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The phrase “cyber twin” seems kind of silly, doesn’t it? It may sound silly, but it’s pretty serious business.

When you enter your name in Google or any other search engine, what pops up? Are the first few results you? Or is it someone else who happens to have your same name?

I know…you’re probably wondering, “Who else could possibly have my same first and last name?” Trust me, the world is huge, and I can promise you share your name with at least one other person.

This is where it can turn ugly. Let’s say this person doesn’t really keep up with their online presence—they have inappropriate pictures everywhere, they don’t have any kind of important information posted…it’s bad. Worse yet, potential employers and recruiters don’t know this person isn’t really you.

Don’t let cyber twin confusion hurt your chances of finding a job or even of connecting with the right people. Here are a few ways to protect your name and avoid confusion:

Google It

Take control of your online brand by claiming your name on social networking sites and in Google profiles. With your profile, you can manage the information-such as your bio, contact details, and links to your networks or blogs-that people see. It will monitor your search results and make sure they match your name and the brand you already have.

Maintain & Maintain

Since there could be many people with the same name as you, you need to make sure your online brand is crystal clear. Why? If you wait too long and fix your profile names or account information after a mistake, it may be too late. Employers don’t know what you look like and are likely to believe the first thing they see and read. Use the same account name for every network you use and link them all together. Be sure to be active and check your networks daily. And don’t forget to think before you post.

Share the Truth

Sadly, and always unnecessarily, these are the times your identity can be compromised and hurt your job search. Inappropriate content on accounts with the same name as yours may be the reason you don’t get a call back or even get considered for an interview by a prospective employer. You may want to contact your cyber twin and advise them to take some things down from their networks (for your sake and theirs), but that may never happen. If this is the case, make sure you let people know you’re aware and that it’s not you.

How do you deal with a cyber twin?

Here’s the thing: Social media is now part of our everyday lives. If social media is all or part of your professional role, your online presence is going to be intermingled.

But never fear. Balance is possible-a little imperfect, but possible. You’ll have to make choices and judgment calls about what to say and how to say it, and sometimes, that might mean biting your tongue.

Here are a few guidelines for keeping your personal and professional presence online in perfect harmony:

Remember Who You Represent

If you work or intern in social media, you’ll figure out where your clients and customers are and where they’re reaching out to you. Sometimes, you can use a single profile to communicate with them — if you’re willing to keep the filter on. But watch out — that might mean keeping the controversial political or religious conversations to yourself, or exercising good diplomacy. It’s a choice. You’ll also have to decide where and when you’ll keep the doors open for people to follow or friend you on a professional and/or personal basis.

It’s Okay to Not Talk About Work

It’s OK to not be a work robot 24/7. In fact, sometimes it’s even better not to talk about work. The people who interact with you professionally often appreciate seeing the “human” side of you. You want your customers and clients to feel welcome when they talk with you. Share pictures of your pets or friends if you’d like. Talk about music you listen to or other hobbies. A good mix of personal and work-related stuff can help you feel more approachable and friendly. People will be likelier to reach out to you. That helps build trust, which is definitely what you want.

Welcome Everyone & Be Approachable

In a professional job or setting, you’re often on the front lines — the face of the company or even your own personal brand. If you’re not in social media as a profession but it’s part of your job, you’ll still need to be present, available, friendly, and findable. You want people to come to you every bit as much as you’d want them to feel free to approach you.

What challenges do you have balancing personal and professional when you engage online?

A job through Twitter? You heard correct. It’s happening all the time! Twitter has become quite a useful little tool in the job search toolbox. Of course, you have to use it the way it was intended. Don’t think that tweeting “Hire Me” is going to have you in an office next week. In other words, just as you would offline, you need to be proactive and earn respect. Job hunting, whether on Twitter or offline, is just like dating — it takes time to build a relationship.

Like everything else in the job hunt, you need to have a good strategy. Using Twitter to your advantage will make it easier for people to find you and for you position yourself.

Set Your Tone & Stick to It

If you’re using Twitter to job hunt, you need to create your own specific message that makes you stand out. Know what you want to talk about and what you don’t. People will follow your tweets and click through to your website if they like what you stand for — remember to have a profile that reflects you and that has a link to either your site or a LinkedIn profile. You need to stay on point and be appropriate. You can still make it personal — you do have a personality — just keep in mind who’s going to read your tweets. People don’t need to know when you just painted your toenails.

Identify Your Targets & Aim

Now that you know who you are and what you want to say, find the people you hope to meet, network with, and ultimately work for. Identify your professional targets and start following them. Be very specific. Just as you would within any search engine, search within Twitter by company name, find contacts within those companies, and then start following all of them. Check out the related companies Twitter references and follow those, too. In addition to employees, try to identify the recruiters within your desired industry.

Use What Twitter Gave You

There are many job seeker tools out there that are making finding a job super easy. A tool that spawned out of Twitter for job seekers and recruiters is #Tweetmyjobs. This is a very simple (and free) tool for job seekers. You can subscribe to desired job channels and even have new openings automatically sent to your cell phone. Even better? You can specify which cities you want notifications from.

How do you use Twitter in your job search?