Reputation Management
Imagine entering the name of your flagship product in Google. You expect your website will come out on top, followed perhaps by some glowing reviews. Instead -near the top of the results - is an unfair indictment of your product.
Imagine searching your name, and finding - on the first page of Google - embarrassing personal information.
The above are just two examples of what can happen when you allow your reputation to go unmanaged on the web. This applies equally to companies, products and individuals.
Your reputation is your most valuable asset. It can take years to establish a good reputation. and only a single, unfounded allegation to tarnish it.
What is Reputation Management?
With the explosion of consumer-generated media (especially blogs and discussion forums), it's now easier than ever for individuals to broadcast their opinions. For the most part, this is a good thing.
However, the un-moderated and often anonymous spread of opinion on the web has a dark side: a single dissatisfied customer - or even a competitor posing as one - can potentially destroy your online reputation.
Avoiding such problems (and handling them when they do occur) falls under the purview of Reputation Management: a combination of Public Relations, Search Engine Optimization and other disciplines.
Building and Protecting your Brand: Proactive Reputation Management
Reputation management is best handled before problems arise. Though you may not be able to prevent individuals from posting negative information (short of litigation), you can ensure the truth comes across loud and clear.
With diligent attention to your online reputation - in the forms of blogging, press releases, article submissions, etc. - the impact of any negative press will be greatly reduced.
Naturally, we aren't suggesting you can own the first page of Google. But the goal is clear: to maintain such a strong positive web presence, that negative entries get lost in the background.
Dousing the Flames: Reactive Reputation Management
The best way to get a good online reputation is to earn it - by providing superior products and customer support. In other words, if you want to be seen as a star, be a star.
But no matter how good your products, no matter hard you work to please customers, occasional problems are inevitable. And Murphy's Law states: when problems arise, they're going to be with your most vocal customers.
If you have been managing your online reputation proactively, a rare instance of bad press should have little or no impact. If, however, you've been complaisant in your efforts, bad press can feature prominently in search results.
Though getting a detractor's web page removed is difficult or impossible, it is possible - with a dedicated effort - to supplant such pages with more positive ones. The bad press will still exist, but as long as it's buried deep in the search results, few people will see it.
Who should do the work?
The value of maintaining a reputation management program is clear. Yet few organizations do so. We believe there are several reasons:
- It requires a dedicated effort and constant monitoring. yet rarely fits within any employee's or department's jurisdiction.
- It is outside the traditional purview of Advertising, Public Relations and SEO.
- It is new and unfamiliar.
As a result, most companies become complaisant regarding their reputation management, and the work simply does not get done.
The solution is to hire a team of dedicated experts to ensure it gets done. Make sure the team includes:
- SEO consultants with the technical knowledge to get your information to the top of Google.
- Marketing and Public Relations experts, versed in "netiquette" and diplomacy.
- Perhaps most importantly, ensure your team has the maturity and good judgment to solve problems rather than inflame them. Because though diligence is essential, obvious PR efforts can backfire. It's helpful to know when it's better to respond with humility or even humor.
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