Consumers often search the Internet for opinions and experiences with products and services. You can face a difficult conflict when attempting to remove negative reports on the Internet where disgruntled employees and customers take their grievances to the public. How do you defend your reputation from this negative publicity?

Using proprietary systems, we repair, revise, enhance and manipulate search engine results for our confidential clients.

SERM International, LLC
US Toll Free: 1-877-355-6410 (9 am - 9 pm EST)
International: 001-321-202-1308
United Kingdom (UK): 0-800-047-0900 (2 pm - 2 am)
European Union (EU / UK): 0-800-047-0900 (2 pm - 2 am)
Australia, Perth: 61-863654907 (9 pm -11 am)
E-Mail: reputationprofessor@gmail.com
For Reputation Management click here.

Online Reputation Management (ORM), Search Engine Reputation Management (SERM) , Online Identity Management (OIM)

Author: Nicola Nelson

So, you spend time, money and effort ensuring the reputation of your company is exactly what you want it to be. But, have you considered your online reputation?

Online Reputation Management is becoming a buzz phrase in the online world as companies realise the damage that can be done to their reputation at the click of a mouse.

Imagine, you have completed a sales presentation to a prospective client – you have told them just how darn good you are and why you are the company for the job.

Now imagine that same customer leaves your meeting with a warm and fuzzy feeling but decide they should carry out a bit of Internet research to find out as much about you as they can. Lo and behold, they turn up some less than complimentary comments about your product or service on a few forums and blogs.

Ah, the beauty of the freedom of speech. That is all well and good when people are saying complimentary things, but imagine the damage when they are not. A disgruntled employee, a less than satisfied customer or maybe a serial complainer, could all be at the root of the problem.

It is a known fact that PR is more effective as a selling tool than Advertising, why? The reason is PR is deemed to be impartial. Large corporations have even taken to adopting this practice with their TV advertising – for example the very large Supermarket who instead of telling you what good value for money their goods are, have decided to employ the services of a much loved British Comedienne to do what? Sell? No, bake bread on TV. There is no “strap line”, no “sales pitch”, they have not taken this decision without doing some research into human buying behaviour!

With this in mind, how powerful do you think negative information about your goods or service will be when deemed to be ‘impartial’?

But don’t for one moment think that this situation is limited to big businesses. You only have to look at the number of ‘review’ websites there are now to see that it can affect all size of businesses.

Remember the old adage “a happy customer will tell 2 people, an unhappy one will tell 10 times that number!” well, add the Internet into the equation at 10 times could easily become 1000 times on the information super highway!

Brand Reputation Management, Internet Reputation Management

Search Engine Reputation Management (or SERM) tactics are often employed by companies to proactively shield their brands from damaging content brought to light through search engine queries.
Some use these same tactics reactively, in attempts to minimize damage inflicted by inflammatory (or “flame”) websites (and weblogs) launched by consumers and, as some believe, competitors.
Given the increasing popularity and development of search engines, these tactics have become more important than ever. Consumer generated media (like blogs) has amplified the public’s voice, making points of view - good or bad - easily expressed.
Search Engine Reputation Management strategies include Search engine optimization (SEO) and Online Content Management. Because search engines are dynamic and in constant states of change and revision, it is essential that results are constantly monitored.

We cover reputation management every so often. There are reputation management sessions at Search Engine Strategies. With search, a positive company image is quite important. Bad publicity ranked on the top of the SERPs can hurt your image.

It is suggested that you even participate in reputation management before your reputation sours so that you have the rankings before you run into a threat.

“IMO reputation management should be a process built into your online
marketing efforts from the start. If you take the longer view and make
consistent efforts to do a good job servicing customers, fixing mistakes and
investing in your brand you will be ahead of the game when it comes time to
defend from a potential threat.”

If you have concerns about your online SERM (Search Engine Reputation Management), please lets us know and we will sort it out for you.

SERM International, LLC

Toll Free: 1-877-355-6410
Local: (321) 202-1308

Internet Reputation Management

Online Reputation Monitoring is critical when considering fiscal implications. Online Reputation Monitoring through analyzing and influencing search engine results, can prevent the loss of business or career and ensure ongoing success for you and your Company.

