| Search Engine Reputation Management | | | | Now, this does not mean that you must make every |
| How to protect you from negative publicity online | | | | attempt to deny the truth about your company of |
| It is said that bad news sells faster than good news. | | | | organization. On the contrary, being honest and |
| This old adage is very true in the internet media world | | | | accepting honest criticism helps in limiting damage from |
| aided by the relative ease with which one can publish | | | | negative online information. All you need to do is to |
| information on the net. If you are in business, then you | | | | assure your clients that the tradition of the excellence |
| should be aware that the information posted on web | | | | will not be damaged by the one off incidence. |
| pages, however small space they may occupy, can | | | | The three stages that every company that is wary of |
| damage your reputation irreversibly. This is the basis | | | | online reputation management must consider includes |
| for the growth of a search engine reputation | | | | the monitoring aspect, instituting proactive rather than |
| management industry to help companies monitor, | | | | reactive measures and being able to have an |
| analyse influence the information on their own or other | | | | appropriate response of influence. |
| people's websites. | | | | Monitoring will require that you have a manual or |
| The most important to watch are customers and the | | | | automated regular search for the website postings on |
| not so happy employees. These are people who | | | | the products, company brands and the key staff from |
| would often be communicating using platforms that are | | | | your organization. You can use the service so |
| shared by people who have similar interests. As a | | | | specialized websites or RSS feeds such as the |
| result, their negative publicity can derail your business. | | | | Feedsters or blogpulse. Be careful about what is |
| There are many examples of companies that have | | | | discussed in blogs and discussion forums because |
| fallen on this sword such as 'Dell hell' and 'Walmarting' | | | | these tend to influence opinion a greater extent than |
| scandals. | | | | official communication. You can join some of these |
| A search engine reputation management is an active | | | | informal discussions and influence it from within. You |
| and proactive system that not only deals with the | | | | can also monitor by subscribing to yahoo alerts, or |
| problem through search engine optimization and hiding | | | | Google alerts or the social media such as keotag. |
| away the negative articles or blogs. Instead, it should | | | | You need to get a proactive system rather than a |
| be a proactive public relation scheme to prevent, | | | | reactive one through web optimization. This can be |
| identify and react appropriately to damaging | | | | done through a key word or SEO that automatically |
| information on your website. | | | | detects and relegates to the hidden pages any |
| The problem of damaged reputation is not an | | | | negative publications or postings. |
| exclusive problem of the search engine alone. Even | | | | Lastly, you need to influence the minds of your clients |
| the big names have not been left behind. A good case | | | | or customers through having a counter mechanism. |
| is that of Robert Scoble who inflicted great damage to | | | | This will include authenticating the information posted, |
| Microsoft's reputation. This is why a proactive search | | | | responding honestly. Even your own postings can |
| engine reputation management must have a system | | | | create negative online reputation. This is why you may |
| of preventing or responding to disgruntled staff or | | | | consider engaging a professional team for the search |
| customers. | | | | engine reputation management. |