John Smith

Inquisitive employers, friends and love interests increasingly express their curiosity by Googling others online. This practice has become so prevalent that it even factors in for parents naming their babies-to-be, according to Publishing 2.0 (via Wall Street Journal).

One set of parents decided on the name Kohler Wilson because it was uncommon when sought-for on the web. Then there's Ted Leonsis, who dominated search results after he started a blog and drew views to his site by celebrity name dropping.

But what happens if a person's name is common? Will a John Smith really take top position by launching a blog?

In many cases, strategic profile-building do the job just fine. Professional profiles on social networking sites like LinkedIn turns up high in search results. Services like Ziggs also specialize in helping individuals land better spots in search results - like buying search ads for subscribers - for a low monthly fee.