Blogs are the new resume

Never write anything you would not want a potential employer or client to read. Bloggers should consider the blog an extension of their CV. What you write is easily searchable by others and may be seen by an employer or client as a reflection of your personal character, professionalism and quality of work.

Post safely

Protect your privacy and the privacy of others. You should avoid posting personal e-mail addresses, phone numbers, home addresses and other such information that contribute to identity theft or adversely affect others personally or professionally. When in doubt, ask permission before sharing personal details, photos, or other compromising information.

Protect your job

If employed, familiarize yourself with your organization’s blogging policy. It is advisable to notify your immediate supervisor of your intent to blog and the circumstances.

Never disclose employers or company names

Use descriptive identifiers such as “a major defense contractor” or “a leading entertainment company” as an alternative to actual names.

Stay out of jail

As a general rule, never disclose any sensitive, proprietary, confidential, or financial information about your company or an employer, other than what is publicly available in SEC filings and corporate press releases. This includes revenues, profits, forecasts, and other financial information related to specific authors, brands, products, product lines, customers, operating units, etc.

Blog responsibly

Bloggers should not upload any content, images, files or links to any other web site or otherwise use the blog in a way that infringes on the intellectual property rights of any third party. For your protection, do not post any material that is copyrighted unless (a) you are the copyright owner, (b) you have written permission of the copyright owner to post the copyrighted material on your blog, or (c) you are sure that the use of any copyrighted material is permitted by the legal doctrine of “fair use.”

Link often

Linking to web sites from your blog or blog comments in support of your argument is an excellent idea! Be careful, though, to read the entire article or page you are linking to, in order to make sure that it is appropriate.

Be a part of the dialog

Read the work of others and add your comments to their posts. Read others’ posts carefully, though, before adding your comments, and, should you disagree, use constructive criticism and evidence to support your position. The power of blogs is in the community they create–participate in the community.

Attribute to others

If you use quotations or data/information from other sources, be sure to cite the source of the quote or data/information.

Share your work

If there are documents or supporting files that are relevant to your post or idea, share them with your readers. Once again, be careful not to share any private information.

Practice good writing

Because Graziadio Voice is a school related site, be sure to check your posts for proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

Pepperdine appreciates your contributions and we are pleased you have elected to represent the Graziadio School during your time as a student. If you have any questions or comments regarding your blogging experience, please do not hesitate to contact me at graziadiopr@pepperdine.edu.

Happy blogging!

F. Douglass Gore
Director of Public Relations
Graziadio School of Business and Management
Pepperdine University