Online Reputation - Have You Made it an Asset or a Liability?

"Reputation is a company's most powerful asset, or its costliest liablility." - I saw that quote on towerspr.com a few days ago and I think that it sums up the importance of reputation management and what it can mean for your company quite well. And what about Daniel-Day Lewis in the movie adaptation of The Crucible, shouting, "Because it is my name!"? That's another good one. But no matter what you reference, it rings true that managing a reputation has always been an important aspect of functioning in any society, whether it be your personal name, your family's, or that of your business. With the advent of the net, a new arena was formed for any name to be applauded and scrutinized over. It's no question that every minute of every day that there is a potential customer out there researching online for your brand. Nor is it a question that people will search your name to learn more about you. It's time to start acting to make sure what they see is the truth, the positive truth, and nothing but what you want them to see.

Got Content? Make it Visible

In all reality, most of the "grunt" work required to have a good online reputation is done before a campaign is launched. All companies have tons of positive written content on everything from their mission statement to their individual products. It simply takes the know-how of search engines and how to make those positive things index highly in the search results. Given that 90% or more of people will do online research using a search engine on a product before they buy it, or a trip before they take, or a job before they apply, it makes sense to need those positive things to be highly visible. So take those testimonials and get them on your site, then get some links.

Granted, all major search engines will typically only index 1-2 pages of a given domain, meaning it is going to take 10 separate websites positively lauding your company's services / products to effectively manage an online reputation. For most companies, managing 10 sites is likely out of the question. That's where companies that specialize in ORM can help out by featuring positive content on their own network of sites, but there are also a ton of user-generated content sites out there where a small posting or a profile on your company can go a long way. Sites like Amazon, LinkedIn, Squidoo, Yahoo360, MySpace, etc. Posting a paragraph about yourself or your company on one of these sites will probably result in a top 10 ranking in the search engines for your name. Or you could start a blog just like this one. Think outside the box a little and you'll be vanquishing any negative / "flame" sites in no time.

Managing a Reputation - The Top 10 Results

What are the top 10 search results in Google for your company's name? What about for your own name? As our world becomes increasingly focused on the web as a source of information, whether it be for obtaining news, researching a purchase, or learning more about a company or an individual, the websites that appear at the top of the search rankings in any major search engine can have a great amount of influence on people's opinions and buying decisions. By combining the techniques of search engine optimization (SEO) with the ideas behind old-fashioned PR, online reputation management can help any individual or company successfully manage the websites that appear in relation to their name in the search engine results pages (SERPs). Whether you are applying for a job, running for political office, or looking to put a good name out there for your new (or established) company, online reputation management is something that should be strongly considered.

Recent news stories have highlighted the lack of privacy people are beginning to realize exists for social networking websites such as MySpace and Facebook. College students and adults alike have been passed over for job positions because of their personal profiles and comments posted on these purely recreational sites. Because a MySpace or a Facebook is so popular and has so many pages, there is a strong likelihood that if you have your name and personal information posted there that it would show up in a major search engine for a query on your name. Online reputation managers can help push those "personal" website posts down and out of the top search rankings by optimizing their vast network of sites for your name. They can post copies of your resume, add a general profile, post personal statements, etc. Many employers today will do as much research as they can on job applicants by using search engines and browsing social websites - don't let them make a decision on you before the interview. Your online reputation is just as important in today's world as your public reputation. The internet is a free resource open for everyone to use, view, and form opinions over, a powerful tool that has made managing an online rep and controlling the SERPs a fledging industry.

The applications of SEO to managing personal or corporate image in the public eye is only now being explored for the first time. In the next few years, events like the 2008 elections and the continued use of search engines to research purchases, company information, and personal information will only further the understanding of a need to head off threats to one's online reputation and to manage it intelligently and in a time-sensitive manner.