GoogleAbility: building your personal brand online

To be successful today, you must have a clear and compelling online identity. People are Googling you and making decisions about you from what Google reveals. Whether you are an employee looking to advance in your company, a professional seeking your next marketing role, or a consultant looking to land your ideal client, you should plan on being Googled. And you should prepare for it.

Being Googled is the new version of the reference check. It provides your colleagues, employees, managers, clients, hiring managers and executive recruiters with critical information about you. Consider this:

- A Harris Interactive poll revealed that 85% of respondents Google people to learn about them.

- According to Business Week, 87% of headhunters use Google and social networks to make decisions about candidates and 75% of recruiters have eliminated candidates based on what Google revealed

- Accenture included the total number of relevant Google results as one of three measures they used to develop their list of the Top 50 Business Gurus.

Clearly, people are making decisions about you based on what they find online. Your Google results may be the determining factor in whether an executive recruiter calls you in for an interview, your manager decides to promote you or a prospective client chooses to work with you. It's no longer a luxury, it's a requirement for you to build and continuously manage your on-line identity.

Key topics:

You will learn about:
• Establishing Your GQ (Googleability Quotient)
• Calculating Your Digital ID
• Building Your Online Profile
• Cleaning up Your Digital Dirt
• Twitter and Facebook Netiquette
• The Roadmap to becoming a Global Thought Leader

Key Outcomes:

You will be able to:
• Perform a baseline Googleability assessment to determine your online identity;
• Register your Personal Domain Name;
• Create your online Personal Brand Profile and keep it up-to-date;
• Establish your own Blog and Personal Brand Website;
• Achieve the Volume of Googleability Results that are appropriate for your career level;
• Ensure that Your Googleability Results are portraying your desired Brand Image correctly;
• Put Your Online Communications Plan into Place;
• Identify relevant domains to post comments, offer advice and publish articles;
• Manage and grow Your GQ on a weekly basis;
• Establish Your Personal Brand Scorecard and optimize Your Personal Brand Image.

The author of the bestselling book "BrandOvation: How Germany won the World Cup of Nation Branding", and the sequel "The Hero's Journey: Building a Nation of World Champions", Dr Nik holds a PhD from the Free University of Berlin and a Postgraduate Diploma from The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore. Dr Nik headed the Net Promoter Scorecard research project on South Africa's Destination Branding Success Story during the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and is the co-author of the 2010 Brand Ambassador Program 'Welcome 2010' and co-founder of the FAN World Cup.

Date: 27 January 2012
Venue: Johannesburg
Cost: R1,750