This is such a new area for all of us. Our social media footprints are just beginning to take shape, and this is the time to think about online presence in a more focused way. In my second part to this article, I spend some time discussing the pitfalls of Facebook because I feel like it's one of the most perilous waters we tread in social media. For a lot of people, Facebook is their first foray into the space and they don't realize that all the Farmville and Mafia War activity could be seen negatively by recruiters. (Users who want to clean up their footprint need to turn off the auto updates!)

Sure, it's all innocent fun but if two candidates are vying for the same position, it's pretty clear that the one with a polished social media presence will have a great advantage over someone who's spending hour upon hour publicly playing games. You can't judge a person by their Facebook, but if that's all a recruiter or potential employer has to go by, that's what they're going to use to make their assumptions. And no one wants to hire a new employee that they're afraid will be harvesting virtual crops between meetings. Even if it's not true, the perception is there. And that's fatal to a job seeker.

I'm so appreciative that you're sharing this post! Hopefully more people will realize the importance of a professional social media footprint, its long-term impact… and how to improve it!

What I find most helpful here is the way you framed some important self-assessment questions: to think about how your footprint will look to the person/people hiring you since they are your audience–not your friends, and not even you yourself! The question, "Are your accomplishments easy to locate?" will help me design my online footprint so they are. These questions seemed simple and almost obvious, until I asked them of myself. I realized that no, I have not made things as easy and transparent as they might be. I think it’s also important to say that once you do an assessment of your profiles and make some changes, you should remember to Google yourself (and Bing! And Twitter-search, etc.) and see how your presence tracks online.

Thanks for the great reminders, tips, and pointers on creating your 'Social Media Resume/Footprint.' Since I read this post, I was inspired to help my boyfriend create a website that will help sell him to recruiters and companies in his industry as he changes cities and job hunts—so thanks for that! I will continue to share this post with many others–it's bound to become more useful and more important as time goes on.

And as you say, leveraging what you've learned to create something great for yourself is one of the most important (and gratifying) experiences a person can have. And definitely something that should be a part of everyone's career path.