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1. Getting started

This section walks you through everything from opening the site for the first time to having a fully working, verified Ditto Up account.

In this section

1.1 What you can see without signing in

You do not need an account to browse most of Ditto Up. The following pages are open to the public:

Page URL What's there
Home / Landing page with quick links to search and browse.
About us /about-us What the platform is and who it serves.
All jobs /all_jobs Paginated list of every public job posting.
All candidates /all_candidates Paginated list of every candidate whose visibility is set to Public.
Search /search?q=<query> Keyword + location search across jobs, candidates and terms.
Job detail /job/<title>/<id> Full description of a single job posting.
Term detail /<term_type>/<term_name>/<term_ctid>/ Public marketplace page for a skill, license, certification or degree.
Public candidate profile /profile/<name>/<user_id> Visible only if the candidate has chosen Public visibility.
Business profile /business/<business_name>/<address_id> Public-facing employer profile.
Public VBQ video /v/<candidate_id>/<term_ref>/<attempt_id>/<yyyymmdd>/ Permanent shareable URL for a published video.
All VBQ videos for a candidate /VBQ/all/<candidate_id>/ Gallery of every published video for one candidate.
Terms of service /terms_of_service Legal terms.
Privacy policy /privacy_policy How your data is handled.
Automated recommendations consent /automated_recommendations_consent What automated recommendations do and how to opt out.

To apply for a job, send a message, upload a video or save anything, you need an account.

1.2 Creating an account

  1. Go to /register/.
  2. Fill in the registration form:
    • Email address — must be a real address you can receive mail at; it is used as your login.
    • Password — at least 8 characters; mix letters, numbers and a symbol.
    • First name and Last name.
    • Mobile number — used for SMS notifications and account recovery (optional in some flows).
    • Accept Terms of Service — required.
    • Accept Privacy Policy — required.
    • Accept Automated Recommendations Consent — required if you want personalised recommendations; you can change this later in settings.
  3. Click Register.
  4. You will be redirected to the Check your email page (/check-email/) telling you to look for the activation message.

If you arrive at the registration page through a business QR code or an invitation link, the URL will look like /register/<name>/<city>/<state>/<id>/ or /invite-register/<uid>/. The form is the same; the link just preserves the context (which business invited you, or which user invited you) so the system can connect you to them after signup.

Tip — already had an old bleblubla account? Ditto Up is the same platform, renamed. Your old credentials still work; you don't need to register again. If your old email was on bleblubla.com, the redirect to ditto-up.network is automatic.

1.3 Verifying your email

After registration the platform sends an activation email containing a link of the form:

https://ditto-up.network/activate/<uidb64>/<token>/
  1. Open your email inbox (check spam if you don't see it within a couple of minutes).
  2. Click the Activate my account button (or copy the URL into your browser).
  3. The page at /activate/<uidb64>/<token>/ will confirm verification and your email_verified flag is flipped to true.
  4. You are now logged in and redirected to the next step.

Why verification matters

Until your email is verified:

  • Your profile is automatically set to unlisted — you cannot be discovered through search.
  • You cannot send messages to people you don't already share a conversation with.
  • Some employer features (posting a job, receiving applicants) are unavailable.

If the activation link has expired (links are good for 24 hours by default), see 1.8 Resending the verification email.

1.4 The one-time signup payment

To keep spam and fake accounts off the platform, Ditto Up charges a one-time $1 USD payment during onboarding. This is processed by Stripe and is non-refundable, but it is a one-shot charge — there is no recurring subscription unless you separately enrol in the Recruiter plan (see Business guide).

  1. After email verification you are taken to /signup-payment/.
  2. Enter your card details in the embedded Stripe form.
  3. Click Pay $1.
  4. On success you land on /signup-payment/success/ and are forwarded to the profile setup wizard.

If your card is declined

  • Try a different card. Stripe is the only payment processor; we do not store card numbers ourselves.
  • If you are using a corporate card with strict 3-D Secure rules, complete the bank challenge in the popup and try again.
  • For repeated failures, contact support via the email address used during registration.

1.5 Signing in

  1. Go to /login/.
  2. Enter your email and password.
  3. Optionally tick Remember me to stay signed in for 30 days on this browser.
  4. Click Sign in.

