10 Ways to Fix Your Online Reputation for Professionals and Businesses

Boutique​ ​Online​ ​Reputation​ ​Management​ ​and​ ​Repair

How​ ​To​ ​Fix​ ​Your​ ​Online​ ​Reputation Repairing​ ​or​ ​fixing​ ​your​ ​online​ ​reputation​ ​IS​ ​possible,​ ​even​ ​if​ ​a​ ​disgruntled​ ​employee​ ​or competitor​ ​wrote​ ​something​ ​negative​ ​about​ ​you​ ​or​ ​your​ ​business​ ​and​ ​it’s​ ​appearing​ ​on the​ ​first​ ​page​ ​of​ ​Google.

How?

Build​ ​good,​ ​fresh​ ​content​ ​for​ ​humans.

More​ ​specifically,​ ​write​ ​blogs,​ ​articles,​ ​comments​ ​for​ ​your​ ​readers​ ​and​ ​your​ ​clients.​ ​ ​It could​ ​be​ ​specific​ ​information​ ​on​ ​how​ ​to​ ​solve​ ​a​ ​common​ ​problem​ ​in​ ​your​ ​industry​ ​or some​ ​latest​ ​news​ ​tidbit.​ ​ ​The​ ​important​ ​thing​ ​is​ ​that​ ​it​ ​be​ ​good,​ ​fresh​ ​content.

In​ ​reality,​ ​however,​ ​fixing​ ​an​ ​online​ ​reputation​ ​is​ ​made​ ​of​ ​three​ ​components:​ ​content creation,​ ​social​ ​media​ ​and​ ​search​ ​engine​ ​optimization.

Search​ ​engine​ ​optimization​ ​(SEO).

To​ ​me,​ ​this​ ​is​ ​crucial​ ​to​ ​the​ ​success​ ​of​ ​the​ ​whole​ ​process,​ ​and​ ​often​ ​seems​ ​to​ ​be​ ​left​ ​out of​ ​most​ ​online​ ​reputation​ ​repair​ ​or​ ​management​ ​initiatives.​ ​ ​SEO​ ​discovers​ ​effective​ ​key search​ ​terms​ ​based​ ​on​ ​research​ ​and​ ​business​ ​goals​ ​and​ ​then​ ​integrates​ ​them​ ​into​ ​an existing​ ​site​ ​or​ ​are​ ​laced​ ​throughout​ ​blogs,​ ​posts,​ ​or​ ​other​ ​sites.​ ​ ​For​ ​example,​ ​it​ ​might be​ ​determined​ ​that​ ​a​ ​great​ ​search​ ​phrase​ ​is,​ ​“legal​ ​advisors​ ​NYC,”​ ​for​ ​a​ ​law​ ​firm.​ ​ ​This​ ​is then​ ​integrated​ ​into​ ​a​ ​website,​ ​added​ ​to​ ​a​ ​Twitter​ ​account,​ ​and​ ​included​ ​in​ ​blog headings​ ​or​ ​in​ ​the​ ​body​ ​of​ ​a​ ​post.

Create​ ​Content.

Next​ ​is​ ​content​ ​creation.​ ​ ​An​ ​online​ ​reputation​ ​management​ ​specialist​ ​could​ ​take​ ​those key​ ​search​ ​terms​ ​and​ ​build​ ​good,​ ​fresh​ ​content​ ​around​ ​them.​ ​ ​It's​ ​important,​ ​however, to​ ​avoid​ ​“keyword​ ​stuffing,”​ ​or​ ​adding​ ​too​ ​many​ ​terms​ ​in​ ​a​ ​blog​ ​to​ ​the​ ​point​ ​that​ ​it seems​ ​unnatural.​ ​ ​The​ ​specialist​ ​could​ ​write​ ​an​ ​article​ ​on​ ​,​ ​“What​ ​makes​ ​a​ ​great​ ​legal advisor​ ​in​ ​New​ ​York,”​ ​for​ ​example.

Steven​ ​W.​ ​Giovinco​ ​ ​|​ ​ ​347-421-7598​ ​|​ ​ ​www.recoverreputation.com​ ​ ​|​ ​ ​steve@recoverreputation.com

Boutique​ ​Online​ ​Reputation​ ​Management​ ​and​ ​Repair

Share​ ​on​ ​Social​ ​Media.

