What is Online Reputation Repair?

Online reputation repair is the process of fixing the negative impression and search results that relate to your name or brand on the internet. It is not something that works overnight, but several tactics operate incrementally to repair your online reputation. The strategy is about showcasing your personal or business attributes in a way that positively promotes what you do. It is not always possible to delete your post from the internet, but you can undoubtedly optimize it in your favor.

Steps to repair your online reputation

Before fixing your online reputation, the first step is to find the root cause. Common causes are negative reviews or bad press that put unfavorable links towards the top of search engine results. For example, a competitor could post a comparison between your products and theirs online, casting you in a more negative best ORM firms.

Repairing negative content

Unless there is a case against data privacy (such as with GDPR), Google will not delete content from search results. The answer is to try and repair the problem at the source. For example, if a negative article exists about you online, try reaching out to the author about editing it. The same can apply to customers who post bad reviews. There may be a way to appease the customer and ask for them to edit the feedback. It is sometimes possible to remove or hide harmful content.

Suppressing search results and new content

The best place to hide a dead body is page 2 of Google Search Results

In a 2019 survey, 7% of people say they click beyond the first page of Google. In context, if you can push content off page one, it may as well not be there 93% of the time. The key to this is creating top-quality, positive information, to highlight your business and force the unwanted content out of results pages.

Although content writing is a time-consuming activity, it is a worthwhile exercise to repair a negative reputation.

Other popular forms of new content that Google indexes in results are video, listings, and images. A well-crafted YouTube channel appeals to the modern-day consumer, acting as a faster way to build a positive reputation.

Optimizing existing content

As well as writing new content, optimizing what is already out there can have similarly positive results. One of the easiest ones being expanding and optimizing your Bio or About Me on Social Media profiles and listings to have ample info and include your name or target keyword a few times. Additionally, staying active on social media and getting people to link back to you or mention you can help increase those positive search results.