1. Why reputation management?
There is all sorts of information available on the Internet now, and much of this information can be hard for individuals to manage. In the past, we had much more control over what information we wanted transmitted through our social and professional networks, but now information about us that we might not even know exists online can be accessed by just about anyone looking for it.
Reputation has always been important, but on the Internet this importance is amplified. For individuals, reputation doesn’t just matter in social circles, it can determine whether one gets a job, qualifies for insurance or credit in certain circumstances, and much more. For businesses, reputation plays a significant part in attracting customers, as informed shoppers have a large store of information at their fingertips to pore through when choosing a product.
This is where Los Angeles reputation management services come in. With the help of a skilled reputation manager, you can carefully cultivate the store of information that is available online to show the public face that you want.
2. What does a reputation management professional do?
Reputation management professionals work with individuals, small businesses, large businesses, and other organizations to cultivate their clients’ online presence by emphasizing information that their clients want to be seen and by burying information that their clients don’t want to be seen.
3. Why not do it yourself?
There are various things you can do yourself, like work at establishing a positive social media presence, take care with what you choose to share online, and try to affect as positive a change on your society as possible. However, there are many factors that you simply can’t control. It takes technical expertise and extensive industry knowledge to know all of the possible sources of information, how your information is released, and how to either amplify or dampen any given piece of information. That is best left to a professional.
4. What is the most common misconception of reputation management?
Many people think they do an airtight job of managing their online reputation, and they are probably doing decent work really. However, you can’t control what other people do to you or what they say about you online. Someone might harbor a grudge against you or your company, and post all sorts of false, harmful things online. Also, most people don’t know how to actually leverage their online reputations for their benefit. That is what Los Angeles reputation management services are for.
5. How do online reputations affect people and businesses?
For businesses this is a little more obvious. With information available the way it is on the Internet, it is very easy to quickly search for information on a business’ reputation. There is a whole industry that has sprung up around this: think of all of the review networks such as those on Yelp, Google, and Amazon. Look at how fast a business’ reputation can change on social media. This type of information can have a dramatic effect on the customer’s decision.
For individuals it is a little more subtle. Today when you go searching for a job, or if you seek an investment, apply for a loan, get insurance, etc., your online profile is often researched. People want to see if you have a record – and not just a criminal one. People want to see your social presence, and the kinds of activities you are engaged in online, and see whether these things match up to what you initially claim. This can have a very real effect on your overall success.
6. How do reputation management professionals deal with negative information?
Most online information is difficult, if not impossible, to remove. Law has not kept up with the rapid changes wrought by the Internet, and lawsuits are often unsuccessful. The key is to bury bad information with modern PR, marketing, and SEO techniques. This is where the professional expertise and technical knowledge comes in.
7. How do you emphasize the positive information?
Basically, a Los Angeles reputation management professional will sit down with you to understand the type of information you want to be most prominent in the online space, and also help you understand how to leverage that information to your benefit. That information will be put together and pushed to the top of the search results. Everyone relies on search engines for information, and most people won’t venture past the first couple of pages.
8. Is it better to simply react to a problem, or should you actively cultivate your profile?
Of course it is much better – and cheaper – to actively manage your profile so that more serious reputation emergencies don’t even come up. However, most people don’t go to a professional until they have a serious problem to solve, and you can never completely predict what will happen to your reputation with so many working factors.
9. How do you avoid being taken advantage of?
There are people out there that will put up negative information, or engage in defamation campaigns, and then charge to take the negative information down. As I said before, law has not kept up with this problem. When it does catch up, hopefully there will be legal means available to address these problems. Until then, you just have to pay to have it taken down, or pay a reputation management professional to take care of things.
Be careful about what you share online. If you go on social media a lot, make sure you know your privacy settings and avoid oversharing. It does help to make contributions that are relevant to your professional life, things that will go towards your success. Set up alerts so you can keep an eye on things.
Hire a Professional
A Los Angeles reputation management professional can help you cultivate the online presence that you want the world to see. Coalition Technologies offers experts in reputation management that can teach you to leverage your online reputation, whether for personal or company success. Give us a call today at 1-888-993-7639 and get a free quote.