So you have spent time on your CV and it looks the business – job done? (Not quite) Your online social profile is something most recruiters and many potential employers will look at ahead of interview, although sometimes just prior to the offer stage.

As social networks have evolved, so too has social recruiting, and it is imperative that you ensure your online social portfolio is in line with your CV to give a consistent message about you.

LinkedIn is the obvious place to start as it is the closest to your professional life.  Double check with your CV for any contradictions, although it’s worth turning your activity feed off in the privacy & settings before you start making changes or all of your connections are alerted.  Your LinkedIn profile will often be regarded as holding the real truth, as it is put together without self-promotion for a specific position in mind.  LinkedIn should not be viewed as a threat however, in fact quite the opposite, as the facility to gather recommendations on here will often tell an employer a great deal more than they will get on a formal reference.

Social Media that is more heavily connected to your personal life such as, Twitter, Quora, Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, Google+ etc. is also often being investigated.  We have seen an example of an offer for a very senior post being withdrawn for information contained on an old MySpace account.  Whilst it is not possible to fundamentally change who you are, it is well worth doing the research on yourself to check there is nothing out there that paints you in anything other than the picture you are looking to portray of yourself.