4 Strategies for Strengthening Your Budding Online Reputation

If you’re new to the world of personal branding, you may think that simply having an online identity boosts your brand.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  In fact, having the wrong information posted online could hurt your brand considerably.

Building an online reputation—one you can be proud of—is not always as easy, especially if someone out there has your name and is competing (knowingly or unknowingly) for the number one spot in search engines.  That’s why you need strategies to help strengthen your budding online reputation.

1. Increase your professional volume: One way to strengthen your online reputation is by ensuring that there is more content online about you.  But not just any content; you want professional content.  This can be accomplished by enhancing your relevance.

2. Enhance your relevance: To enhance your relevance means that you not only create online profiles, blogs, and write guest posts that improve your professional presence but also eliminate any unflattering words, photos, or videos of you.  In other words, you want all information posted about you online to be positive and professional.

3. Create one search location: Web sites like Visibility help to move all information about a user into one location through Google searches.  By setting up an account, the site will set up a “Search Me” button that includes the user’s e-mail signature, LinkedIn profile, blog, etc.  But most important, when a recruiter clicks on the user’s link, they are provided with a list of Google links specific to that user.

4. Improve your diversity: In addition to a LinkedIn page, set up a Google profile which similarly allows you to post an online resume of sorts.  Also, consider setting up a Flickr account where you can post professionally relevant images in order to make your online brand more diverse.

Your online reputation is extremely important.  In fact, it could be more important than any resume you submit because companies use the Internet to conduct their background checks.  So if you haven’t already, now’s the time to strengthen your budding online reputation.

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