Background

Google is the dominant search engine, with about 70% of all search traffic. At the end of last year, the Pew Internet Research Team found that 47% of people search for information about themselves online (Self-Googling), which was more than double 5 years ago. I have written about the importance of Google before, when I mentioned that you have to be #1 in natural search because mobile devices only list the first one, unless you scroll down. I’ve also spoken about the importance of securing your brand on Google by purchasing your domain name and the difference between natural and paid search. Finally, I noted that Google is a background checker.

People are Googling you as we speak and you better make sure you have some internet presence if you want to exist. Employers will be searching for you or people like you. “Given that everyone from potential employers to potential mates is likely to be Googling you, you should have a good idea of what they will find,” said Alexander Halavais, a Professor at University of Buffalo. The Wall Street Journal even wrote a story called “You’re a Nobody Unless Your Name Google’s Well.” The article can be summed up as “Before Abigail Garvey got married in 2000, anyone could easily Google her. Then she swapped her maiden name for her husband’s last name, Wilson, and dropped out of sight.”

Try Self-Googling Right Now

If you Google “Dan” you get 683,000,000 results, whereas if you Google “Schawbel” you get 89,000 results and “Dan Schawbel” gets you 28,700 results total. I’m not sure about “Dan” but “Daniel” (my legal name) is the 7th most popular baby name this year. There are even Baby Naming businesses that select distinct names for children and families are purchasing the children’s domain name as presents. Also, my uncle purchased “Schawbel.com” and has an internet presence, so if you Google “Schawbel” it will be 98% me and 2% him (and my aunt laughs about it). Why do you get the results you do?

What Does the Dictionary Say?

Self Googling: The act of using the Google search engine to look yourself up. Extreme cases of self-googling have resulted in googlitis.

“I was dying to know how many different ways people could find me on the Internet, so I did a little self-googling in order to count. Sadly, I’m not nearly as popular as the other person out there with my exact name.”

Seth Godin’s Words of Wisdom

“Google yourself. If you’re a salesperson, your prospects already do. If you’re looking for a job, your prospective employers already do. If you’ve got a job, your co-workers already do.” - Seth

Willaim Arruda’s Classification

William is one of my friends and a fellow personal branding guru, more focused on executives and companies. This is part of his entry on a MarketingProfs article he wrote, based on how he categorizes your Google presence. If you want to calculate your online identity, go to his website. I’m sure he’s monitoring his Google presence, so he should be reading this as we speak.

• Digitally Disguised: There is absolutely nothing about you on the Web. Your Google search yielded no results. This is easy to remedy, but you’d better get started right away.
• Digitally Dissed: When you fall into this category, there is little on the Web about you, and what is there is either negative or inconsistent with what you want to be known for. Although not where you want to be, it is easy to improve your on-line profile.
• Digitally Disastrous: This is the most challenging situation because there is lots of information about you on the Web, but it has little relevance to what you want to express about yourself.
• Digitally Dabbling: There is already some on-brand information on the Web about you. Although the volume of results is not high, the material that is there is relevant and consistent with your personal brand.
• Digitally Distinct: This is nirvana in the world of on-line identity. There are lots of results about you and most, if not all, reinforce your unique promise of value –- your personal brand.