Reputation Monitoring

Internet Complaints

The term “online reputation management,” once squarely in the PR domain, is increasingly sneaking into the search engine marketing realm. Monitoring search results for complaint-speech (sometimes called “flames”) involving your brand name or trademarked words is extremely important. If users find a protest site in search results for your brand, they may click the link and believe what they read. Worse, they may base purchase consideration on the site’s content.

Online Reputation Ruined. Sale Lost.

Protest Web sites often seem believable, even when a complaint is trifling or unfounded. A site owner may or may not be willing to speak with you to resolve the matter.

Worse, a number of Web sites offer complaint forums. Sites such as the Rip-off Report, Epinions.com, even Edmunds.com have moderated discussion boards where unhappy customers post complaints. Discussion pages from these sites can show up in search results, sometimes near your listings, sometimes on broader, category-defining keyword phrases where you’re not found at all.

Imagine: The sole online voice speaking to your future customer is someone who hates you.

SERM International Search Engine Reputation Management Strategy
Our search reputation management strategy is simple: Displace the offending search listings with favorable ones and with your own content.

Optimizing a company’s primary content — namely, its own Web site — is the best place to start. Often, a site has an abundance of non-optimized pages that can be leveraged, ranging from press releases to product specs that can quickly rank higher in results than a protest site. Optimizing partner, affiliate, or other content sources (with the partner’s cooperation) will usually accomplish the rest of the job.
Don’t Forget Paid Search Advertising
Companies’ brand reputation can be damaged in search advertisements, too. Though major search engines don’t allow advertisers to infringe on trademarked terms in text ads, a surprising number sneak by.

Recently, a company discovered a competitor advertising on its trademarked term and using the term as the title of a text ad in Google AdWords. Although Google prohibits such use, trademark holders must often bring offenses to Google’s attention. In this case, Google was alerted and the competitor was put on notice of the violation. The ad was taken down within days.

SERM International utilizes advanced tools to track pay-per-click (PPC) search ads on an ongoing basis. Unlike natural search results, PPC ads change by time of day. Some disappear as budgets expire. PPC ads from your competitors or trademark infringers are much more transient. They appear on some searches, not for others. They disappear on the weekends or evenings, and reappear during certain hours.

Our Online Reputation Management Team

To complement our search engine optimization programs, SERM International has a specialized team of seasoned search engine marketing professionals to assist in monitoring for and displacing protest sites. Unlike a traditional PR department, our team has the technical knowledge required to attain high rankings in natural search results. This is the singular skill most necessary to produce the desired result.

Though understanding the importance and nuances of reputation management is valuable, ability and experience in attaining a higher ranking than an offending site must be the primary consideration.

For more information on how we can search for and defend your company’s reputation, view our packages or call our main office toll free 1-877-355-6410 to speak with a search engine optimization specialist.

SERM International

Toll Free: 1-877-355-6410
Local: (321) 202-1308
E-Mail: admin@fairwindsweb.com

Online, Slander, Libel, Defamation

Author: Graeme Nichol Arcturus

There have been many studies on credibility in life and particularly in management. It seemed like an interesting topic to read and reflect on. I am not going into a huge diatribe merely making a few observations.

In this world we live and die by our credibility. It takes years to build up a level of credibility and you have to maintain it constantly or lose it in an instant!

Credibility is an important aspect for a leader and trusted advisor. One of the interesting aspects is that there are three levels to your credibility. Namely how you perceive yourself, how others perceive you and finally how you are perceived within the organization. The perception by others maybe very local but for many managers and consultants who work globally this can have an extended web! Each of these needs to be in some form of alignment so as to be meaningful and deliver the results.

If we struggle to believe the persona we project how would we succeed? Look at successful credible people they have an aura of success. They project success. In management and in life we need to be positive to keep moving ahead and developing our credibility.

If you think you’re the cat’s whiskers and you colleagues have a different opinion. This would not be good. You have to try through a 360 degree evaluation to ensure some alignment on this.

Then look a little further out in your organization. How are you doing? How is your management team doing? Your company as a whole?