Social​ ​media​ ​is​ ​the​ ​last​ ​component​ ​of​ ​how​ ​to​ ​fix​ ​your​ ​online​ ​reputation.​ ​ ​The​ ​written content​ ​is​ ​written​ ​or​ ​edited​ ​down​ ​to​ ​a​ ​few​ ​main​ ​points​ ​or​ ​paragraphs​ ​and​ ​is​ ​then published​ ​on​ ​industry​ ​specific​ ​sites,​ ​blogs​ ​or​ ​respected​ ​sites,​ ​such​ ​as​ ​LinkedIn,​ ​Twitter, Facebook​ ​and​ ​others.

Here​ ​are​ ​ten​ ​ways​ ​how​ ​to​ ​fix​ ​your​ ​online​ ​reputation.

1. Generate​ ​Good​ ​Key​ ​Search​ ​Terms.

Research,​ ​analyze​ ​and​ ​create​ ​excellent​ ​search​ ​terms​ ​or​ ​phrases​ ​that​ ​clients​ ​or readers​ ​will​ ​be​ ​searching​ ​for.​ ​ ​This​ ​should​ ​also​ ​be​ ​based​ ​on​ ​your​ ​business​ ​needs and​ ​goals.​ ​ ​Also,​ ​know​ ​how​ ​many​ ​visitors​ ​come​ ​to​ ​your​ ​site​ ​per​ ​month.​ ​ ​It's important​ ​to​ ​know​ ​if​ ​it's​ ​five​ ​or​ ​five​ ​thousand​ ​because​ ​this​ ​will​ ​set​ ​the​ ​SEO strategy.​ ​ ​If​ ​you​ ​have​ ​very​ ​low​ ​traffic,​ ​for​ ​example,​ ​you​ ​need​ ​to​ ​select​ ​different​ ​key search​ ​terms.​ ​ ​If​ ​traffic​ ​is​ ​high,​ ​select​ ​one​ ​word​ ​or​ ​shorter​ ​phrases.

2. Optimize​ ​Web​ ​Site.

This​ ​is​ ​technical​ ​and​ ​requires​ ​a​ ​webmaster,​ ​or​ ​online​ ​reputation​ ​management specialist​ ​or​ ​is​ ​for​ ​advanced​ ​users,​ ​but​ ​update​ ​behind-the-scenes​ ​Title​ ​and Description​ ​metatags​ ​using​ ​the​ ​key​ ​search​ ​terms​ ​and​ ​the​ ​negative​ ​search​ ​term that​ ​being​ ​attempted​ ​to​ ​be​ ​repaired.​ ​ ​For​ ​example,​ ​if​ ​John​ ​A.​ ​Smith​ ​has​ ​a​ ​negative review​ ​showing​ ​up​ ​on​ ​the​ ​first​ ​page​ ​of​ ​Google,​ ​consider​ ​adding,​ ​“John​ ​A.​ ​Smith legal​ ​advisors​ ​NYC,”​ ​as​ ​well​ ​as​ ​another​ ​phrase,​ ​in​ ​the​ ​Title​ ​metatag.​ ​ ​Other advanced​ ​changes​ ​could​ ​be​ ​to​ ​rename​ ​the​ ​URL​ ​of​ ​a​ ​page​ ​incorporating​ ​the person's​ ​name​ ​or​ ​company.​ ​ ​There​ ​are​ ​literally​ ​dozens​ ​of​ ​other​ ​optimizations​ ​that can​ ​be​ ​used​ ​to​ ​help​ ​repair​ ​an​ ​online​ ​reputation.

3. Content​ ​Creation.

Write​ ​a​ ​brief​ ​but​ ​interesting​ ​article​ ​or​ ​blog​ ​post,​ ​or​ ​rewrite​ ​an​ ​existing​ ​post​ ​or web​ ​page,​ ​and​ ​include​ ​some​ ​of​ ​the​ ​key​ ​search​ ​phrases​ ​and​ ​negative​ ​terms​ ​in​ ​the title​ ​and​ ​body.​ ​ ​Again,​ ​keep​ ​the​ ​focus​ ​on​ ​creating​ ​excellent​ ​content​ ​that​ ​is​ ​of interest​ ​to​ ​a​ ​client​ ​or​ ​potential​ ​one.​ ​ ​Show​ ​that​ ​YOU​ ​are​ ​an​ ​expert​ ​in​ ​your​ ​field and​ ​share​ ​this​ ​online.​ ​ ​This​ ​results​ ​in​ ​driving​ ​traffic​ ​and​ ​this​ ​traffic​ ​helps​ ​push down​ ​the​ ​negative​ ​link​ ​or​ ​item.

