4 Facebook Apps That Add Professionalism to Your Profile

Facebook doesn't have to be all fun and games. Check out these business-focused applications that give your friends--and potential future employers--a glimpse into your on-the-clock life.

By Kristin Burnham
Tue, April 13, 2010

CIO — Sure, trivial and time-guzzling Facebook Apps abound (Farmville, anyone?), but—believe it or not— other applications can add a hint of professionalism to your profile. You can include your LinkedIn profile, add your blog feed, include a Twitter tab and more.

Each of these applications requires that you allow it access to your profile. To edit each application's individual settings, choose "Application Settings" from the "Account" drop-down menu. From here, you can control who is able to see the application from your profile, if you want to bookmark it and whether you give the application permission to publish recent activity to your wall.

You may also choose to add the application to the tabs on your profile for easy access. Note that some applications may not support tabs, and some may automatically add the tab to your profile as part of the setup. To add an app to a tab, click the "+" tab on your profile page's navigation and select the application.

Here are my four picks for professionally-focused Facebook Apps.

[For more on Facebook, check out CIO.com's Facebook Bible.]

1. Extended Info.

Extended Info's example of additional fields.

This application won the 2007 Red Bull Flight Experience award for the most users since the Facebook Platform Launch in May, 2007. Instead of just having you fill out the usual fields such as activities, interests and favorite music, Extended Info lets you think up additional fields for your profile. Add a professional spin to your profile and include fields such as: currently reading, career goals or proudest workplace accomplishment. You can check out a list of the most popular field titles here.

2. My LinkedIn.

To add the My LinkedIn app to your profile, the site asks you to enter your LinkedIn Public Profile URL. You can find this by logging into your LinkedIn account, choosing "view profile" and looking for the URL next to "public profile." This application does not automatically add a tab to your profile, so follow the directions above to do so.

3. NetworkedBlogs.

NetworkedBlogs lets you do two things: You can search for and add favorite or new blogs to rollout RSS-style stories, or you can import your blog feed to your profile, which lets your blog appear in a Facebook search so others can follow it.

After you allow the application access to your profile, you'll be asked to select five or more blogs from a list to follow, if you'd like the application to act like an RSS feed. If you only want to feature your blog, just click "next" at the bottom to bypass this step. The next page will list blogs from your Facebook friends; choose to follow some, or click next to continue. The final screen will bring you to NetworkedBlogs' homepage where you can choose to register your own blog, which will require an additional step to verify it. Follow the steps listed above to add the blog to a tab on your profile.

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