Internet can be as harmful as beneficial – for anything that is posted about you on the internet will likely come up in an online search or with a little searching. And if some adverse criticism appears that can mean trouble for you and your business.
The ideal way to manage your online reputation is by generating positive search results that will rank as highly as possible in all major search engine results. The positive results must be so overwhelming as to edge out anything negative on the list of search results.
Personal pages on sites like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter all rank highly in Google searches. LinkedIn especially sends a positive message to potential employers, since it’s widely viewed as a highly business-oriented network. Surveys reveal that 76% of recruiters use search engines in their research when they screen prospective candidates.
If you are a business owner, you can request your happy customers to write positive reviews. Most customers will agree to your request as long as you maintain a healthy rapport with them. Do not fail to acknowledge and express your thankfulness to those that posted favorable reviews. This will send a signal that you care for your clients.
If a negative comment appears, do not immediately press the panic button. Try to contact the person that posted the adverse remarks and explain the situation and request him/her to withdraw the offending remarks. If the complaint is authentic do not hesitate to apologize publicly. Customers will appreciate this gesture and go further to bond wit you.
In addition to signing up for social networking sites, you can initiate a series of actions that will help you protect your personal brand and online reputation. Set up a Google alert so that all mentions about you or your business on the internet will be informed to you through email. Create a news feed for your name so you can monitor when and if you pop up on blogs or in news stories.
It is suggested that you register your name as a domain name, and sign up for every social network that you can think of. These moves will ensure you have a wide social media presence and there will not be any mistaken identity.
Be serious when you post on the Web. Often enough, the negative item about you can be something you published yourself. An astounding38% of prospective employers admit that they have eliminated a candidate because of something they found on the Web. The internet culture has caught on and most people use the Web to verify the credentials of others.