AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND – A a client of ours, and his company, were mentioned in an online forum. In the same forum, totally unrelated, was a reference to the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) – which meant that when you Googled his name or brand, his name and brand were mentioned in the same breath as an SFO investigation.
This CEO, by no fault of his own, was suffering reputation damage by association. Sales meetings were cancelled and business dropped off (because three out of four people Google your name before the first meeting).
Accidental reputational damage to your name or brand by association, disgruntled ex-employees, competitors and customers with a bone to pick, can cause massive harm – and God forbid the media gets a hold of it. Again, not an uncommon risk because so many journalists report on what’s trending on social media.
This person, who became a client of ours, and his brand, need not have suffered this kind of damage if he had taken control of his digital footprint sooner, instead of leaving it to evolve organically.
Here’s three tips to help you take control of your online reputation:
1. Maintain a strong and up-to-date presence
A constant flow of fresh content helps keep your website, and your other media assets, on top of the rankings. Search engines like fresh content delivered regularly.
2. Publish content on high authority websites
Some websites will appear higher in search engine rankings than others because they have higher domain authority. For example, a media site like the New Zealand Herald will have a domain authority of 91 or so. An average business website is unlikely to be higher than 25. This means that content published on the NZ Herald website will feature prominently in search engine results.
Get your name and brand published on as many high domain authority sites as possible with good, newsworthy content.
3. Stand for something
Having a mission, purpose or cause will make you more newsworthy, more interesting and serves to maintain a consistent theme that becomes associated with your reputation.
People will say, “Oh, she’s the financial literacy for kids blogger isn’t she?” or “Isn’t that the doctor who stood up to the anti-vaccination brigade?” and “Oh, that’s the company behind the push for a healthy home for every Kiwi”.
To protect your reputation in 2019, it is important to occupy a solid positioning that stands for something; to market your reputation consistently and conscientiously and manage against any threats before they happen.
For a no obligations coffee and chat about how we can help you position, grow and defend your online reputation in 2021, call 027 2456060.