ONLINE REPUTATION MANAGEMENT OR WHAT DO THE SEARCH RESULTS SAY ABOUT YOU?

Zoe Piper 23rd October 2008
Zoe Piper

When people search for you or your company, what do they find? It only takes a few seconds to type in a name, but the search results will influence how that individual is perceived from then on. For example, if the top result is a trashy photo on readerswives.com that won't go down too well at the next PTA meeting, not to mention the gossip that's bound to follow. If it's your Linkedin profile however you're seen as a connected professional and if your dark past is hidden on page 2, people might never even know.

When it comes to your company it's equally important to have positive search results. The trouble is that you're more likely to get talked about if you're selling a product or service, and it's true that people will complain more than compliment. A minority of unhappy customers can quite easily dominate your search results thanks to review websites and blogs.

zoeresults.JPG

So how do you manage your search results? Let's take a look at me as an example: I did a post a while ago about why I don't rank number one for Zoe Piper, but a screenshot shows that I rank 2nd, 3rd and 4th. My Facebook profile is 6th and my profile on the old company website (that no longer exists) still ranks 9th. I've also got my own blog and a Twitter account – these aren't linked to my name but if they were I could potentially dominate another 2 results, making my grand total a cool 7 out of the top 10.

If you're an individual then, having a lot of online property can give you control of the first page.

I'm A Company

For companies it's a bit harder. Like I said, people are more likely to give you a bad review on places like reviewcentre.com and these can rise to the top because the sites are so powerful. Here's what not to do: post your own good reviews or talk down to people who've left bad ones. I left a bad review on Trip Advisor about a (very expensive) hotel in London a while ago, and the next day got a private message from another user who I can only imagine worked for said hotel, calling me a 'Jerk'. Lovely! Likewise, fake reviews always look fake and will only make you look stupid when you get found out.

It is possible to grab a few first page results however, and here's how: Ask some bloggers to review your product and send them a free sample. Simple! If you ask them nicely and you genuinely believe you have a good product, then a lot of bloggers will be willing to say yes. If three powerful domains write you a nice review that's three top spots all saying good things. It might sound like damage limitation, but if you address the bad reviews on your company blog too it shows that you really do care.

Today's Moral

It's make or break for your online reputation in those top ten results, so take a look and see what they say about you.

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