessionalism).

Learning computer security and internet safety - have the knowledge to prevent viruses, malware and other security breaches on both your computer, your home network and other people’s and protect your, and others’ privacy online.

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