You are taken to your personalised home view.

Sign-in errors

Message Meaning What to do
"Email or password incorrect." Credentials don't match. Re-enter; if you forgot, use 1.7 Forgotten password.
"This account has not been activated." You haven't clicked the link in the activation email. Check your inbox or use 1.8 Resend verification.
"This account is disabled." Your account was disabled by an admin or auto-flagged. Use the Contact support link below the form.
"Too many sign-in attempts." Rate-limited after repeated failures. Wait 5 minutes and retry; if you keep failing, reset your password.

1.6 Signing in with Google, LinkedIn and other providers

Ditto Up supports OAuth single-sign-on (SSO) through the providers listed at the bottom of the sign-in page. The exact set may vary, but currently supported are:

  • Google (including the seamless Google One Tap prompt that appears in the corner of the screen if you have an active Google session in the same browser)
  • LinkedIn
  • GitHub
  • Microsoft

To use SSO:

  1. Click the provider's button on /login/.
  2. Authorise Ditto Up in the provider's popup.
  3. The first time you sign in this way, the platform creates a Ditto Up account using the email address from the provider. You may still be asked to set a Ditto Up password and complete the one-time payment.
  4. On subsequent sign-ins, just click the same button — no password needed.

Linking SSO to an existing email/password account

If you already have a Ditto Up account with an email/password and the same email address is registered with the SSO provider, the platform automatically links them on first SSO sign-in. After that you can use either method.

1.7 Forgotten password

  1. Go to /password_reset/.
  2. Enter the email address you used during registration.
  3. Click Send reset email. You are redirected to /password_reset/done/.
  4. Open your inbox and click the link in the Password reset email. It will be of the form /reset/<uidb64>/<token>/.
  5. On the reset confirmation page, type a new password twice and submit.
  6. You are redirected to /reset/done/ and can sign in with the new password.

The reset link is single-use and expires after 24 hours. If you click it after that window, request a new one.

1.8 Resending the verification email

  1. Go to /resend-verification/.
  2. Enter the email address you registered with.
  3. Click Resend.
  4. A fresh activation email is sent. Old links from earlier emails stop working as soon as a new one is issued.

1.9 Signing out

Click your avatar in the top-right corner and choose Sign out, or visit /users/logout/ directly. You are returned to the home page and any "remember me" cookie is cleared.

1.10 Candidate mode vs business mode

Every Ditto Up account can act as both a candidate and an employer. There is no separate "employer-only" registration; instead, the parts of the UI you see depend on what you have set up:

You have… The site shows you…
Only a candidate profile Candidate dashboard, job applications, intro/VBQ videos.
Only a business profile Business dashboard, job posting, applicant review.
Both A toggle in the top navigation that flips between the two contexts.

To turn on the business side of your account, complete the steps in 3.1 Setting up a business profile. To turn on candidate features, complete 2.1 Building your candidate profile.

You can switch between the two at any time and they share the same login. Messages are unified — if a recruiter writes to you, the message lands in the same /messages/ inbox you use as a candidate.

1.11 Special signup flows (QR codes & invitations)

1.11.1 Business QR-code signup

Employers can print a careers QR code at job fairs, in their lobby, etc. When you scan it you arrive at:

/register/<business_name>/<city>/<state>/<business_id>/

The registration form looks the same, but the system silently associates you with that employer so they can later see that you came from their booth. There is no obligation to apply — the link is just a tracked entry point.

A separate path, /careers/<name>/<city>/<state>/<id>/, lands on a branded careers page (careers.html) that lists the company's open roles before sending you to register. See 3.7 Careers page & QR codes.

1.11.2 Personal invitation links

Users can invite friends via /invite-register/<uid>/. When the invitee signs up via that link, the inviter is recorded as their referrer; this is used by the mentions / activity notification system, not for any commercial commission scheme.

1.11.3 What happens if you abandon signup partway

If you create an account but never verify your email, the account remains in an inactive, unlisted state. It is not visible to anyone. You can finish the flow at any time by going to /resend-verification/. If you registered but never paid the $1 signup fee, signing back in will redirect you back to /signup-payment/ until you complete it.

Next: Continue to 2. Candidate guide if you want to look for work, or skip to 3. Business guide if you want to post a job.

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