When it comes to social media, perception is reality. It’s a “what you see is what you get” kind of environment, so you want to make sure that you’re always representing yourself in the best possible light. Think of your time online as building your personal resume – a resume of information that gives people insight to who you are, at a glance. Sometimes a glance is all it takes for someone to form a first impression. What impression do you think people are walking away with when they check out your profiles?

Who’s The Boss

Whether we like it or not, potential employers are checking us out online. In December 2009, research commissioned by Microsoft found that 79% of U.S. hiring managers and job recruiters reviewed online information about potential job candidates. Additionally, they found that 70% of U.S. hiring managers had rejected candidates based on what they found online about that person.

You’ve known this was important and you’re probably pretty careful across most of your social networks to customize your privacy settings. But come on, with the speed at which social networks like Facebook and Twitter update in real-time you’ve probably thought at least once that it can’t be that big a deal if you let a rogue tweet or status update fly right? Maybe it wasn’t before but you might want to think again, now that the FTC has given a company called Social Intelligence the o.k. to run background checks of your Internet and social media history. Social Intelligence can go as far back as seven years into your Internet history. Were you as Internet savvy 7 years ago as you are today?

Speaking of Privacy Settings

Your privacy settings should be customized based on how and why you use each social network. If you’re interested in sharing photos with family members on Flickr, then you’ll want to make sure your settings match that criteria. If you’re interested in becoming an authority on glass etching then perhaps it would be best to keep your Twitter and Facebook accounts open and searchable – or even consider creating a Facebook page rather than using your personal profile.

Google+ is a great example of a social network with customizable sections. If you weren’t already aware, you customize your privacy comfort levels for almost every section of Google+. There are some exceptions but for the most part, it’s pretty flexible.

Say What?

Recruiters and job seekers aside, it is still important to be aware of what you are sharing across your social networks and how it may be perceived. Sarcasm doesn’t always translate well in text and can easily be misconstrued. Plus, in the text based world of social networks, tone can be hard to interpret so a good rule of thumb is to proofread before you hit send or share. If there’s anything that could potentially be misunderstood, it’s safe to assume it will be! Err on the side of caution and keep your updates as conservative as possible – all of this is, of course, assuming your brand doesn’t call for otherwise.

Meetups, tweetups and all sorts of assorted social media gatherings are becoming increasingly popular. You can bet that the people you’re meeting at these events are going to take the time to check you out across social networks if they’re interested in remaining in touch with you. Though it isn’t fair, once they’ve pulled up your social profiles you may be judged based on the groups you belong to, the comments you’ve made, the jokes you’ve shared and the photos you’ve chosen to display. Assumptions may even be made about your username and or avatar. With that in mind, does the online representation of you match the offline version you share?

Google This

Chances are, sooner or later, you’re going to be Googled. The good news is, the majority of people do not click past page 3 of a Google search result. The bad news is, the majority of people don’t click past page 3 of a Google search result. That means you’re going to want to treat your user-names and name like your brand and be vigilant in monitoring them. Sign up for Google alerts and receive email updates when your name appears on the Internet.

You might even want to sign up for Internet Shame Insurance, a very simple Google Chrome extension that adds privacy reminders to Facebook, Twitter, and Gmail to help you avoid the most common online communication faux pas.

Shape Up

When it comes right down to it, people (for the most part) believe what they see and that perception becomes their reality. It may not be fair to be judged on such limited information but it certainly does happen. However, you have the ability to shape that perception by controlling what you share, how you share it and removing what you can that doesn’t represent you well.

Now it’s your turn! What do you think? Do you agree that we’re often judged based on what people see on our social profiles? Or do you have a different point of view? Do you keep your information locked down or share without much care or concern? Let us know in the comments below.

Did you hear about Microsoft’s Xbox Elite Tweet Fleet? You can today.

Join Radian6 Community Director Amber Naslund with Marketing & Community VP David Alston in a Twebinar Today at 2 P.M. EST to meet the people behind the Xbox Elite Tweet Fleet team.

Tune in to Today’s Twebinar at:

• http://twebinars.radian6.com/ or
• http://www.blogtalkradio.com/theengagedbrand

The Elite Tweet Fleet makes customer support “social” using Twitter @Xboxsupport. What’s the benefit to Xbox players? Tune-in, Find out and Join the Conversation Today.

To tweet your comments and questions, use #Radian6 and include a “?”.

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Next Thursday’s Tune-in is all about YOU: Getting Organized and Managing Your Social Media Presence in 2010.

Amber will reveal 9 Guiding Principles to help Make Time Work for You.

Join Amber’s Free Webinar & Learn to:

• manage disruptions
• control information overload
• leverage tools
• use time saving templates
• wrangle task management
• & more!

That’s next Thursday, January 14th 2 p.m. EST

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Tune-in the 3rd Thursday in January. It’s all about Protecting and Empowering Your Organization by Creating Social Media Engagement Guidelines.

Learn the “Anatomy of Engagement” – in this Free Community Webinar presented by Radian6 Community Manager Lauren Vargas with Amber Naslund.

Space is Limited. So don’t miss out!

Thursday, January 21st at 2 p.m. EST

Get Engaged! We’re Listening. Tune-in Thursdays with Radian6.

What would Microsoft say? Could Twitter become the social model for customer service delivery?

Hear Microsoft’s answer in a Radian6 Twebinar Thursday January 7^th at 2pm EST

How many uses does Twitter have?

