How to Manage Your Internet Reputation

The best way to gain and preserve a positive Internet reputation is to offer exceptional product and service. However, this still is not enough to protect your business from false accusations or angry complaints online. You need to know what is being said about your company name, work on damage control and fight negative views with positive content.

Get a Snapshot

It’s easy to discover what is being said about your brand name. Enter your name into your favorite search engine to see what information pops up. Set up email alerts with Google Bing, Yahoo or any other search engines that your customers use so you can quickly discover any future praises or complaints about your business.

Utilize an online company snapshot tool or dashboard to keep track of your brand’s online reputation. Snapshots are word cloud charts where the bigger the word, the more often it’s being used to describe your company. If you decide to hire an online reputation management service, opt for snapshots to be made up on a regular basis, such as once a week.

Participate in Social Networks

It’s not enough to just have accounts on the most popular social networking sites like Twittter, Facebook and LinkedIn. You have to participate in these sites, too. Double check your privacy settings on these public sites to avoid future problems. Regularly post valuable content on these sites relating not just to your business but any information your customers may want.

For example, if your business is selling pet care products, you could ask customers to post pictures of their pets, post news about the pet industry or any medical studies that show a link between owning pets and living a healthier, happier life. You can also hold contests or special offers just for customers who use a particular social network website.

Invest in Your Domain Name

Look at your website’s domain name. Does it include your company’s name or highlights what product or service your company provides? If not, you should change the domain name so that somebody else doesn’t take it. Consider buying a few domain names in order to best protect your online reputation. -bytechip.com