How can a blog be used to professionally present yourself in a job interview?

In 2007, Sarah E Needleman authored an article for the Wall Street Journal (Eastern Edition) discussing the importance of creating and maintaining a blog. In her article she states,

Ryan Loken, a Wal-Mart Stores Inc. recruitment manager, says he spends one to two hours a week searching through blogs for new talent or additional information about the candidates he has interviewed. "Blogs are a tool in the tool kit," he says. Since he joined the Bentonville, Ark., retail giant three years ago, Mr. Logen estimates that Web journals have helped him fill 125 corporate jobs. Most of the recruits were referred to him by bloggers and blog contributors, and some were the writers themselves.

In a recent interview, Alex Halavais, assistant professor of communications and graduate director of informatics, at the State University of New York-Buffalo, discussed how blogging serves as a focal point in creating a personal brand. Halavis explained,

Having a blog is almost-like building a brand for yourself, so it's largely meant for that tacit process of having people scout you. If you have a medium readership of 1,000 or so people who read your blog daily, those are 1,000 more people who might think of you when a job opens up.

If the blog is maintained correctly, it will contain entries on various personal and professional subjects. These entries can show expertise in a field of study or show the well-rounded individual your close acquaintances know you to be. Blog entries are samples of your writing skills--a trait which always lands at the top of the list of  characteristics desired by companies.

Blogging may give potential hires the human-edge missing from the pages of a resume. A personal blog brings an individual to life outside of their qualifications and opens a door for potential employers to understand how a hire may work within a company.

Lastly, maintaining a person blog will help control an individual's online identity. Debbie Weil, author of "The Corporate Blogging Book", explains,

Everybody has an online identity whether they know it or not, and a blog is the single best way to control it. You're going to be Googled. No one hires anyone or buys anything these days without going online first and doing research.

Creating and maintaining a personal blog will help develop a person's online identity and personal brand. It will show potential employers expertise in a given field or how well-rounded an applicant is. It creates a portrait to compliment the paper resume, helping employers find the application that stands out in the pile of paperwork waiting to be processed. To be sure, blogging is an asset to any serious professional in these modern times.


For more information please visit:

Blogging Up 
How Blogging Can Help You Get a New Job
Memo to Students: Writing Skills Matter