Is Your Online Reputation Getting Too Social?

As you cross things off your calendar in 2013 that concern your small business, where does making sure your online reputation is secure rank?

Unfortunately, too many small business heads don’t take the time to Google their individual and company names, leaving things to chance as to whether there is negative information floating around on the Internet about them.

So, how can you can as a small business owner go about securing your online reputation, or at least cutting the negative data that may be out there?

Several of the recommended steps include:

1. Do an online search – Start here by entering your name/company name into a Google search. Look for any disparaging remarks and/or photos that could be directed your way. If you come across such items, see if you can identify the source, making it easier to direct your response. Part of your search should include a review of social media venues such as Facebook, Twitter and Google+. Has one or more individuals taken to such pages to talk poorly about you or your business? If so, are their comments valid in any way? Negative comments on social sites can come from a variety of individuals, including disgruntled employees and customers, not to mention competitors;

2. Identify your next move – Once you have targeted the problem, you need decide if you will handle it in-house or outsource the matter to an online reputation consultant and/or company. If you go outside the business, make sure you do a thorough search of online reputation managers, including their company history, any history of customer complaints, financial stability, and pricing. Should you decide to hire such help, you need to be sure they are not only qualified and experienced, but will tell you in detail everything they will do, along with what it will cost you for such services;

3. Promote the positive and practice safety- One of if not the most important tasks when trying to change your online reputation is promoting the positive features of both you and your small business. In order to do this, make sure you are pumping out plenty of good content in the form of blog postings, customer testimonials, images and videos, press releases and more. The goal is to simply get more of the positive content out there on the Internet, therefore the negative material will drop down lower in the search engine rankings. As an example, if you have a number of customer testimonials touting you, your employees and your business, it only stands to reason that this information will be beneficial to you when potential customers pull up your name in an Internet search. The other important facet here is to be careful as to what personal information you disclose through social media sites, online forums, and other electronic vehicles. In the event you fear having too many details making their way online, you can go to sites such as radaris.com to effectively remove data not taken from government records;

4. Don’t be a stranger – Finally, why were you not checking your name and your company’s name from time to time online to begin with? If you had, you may have averted the trouble you could find yourself in now. With the New Year here, make it a requirement to Google both names several times during the year, looking to see if any negative information is floating around online. If it is, don’t put it to the side and say you will deal with it later. Act now, and get yourself in a more positive online light when it comes to consumers.

With all the damage that can potentially arise from a negative online reputation, why would you chance such a thing in the first place?

Photo credit: propertymanagementinside.com

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