Personal Websites: Do you need one?

This guest post is by Brent Swisher owner of The Web Counts, a company specializing in improving online reputation.  Follow The Web Counts on Facebook to answer your questions about online reputation and for a chance to win a free personal website for a year!

A personal website can provide a lot of advantages, especially for recent graduates, but before we go into whether one is right for you, let’s look at what they are exactly. A personal website is a site dedicated to telling someone’s personal or professional story. It can share biographical information, a resume, and show off past work. While it can be a blog, it doesn’t necessarily have to be one.  The only real requirement is for the site to be standalone; it must have its own domain and explain you as an individual.

Now that we know what a personal website is, why would you need one?  One of the biggest reasons is you are or will be searching for a job.  An incredible 79% of human resources mangers and recruiters research job applicants online. In fact, over 50% are required to do so during the interviewing process, and 34% say they have not hired candidates based on what they found online. (source)

Okay, so people look online for you when you are job hunting, but do you really need a website?  You might be thinking that between social networking sites like Facebook and LinkedIn, you don’t really need another site right? Well here are some questions to help you decide if you need a personal website.

What is online about me already?
Go to the top three search engines (Google, Bing, and Yahoo!) and search for your name.  You might be surprised at what shows up!  Use this as a starting point for your online reputation. If a potential employer would see this, what would they think? Even if there isn’t anything negative, do you have anything that stands out in a positive way?  A personal website can help control your reputation, show people who you are, and explain what would make you a great employee.

Do you have a popular name?
One of the problems with using a site like LinkedIn or Facebook is there are probably several people who share your name.  A personal website can help you stand out from the crowd. You can also link to your official social network accounts, and avoid issues with potential employers attributing other’s negative actions with you.

Does it matter to your industry?
Gone are the days when artists were the only ones who needed to show off their work to get hired.  Programming, graphic design, marketing, PR, and many more fields now expect to see some of your work. Putting your portfolio online can be easier to share and more effective than a traditional paper portfolio.

Am I now, or will I be in the next few years, looking for a new job?
If you aren’t looking for work, will you be in the next one to three years?  Get started now and then when you are looking for a job; all you will have to do is update your website with the latest information.

Once you have answered these questions, you should have a pretty good idea of whether a personal website is right for you.  Even if one isn’t necessary, you should consider keeping an eye on what is online by setting up Google alerts.