Steven​ ​W.​ ​Giovinco​ ​ ​|​ ​ ​347-421-7598​ ​|​ ​ ​www.recoverreputation.com​ ​ ​|​ ​ ​steve@recoverreputation.com

Boutique​ ​Online​ ​Reputation​ ​Management​ ​and​ ​Repair 4. Create​ ​Web​ ​Sites.

There​ ​are​ ​secondary​ ​sites​ ​that​ ​are​ ​free,​ ​such​ ​as​ ​blog​ ​sites.​ ​ ​Post​ ​content​ ​here—but the​ ​material​ ​must​ ​be​ ​fresh:​ ​simply​ ​copying​ ​and​ ​pasting​ ​from​ ​the​ ​original​ ​article won't​ ​help​ ​(you​ ​can​ ​start​ ​to​ ​see​ ​this​ ​gets​ ​very​ ​time​ ​consuming).

5. Optimize​ ​or​ ​Create​ ​Well​ ​Respected​ ​Online​ ​Presences.

Create​ ​or​ ​update​ ​Facebook,​ ​Twitter​ ​or​ ​LinkedIn​ ​sites,​ ​again​ ​with​ ​the​ ​key​ ​search terms​ ​and​ ​the​ ​negative​ ​names.​ ​ ​Be​ ​sure​ ​to​ ​complete​ ​every​ ​field​ ​in​ ​the​ ​bio​ ​and other​ ​sections.

6. Find​ ​and​ ​Create​ ​Industry​ ​Specific​ ​Sites.

Google​ ​likes​ ​industry​ ​related​ ​sites​ ​and​ ​could​ ​rank​ ​them​ ​higher​ ​than​ ​a​ ​more trafficked​ ​site.​ ​Examples​ ​could​ ​include​ ​Avvo.com​ ​for​ ​the​ ​legal​ ​and​ ​medical professions;​ ​there​ ​are​ ​many​ ​others.

7. Create​ ​YouTube​ ​Account​ ​and​ ​Post​ ​Videos.

Since​ ​YouTube​ ​is​ ​owned​ ​by​ ​Google,​ ​creating​ ​a​ ​YouTube​ ​account​ ​and​ ​posting​ ​a video​ ​about​ ​you​ ​or​ ​your​ ​business​ ​can​ ​be​ ​very,​ ​very​ ​effective.​ ​ ​Be​ ​sure​ ​to​ ​optimize for​ ​key​ ​search​ ​terms.

8. Get​ ​Local:​ ​Local​ ​Site​ ​Creation.

Google​ ​is​ ​shifting​ ​its​ ​focus​ ​to​ ​local​ ​search,​ ​so​ ​take​ ​advantage​ ​of​ ​this​ ​by​ ​creating local​ ​presences​ ​on​ ​sites​ ​such​ ​as​ ​Google​ ​Plus,​ ​and​ ​others.

9. Write​ ​an​ ​Article.

Sites​ ​such​ ​as​ ​Medium.com​ ​and​ ​other​ ​article​ ​sites​ ​can​ ​be​ ​very​ ​helpful​ ​in​ ​repairing your​ ​online​ ​reputation.​ ​ ​An​ ​article​ ​is​ ​similar​ ​to​ ​a​ ​blog​ ​post​ ​but​ ​is​ ​usually​ ​focused on​ ​a​ ​detailed​ ​piece​ ​of​ ​information.

10. Share​ ​on​ ​Social​ ​Media.

Promote​ ​all​ ​the​ ​content—the​ ​blog​ ​post,​ ​the​ ​new​ ​sites,​ ​articles,​ ​etc.--on​ ​social media.​ ​ ​This​ ​should​ ​include​ ​your​ ​already​ ​optimized​ ​Twitter,​ ​Facebook​ ​and LinkedIn​ ​accounts​ ​plus​ ​several​ ​others.​ ​ ​Send​ ​out​ ​Tweets​ ​daily;​ ​Facebook​ ​updates weekly​ ​and​ ​add​ ​LinkedIn​ ​content​ ​every​ ​week​ ​or​ ​so.

Steven​ ​W.​ ​Giovinco​ ​ ​|​ ​ ​347-421-7598​ ​|​ ​ ​www.recoverreputation.com​ ​ ​|​ ​ ​steve@recoverreputation.com