Reputation Management By Optimum7

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Reputation has always been an essential factor in ensuring a company’s success.

Online Reputation Management (ORM) involves maintaining your company’s positive image over the Web and combating negative publicity when it arises. As daunting as it might seem to sift through an endless array of pages associated with your company, managing your reputation online is a key part of maintaining consumer confidence and trust.

A successful ORM campaign should do the two following things:

* take a proactive approach by constantly circulating positive public relations (PR) and using organic SEO to boost positive listings in SERPs
* address negative publicity swiftly and professionally

Using SEO and PR
Take a proactive approach in ORM using organic SEO (search engine optimization). If you utilize SEO from the beginning, the right sites will anchor themselves in SERPs (search engine result pages). Most Internet users only browse the first page of search engine results, so the longer you have high visibility on the Internet, the more popular your company can ...
... become in search rankings. Keeping your content up-to-date will also help.

If your company is above all the competitors and overwhelmed with business, it might be tempting to leave ORM low on the list of priorities. In theory, this could be the case if you have already established a solid reputation outside of the Internet â€your satisfied customers would advertise for you through word of mouth, and negative online reviews of your company might be dismissed, for the most part. Unfortunately, in today’s uncertain economic climate, there’s no guarantee that business will always go so well, and you will need that positive reputation when marketing to new customers. For this reason, public relations should be an ongoing priority.

Addressing Negative Publicity
All companies will inevitably draw negative attention in some capacity †the key is knowing how to deal with it.

The Internet provides a plethora of sites through which consumers can exchange ideas. Anyone with Internet access can join a social networking, blogging, or review site by taking just a few minutes to sign up. The anonymity that the Internet provides may embolden disgruntled customers and employees to embellish bad experiences for the sole purpose of sabotaging the company in question.

Also, keep in mind that people are less likely to share their positive experiences unless that experience really stood out. On the other hand, any amount of discontent might prompt a customer to share his or her experiences on the Internet. Unfortunately, no matter how well a business is run, there will always be dissatisfied customers who will take to the Internet no matter how amenable you try to make their situation.

Transparency is important in managing your online reputation. When faced with scrutiny, it’s best to address those problems directly instead of hoping or assuming they’ll clear up on their own. Let your consumers know what you’re doing to improve your company, and when problems arise, give them your side of the story.

Online reputation management is an ongoing process that should take the same priority as managing your company’s reputation outside the Internet’s realm. By following the above guidelines, your company can reap the benefits of a successful ORM campaign.

If you need assistance with Online Reputation Management, contact us. We can help.