How to Best Manage your Online Reputation.
The World Wide Web is an aggregation of information at the tips of anybody’s fingers. This is a great phenomenon to those seeking information, selling products, connecting with friend and all around existing in the modern world. Unfortunately, this can also be the detriment to a professional’s reputation.
Recently, I have become quite interested in online Google Reputation. For business owners, always being aware of what is being said about you as a professional and a person is vital to the success of your business. If a potential customer searches to learn more about your company and finds one review on one blog about how you handled one situation and this one individual got angry, it could severely damage your online character. This is especially damaging when this one blog gets lots of comments, despite the fact that these comments become irrelevant to you or your business, and begins to rank higher on Google search.
There’s no need to feel destitute, though. While you can’t call Google and beg them to remove these sites from its directory, you can fight them. There are actually a number of ways to beat out these annoying little sites.
1. Create your own domain. If people search you on Google, Google will find the most relevant sites about you. What is more relevant than a domain of your name? For instance, look at www.LindsayLohan.com. It has an entire directory or websites devoted to her (in a general positive manner). Also, since she owns this domain, no one else can buy it and post trashy things about her on them.
A good way to use a personal domain is to utilize it for a business or service you provide. Check out TriMark’s President, Randy Goins, and his new internet marketing and media buying consulting website www.RandyGoins.com. This is a great example of taking reputation management and using it strategically.
2. Socially connect yourself. It’s inevitable. When people hear something about an individual, they’re going to look them up on Facebook. It is better to have a professional Facebook page that you yourself can manage than to have someone you don’t know create one for you and post inaccurate statements about you and your business.
Also, it’s important that you link your Facebook page to your domain name, so that people aren’t confused who you are. Chances are that there are at least 12 other people with your name, and you don’t want to be mistaken for a college student who parties too much.
3. Monitor what is being said about you. Don’t think it’s arrogant to occasionally Google yourself and see what other people are seeing. Being unaware is the worst thing you could do for your online reputation. If you are unaware of a problem, how can you fix it? So be smart and efficient about your presence online; it can save you a lot of headache in the future.
Essentially, the best practice for online reputation management is to be present and aware online. Don’t let the little guys get you down. As a smart and savvy business owner, you have the capabilities to enhance yourself and your company in the best way possible.
What are some ways you monitor your online reputation? Tell us!