Credibility is the ultimate foundational for effective;
• Leadership/Team Building
• Relationship Development
• Coaching & Teaching
• Customer Service
• Sales

Credibility is; “The level of respect others have about you”

As credibility goes up, so does other’s willingness to;
• Believe what you believe
• Value what you value
• Support your plans
• Help you achieve your goals
• Be honest with you
• Trust you

What makes credibility increase and decrease?

• Behavior perceived as being appropriate (from the other person’s perspective - not yours) to time, tasks, people and situations, makes credibility increase.

• Behavior perceived as being inappropriate for the same factors makes it decrease.

Developing Credibility Behavioral Examples that Build

• Honesty
• Devotion
• Punctuality
• Good Example
• Ethical Behavior
• Taking responsibility for behavior
• Keeping promises
• Forgiving and Understanding
• Getting Involved
• Focusing on the Positive

Avoiding Credibility Behavioral Examples that Destroy

• Dishonesty
• Lack of Devotion
• No Concern for Time
• Setting a Bad Example
• Unethical Behaviour
• Breaking Promises
• Denying responsibility for Behaviour
• Unforgiving
• Not Involved
• Focusing on the Negative

Think how Kenneth Lay, and Jeff Skilling destroyed their credibility in the Enron debacle. I am not so sure that Martha Stewart’s credibility was damaged by her short stay in prison. She was not guilty of insider trading, which would have destroyed her credibility! Maybe he legal system took a hit. Perhaps more so internationally than locally. Kinda weird!

We wont discuss politicians. Each one could have a book written by the ebb and flow of their credibility.

Build your credibility and maintain it - your life does depend on it!

Author:  Johnny Albertson

A positive reputation is a priceless asset to any business. The loyalty of a small group of customers is nice, but generally not enough to bolster sales and keep food on the table. As entrepreneurs, we are always looking for new ways to reach a greater number of people.

There are a million ways to get your name out there, some more effective than others. Our modern society offers marketing opportunities through television, radio, telephone, the Internet, and a vast array of print sources such as brochures and magazines. Your budget will likely dictate which of these methods you choose to utilize.

There is one method, however, that any business owner should take advantage of. Regardless of the size or success of the company, article marketing is a fast and cost effective way to legitimately market your company.

How to Get Started
There are three main steps to the article marketing process:

1. Begin by writing a batch of articles surrounding topics that relate to your business.

2. Submit the articles to an article distribution service. (You can attempt to submit them to content sites individually if you have a boat load of time to spend on the project.)

3. Watch as your articles are distributed to hundreds of sites and subsequently published all over the Internet. The best part is that all of these articles will have links back to your website, significantly increasing site traffic and company exposure.

Lots of websites have an insatiable hunger for fresh content. This is why these article distribution services have become so popular. They have formed relationships with many of these content sites who have come to trust them to provide well-written and informative articles.

Branding Through Article Marketing
Article marketing is one of the best ways to get your brand name on the public eye’s radar screen. When you provide interesting and engaging articles that pique readers’ interests, you are assured that many of these people will check out your company website. The more often people see your brand name, the more it becomes ingrained into their memory.

For instance, if your company produces highly efficient halogen bulbs, you might write a number of articles addressing energy consumption and conservation. Every time a reader sees one of these articles, they also see your brand name. Then, the next time they find themselves face to face with a burnt out light bulb, they will immediately think of your company. It’s all about putting a face to your name.

The Article Marketing Difference
Article marketing offers something different than other marketing efforts, which is why it has proven to be so effective in gaining positive exposure for the businesses that use it. Instead of bombarding the consumer with fancy sales jargon, these articles simply give the reader good information.

It’s like making an investment in the customer before they invest in you. By offering them something right off the bat, they are more likely to trust that you are interested in something more than just sell! sell! sell! It shows that you want to share your expertise about the industry you represent.

As the saying goes, any publicity is good publicity. In my opinion, it’s always best to stick with the good publicity. Article marketing will help you do just that. Instead of turning people off through annoying advertisements, choose a different approach. Dispense a little wisdom up front and you are sure to turn potential customers into loyal customers.