How to Make Sure that You Look Digitally Unprofessional

Many job seekers today have taken the time to form their own websites. Writers often write a blog, corporate professionals make websites specifically for their resume. These things add a great professional appearance to your web presence. But it’s really easy to undermine all that hard work without even recognizing what you have done. Here’s a list of how companies may judge just how competent you are on the Internet regardless of that “Internet Guru” skill in your resume.

Misstep 1: You fail to purchase and build a website under your own domain name.

If you own a website, great! You’re well ahead of the dinosaurs. But if your website URL ends in .blogspot, .wordpress, .tumblr, etc. you may be hurting yourself more than helping. In the end, it may actually cause you to lose out on some great opportunities. With you own domain comes an automatic sign of respect. And in the end, the company may move right on down the list to someone who’s domain is far more professional.

Just because you have your site hosted on one of these popular platforms does not mean that you cannot enjoy the professionalism that comes with a domain. Most platforms nowadays have a re-direct option that will allow you to point all of your blog traffic to your own personal domain.

Misstep 2: You have an email address from an outdated provider.

Yes, everyone knows that you have had your AOL email address longer than you have had your firstborn child. But really, it’s time to let it go. It may seem like a little thing, but using these old email providers can easily count as points against you with employers. Remember how you need your own domain name? Well, many of these have free email account setup as a part of your hosting package. A simple me@mydomain.com can be the difference between your dream job and just another job to pay the bills.

Misstep 3: An ape could have created a better website design.

Not everyone has the fund to hire a professional designer for their website. That’s ok. However, it’s no excuse for having a poorly designed website. Many tutorials throughout the web are available regarding finding a good, free template and installing in to your site. There are many templates available that will give you a professional appearance without breaking the bank.

Caution yourself from falling behind the times as well. If you haven’t updated your website design in the past year, it’s probably out of date. Not to mention those people that haven’t changed the website look since the early 2000s. Looking like you’re from the technology stone-age is a sure fire way to miss out on a great job opportunity.