There’s no question that a strong online presence can set you apart from others when applying for internships and jobs. You certainly don’t want it to be a detriment to your career. The maintenance that comes along with having multiple profiles can take a lot of time and effort, but it doesn’t have to take over your life. It’s completely possible to keep things simple. But where to start? There are so many platforms to try and profiles to update — it’s easy to get overwhelmed.

I totally feel you, so I’ve put together some simple things you can do to make quick improvements to your profiles in just a few minutes.

Twitter Tips

Add a Profile Photo
Make sure it’s a clear shot of you. It doesn’t have to be a glamour shot or your professional college photo, but make sure it isn’t you in a bathing suit, hard to see your face, or a group shot. That said, you can have more fun with your Twitter photo than LinkedIn, but it’s also good to have the same photo on all your profiles for consistency.

Add a Link in Your Bio
Link to whatever place on the web that tells your story the best. It could be your blog, LinkedIn, or portfolio site. If you don’t have any of those, link to the website for your school or work.

Make your Profile Public
Use your online presence to your advantage. If you’re tweeting privately, you’re missing out on a lot of features (for instance, people can’t retweet your tweets). You’re also making a potential employer wonder…what is this person tweeting about that they can’t say publicly?

LinkedIn Tips

Customize your URL
If you want to show off your LinkedIn you’ll need to display it in various places, including your printed resume. If you use your original link it will look something like linkedin.com/pub/john-doe/22/872/58a. Customize it to make it clean and easy to remember, like linkedin.com/in/johndoe.

Add Rich Media
LinkedIn has a lot to offer that a normal resume doesn’t, including rich media. Think of a project you’ve worked on that has photos, videos, graphics, blog posts, or presentations that share the process or results. Choose the best media and add it to your profile under your summary or experience.

Include Your Email Address
If you’re looking for opportunities you should make it as easy as possible for people to contact you. Include your email address in your contact information and within your summary.

Change your Headline (to something other than your current title)
Your headline is prime real estate — a place to tell your story. Don’t waste that space repeating your current headline, viewers will see that down below. Get creative!

Other Online Presence Quick Tips

See what your Facebook profile looks like to the public

Add links to your social media profiles on your personal website

Delete old profiles or websites or redirect them to what you currently update

Do you have any easy tips for online presence improvement? Share them in the comments!