When is the last time you did a vanity search to monitor your online reputation? {In short, vanity search means you search for your own name (or as more of a stretch, your company name) on the internet to see what pops up, and in what order.}
(Online) reputation management has become a true-blue industry. This comes in other similar iterations, such as Search Engine Reputation Management (SERM).
While firms in the AEC industry may have little to worry about at this juncture, all signs point to the fact that there will come a time when companies in our industry will also be highly (and I mean, highly) visible through electronic media.
But in the meantime, your personal brand is—and always will be—important to manage from the getgo.
For some industries, it’s endearing to have a bit of personal life intertwined with business life. This makes you a human being–someone that people want to do business with, or buy from. It’s something that makes social media, well, social.
So first, acknowledge that it’s ok to blur those lines to whatever degree you feel most comfortable. Next, make sure that you conduct yourself in such a way that—regardless of whether you are doing something personal or professional—you will not later regret your behavior/action, should you discover it’s been recorded or mentioned online for all to see. Then, do regular monitoring of your online reputation. Put it in your calendar for a quarterly (or even monthly) review.
Finally, what to do if you are dissatisfied with how you or your firm are being represented? It depends upon the reason you are dissatisfied:
1. You are nowhere to be found—even when you type in your own name (and even when you go steps further to add in other facts such as where you reside and/or your company name).
In this case, you have to get yourself highly active and visible online by your own accord. See these articles for ideas and inspiration: DEMYSTIFYING SOCIAL MEDIA, PART 1.What is it, and what makes sense for the AEC industry? and DEMYSTIFYING SOCIAL MEDIA, PART 2. The intent is simple: give value, get visibility.
2. You are personally shown in a compromising light, or your firm has been bad-mouthed—and you wish that you could somehow erase the information, link, video, etc.
Unfortunately, it seems impossible to erase negative information that is posted to the internet. Google and other search engines index links/posts for infinity, as far as I am aware. So even if something has been ‘deleted’, it’s still possible to view some or all of it in a cached version. So at that point, you need to take an approach to do damage control, if necessary, to counteract or overcome the impact of the negative online activity about you or your firm.
Online reputations. They’re not just for kids anymore. It’s real, and apparently, it’s fairly permanent.
