Your online reputation is one of the most valuable assets you own, but it can easily be destroyed or even stolen through mistaken identity, false accusations or negative press about you, your product or your company. The times are gone when business was done with close neighbors, local businessmen or a family acquaintance. In this era of digital commerce, you cannot possibly know who will be your next client, friend or business associate, and it makes little difference whether you do business with the guy across the street or with a freelancer two continents and three time zones away. What does matter is that there is a shared ingredient of mutual trust and a basis of honesty through responsible business practices. Without the opportunity of meeting face to face, business associates as well as potential clients depend on Internet profiles and online information to make important decisions, so it is vital that you employ online reputation management tools to protect your online image.Careful and diligent monitoring of your presence online is a must, but what if you find that there are negative articles coming up on the first page of a Google search with little regard to the more relevant and positive news items or stories about you or your brand? The first step is to understand the concept of Online Search. Try opening a new browser window and putting in your own name, company or brand in the search box. Take a close look at what comes up on the first, second and third pages. Don't be shocked if you see posts that misrepresent you or your company, but take action to correct them. If it is case of mistaken identity, try to establish who published the content and make contact with them. Explain to them their mistake and they should be more than willing to take it down and maybe even apologize. Additionally, set Google alerts to notify you of new results and in every new instance where your name is mentioned so that you can take immediate action when needed.
Writing new content and posting it to the web is a positive way to make the negative accusations or articles take a back seat and eventually disappear, but don't get this confused with trying to get more visibility through search engine optimization and keywords. Use online reputation management tools to aid in writing articles that portray you or your business in a positive light and then promote existing web content by posting it to social media sites and linking to it from your online assets. Make regular use of such social bookmarking sites as Digg, Stumbleupon and Reddit to promote your new positive content and use Twitter to send quick updates. Remember that the point here is to fill the Internet with positive, or at least neutral, posts regarding you or your brand. When posting online, be very careful what you say because it won't go away. Everything that you write on the Internet is subject to review and could end up getting high visibility. Once you have put your words online, there is a permanent record of them so when trying to raise your own name in the search, do not attempt to slander or speak negatively about another company, competitor or sworn enemy, because it will backfire on you. Positive comments that make you appear reputable, or the expert authority on any given subject or comments that promote your product line will get you closer to your goals than writing negatively about someone else. Keep it positive and you will have more of a chance at coming out with an improved image. Use social media sites to your benefit by carefully posting relevant articles, writing useful and informative comments on other peoples sites or pages and joining in forum discussions. However, when registering for social media sites or posting to other people's pages, don't make the mistake of using a cute or shortened screen name. If you want your posts to show you as a professional in your field and portray your company respectably, it is important to use your real name. Along with posting, there are several reputable and popular sites that are worthwhile joining. For a business atmosphere, it is important to be seen and well connected on Linkedin. This affiliation also shows up in searches for your name and you have the opportunity to keep your profile fresh by periodically updating your skills, experience, or areas of expertise. As well as bringing up your positive status in a search, Linkedin also opens up a whole world of business and personal associates, which sometimes lead to increased business opportunities. Another social media site that gets a lot of attention is Facebook. Along with having a Facebook presence, you should have a page where you post current and relevant events or articles that will create interaction and discussions between your friends. By using online reputation management tools including social media platforms to post content, you can easily increase your online visibility and gain control of your online reputation.