With 40 million using 140 characters to communicate, Twitter’s ‘reason for being’ continues to evolve. Twitter’s simple question “What are you doing” helped a U.S. President become elected; helped free American James Buck from an Egyptian jail after issuing his one-word tweet “arrested” – which subsequently inspired a book called Twitterville; helped Dell sell $6.5M in computers – and with Comcast, Ford and now Microsoft as examples, it’s also becoming part of an emerging model for customer service.

What does ‘Social Customer Service Engagement’ look like?

Meet Microsoft’s Elite Tweet Fleet. It’s a new team that tackles customer service issues the social way. The Fleet listens and scours the Twittersphere for customers having problems with their Xbox 360 and asks how they can help. Customers can also contact the Fleet directly on Twitter @Xboxsupport. It’s the brainchild of McKenzie Eakin who created a pilot project to see if communicating socially could help educate and enable customers to help each other. And it worked – so well – that the pilot is now part of the business, working closely with the customer service crew.

Meet the Elite Tweet Fleet in our first Radian6 2010 Twebinar

The Elite Tweet Fleet has been up and running in time for the Christmas rush. Sales for Xbox 360 consoles were close to $1M last month alone and with all the latest Xbox games found under this year’s tree, Xbox consoles are no doubt getting a workout. So our Twebinar next week with Microsoft’s McKenzie Eakin and one of her Elite Tweet Fleet members, Jerry Kansky, will be topical. It will be our first Twebinar in 2010 so collect your questions and join the conversation Thursday January 7^th at 2 p.m. EST.

So… what is a Twebinar?

A Twebinar is a mashup between a live podcast/audio broadcast and Twitter as the backchannel for discussion.

How Can I Participate?

Join us by logging in with your Twitter account on Thursday, Jan 7th (no preregistration is required) or listen to the audio on our Engaged Brand BlogTalkRadio channel.

Since we’ll be using Twitter, just tweet us your questions with a #radian6 hashtag, include a “?” and we’ll be sure to see them. We’ve built the Twebinar interface so you can see all the tweets and discussion at a glance, listen to the broadcast, and submit your questions as we chat.

Twebinar Tips:

• Once the Twebinar has started, log in and you should hear music or the live broadcast. If you don’t hear the audio right away, please refresh your browser.
• If you login before the Twebinar starts, refresh your browser once the Twebinar begins and the BlogTalkRadio (BTR) interface will show up and start playing.
• To ask a question, type it in to Twitter using the #radian6 hashtag and end it with a “?”. We’ll see it.
• Your hosts for this episode will be @ambercadabra and @davidalston. Feel free to send them advance questions on Twitter if you like. We’ll also have @vargasl on hand to help gather and answer your questions during the broadcast.
• If you’d prefer to listen to the audio without the Twebinar interface, you can do so at our BlogTalkRadio channel.
• The full broadcast of the event will be posted on our blog shortly after the event is over, or you can always listen to the archive on BTR.
• Any other questions, leave them here in the comments or ask us on Twitter and we’ll do our best.

We’re so excited to announce that Microsoft has selected Radian6 as a social media monitoring tool supporting their Central Marketing Group. As a brand that is mentioned in 6% of all online postings per month, Microsoft has been paying close attention to user generated content for several years. Particularly to listening to and understanding buzz around their company and their products as well as engaging with customers for support, events, and product launches.

And at Radian6, we’re poised to help take them to the next level, delivering some broader and deeper listening capabilities to their core marketing and product teams.

Why Social Media?

Aaron Lilly, a Sr. Marcom Architect at Microsoft, explained that Microsoft sees immense value in the social space, because it helps the company connect more deeply with customers, prospects and enthusiasts on their terms and wherever they are online. This improved connection allows Microsoft to share the news and information on the company or products that their customers are asking for, where they are asking for it.

“Radian6 helps us discover where important conversations are happening online, so we can be part of them,” Lilly explains. “There’s a huge value in being able to have a rich, real-time dialog with customers across our diverse businesses.”

Lilly says Microsoft’s involvement in social media is both proactive and reactive. They’re proactively contributing to the dialogue about Microsoft by sharing information and providing access to the company through social channels like Facebook and Twitter. But they can also be responsive to the issues and conversations that happen around and about the company and their products, often helping to clarify a misunderstanding or offer quick and valid direction from the source.

Whether it be questions around the Bing search engine, or chatter about how Office is impacting the way people work, those discussions give Microsoft lots of opportunity to better understand how their community views their brand, products, and business, and lets them use those insights to inform future strategy.

Why Radian6?

Given the breadth and diversity of Microsoft’s businesses, and the volume of online conversations, the central marketing team needed a tool that could work alongside their existing tools and processes and that could not only handle the volume of buzz but also make sense of it all in a business context. As Microsoft builds out internal capabilities in social media through tools like Looking Glass, Radian6 provides global scale and depth capabilities today and integration opportunities for the future.

“For brands like Bing, Office or Zune, we have large inter-connected marketing and product teams,” says Lilly. “It’s really important that we’re all looking at the social conversations through the same lens. Radian6 provides both breadth of coverage and the depth to analyze and respond.”

We at Radian6 are excited about the possibilities working with the teams at Microsoft, and helping them make the most out of their social media strategies. Thanks to the Microsoft crew for bringing us on, and stay tuned as we share more about our work together in the future.