University students: own the first page of Google

If I were 22, I would take steps to own the first page of Google.

The Google search is a second point of contact, coming after something like a resume makes it to the top of a pile.

To win Google takes time, not tricks.

When students come to Colgate University, I tell them to use Facebook 95% of the time, and use LinkedIn 5% (get a profile.)

By senior year, flip the percentages. Facebook can cost someone a job, LinkedIn can get someone a job.

So, if I were 22, I would own the results for a Google search for me.

On my resume, which is still important, I would tell people how to search for me. For example, somewhere in my cover letter (or QR Code to my cover video) I would say Google "Goals of Matt Hames" and drive those people to a video called "Goals of Matt Hames," or post about what I want to accomplish at that company.

I would also write about the things that interest me – for example, I would edit Wikipedia articles, start a Tumblr, apply for one of these LinkedIn blogs.

If I were 22, I would think about what I wanted to do, then write about it. I would read blog posts about the topic I care about, and post comments on those posts. For example, if someone wanted to be a marketer, I would post comments on marketing blogs.

I'm not 22, but I'm still doing it.

At this point in my life, I write about the intersection of higher ed and digital media. I edit Wikipedia articles on Marketing and Higher Education. I comment on marketing blogs. I write posts on LinkedIn. Sometime around the moment President Obama did a Tumblr Q and A on student debt, these things began intersecting in a meaningful way.

The intersection of a Google result for a name and getting hired isn't new. It has just become absolutely critical for young people. And perhaps all people.