With more than 75% of HR professionals have rejected a job applicant based on a quick Google search, it’s never been more critical to protect your reputation online. To give you plenty of ideas of how you can save it, take a look at these top tips from the brand management experts.
Register YOURNAME.com Before Someone Else Does
This particularly applies if you have a rare or unique name, and it’s something that only takes a couple of minutes. You might not have a need or a desire even to launch your site right now, but you may well do shortly. This is one of the most popular tips from all business assignment help experts.
By registering your name, you’re not just preparing for the future. You’re laying the foundations for a strong and far-reaching personal brand that will allow you to see the results your hard work deserves.
Create a Social Media Posting Strategy
Posting to social media is something we all do, but how many of us take it seriously? If you want your Facebook page to be a window into your world, you need to make it enjoyable and current.
Creating a posting strategy will allow you to think about your content’s quality in a more structured manner. It will also ensure that you don’t post anything too personal to your profile, which could harm your reputation.
Avoid Online Arguments
It’s so easy to argue with someone who’s a thousand miles away, and you’ll never meet, but you need to resist the temptation. If you have a long list of arguments covering your first page of search results, it is bound to give anyone who searches you the wrong impression.
Walk Away From the Trolls
This point follows naturally from the last, but it can be easier said than done. The critical thing to remember here is that online trolls exist purely to react out of people. If you don’t give it to them, you can claim a well-deserved moral victory.
Take a deep breath, walk away, and don’t tarnish your reputation by interacting with someone whose only goal is to cause annoyance and upset.
Delete Outdated Content
Old content can be your enemy if it’s out of date and conflicts with what you’re doing now. If you’ve changed jobs, moved house, gotten married, or anything else important, then it needs to become a part of your personal story.
Continuously updating your content not only keeps it relevant. It also ensures that readers aren’t confused when they look you up online only to find half a dozen conflicting accounts of who you are and what you do.
Fact Check Your Posts
It takes seconds to tweet something and put it out there, and then everyone else has all the time in the world to pick apart what you had to say. That’s one of the issues with managing your reputation online, and it’s one that can be hard to get a handle on.
If you want to stand by what you say, you need to embrace the science of fact-checking. Take an extra couple of minutes to double and triple check what you’re planning to say. That way, you can come across as someone worth listening to, rather than someone ignorant of the facts.
Use Google Alerts to Monitor Your Name
Your name can pop up in the most unexpected of places, and if you’re not actively looking for it, then it might be a long time before you realize it. By setting up alerts in your browser, you can see what your name is being linked to.
This is especially important if you have a common name and a namesake is currently going viral for whatever reason. Once you know what’s going on, you can limit any damage done.
Apologize When You Get it Wrong
Getting it wrong is something we all do from time to time, no matter how much scheduling, planning, and fact-checking we do. Making a mistake is not necessarily going to tarnish your reputation, but not owning up to it will.
A great approach to take is seeing every mistake as a chance to learn, as well as an opportunity to show people that you have the humility and levelheadedness to admit when you’re wrong. A short and concise apology or clarification is all it takes and provided you don’t apportion blame to other people. You can come out the other side with your reputation intact.
Update Your Photos
This one is pretty self-explanatory, but you’d be amazed at the number of people who forget all about it. You post photos to give people a better idea of who you are and what you’re like to work with. It’s no use having a ten year’s old photo because it won’t be as authentic and relevant as one from last month, so make sure you stay on top of it.
Moderate Comments to Keep the Conversation Flowing
Moderating comments on your blog or social media posts isn’t about deleting everything you disagree with. By all means, block the trolls, but don’t stop everyone who has a different perspective.
If you want to build a fantastic reputation, you need to make the most instances where people go out of their way to engage with you. Keep the conversation flowing, and try to add value with every response.
Consult a Reputation Management Expert
Sometimes even when you do all of the above, you might still need a helping hand to keep your reputation flawless. Consulting with an Online Reputation Management Expert is the ideal way to ensure that you don’t miss anything that might prove crucial later.
Ask for some feedback from an Online Reputation Management Agency and a comprehensive audit of your reputation, and then follow the advice you’re given. That way, you can protect yourself online and see the results your hard work deserves.