Free Website Content
Reputation Management
The Internet is a bit like the old wild
west, and sadly, people often post material about an
individual, product, company, or service that is inaccurate
or simply nasty. Businesses and individuals alike are
struggling with how to best deal with online inaccuracy
and defamation. The normal steps for dealing with defamation
typically involve litigation, but this is not always
realistic for Internet-based situations since the Internet
is global, and not managed or governed by any single
set of laws.
If you have the good fortune of being
located in the same legal jurisdiction as the offending
poster and their website hosting company, you might
be able to successfully prosecute them; or at the very
least, you might be able to get the webpage with the
offending material taken down by the website host. Keep
in mind that most defamation court cases require that
you show that actual harm was done by the offending
material, which can often be difficult.
Of course, even if you are able to remove
the initial post, cross your fingers that it was not
part of a syndicated blog using RSS feeds. If the posting
was syndicated, it will truly be an uphill battle to
track down and remove all copies.
But despite the fact that legal action
is rarely successful, do not despair -- there are still
some things that you can do!
1. Face It Head On
If you see a webpage or blog post that contains inaccurate
information, face it head on. Contact the poster, tell
them why the information is inaccurate, provide sources
if appropriate, and give them the opportunity to correct
it. Keep your communication professional, and stick
to the factual inaccuracies; do not get into a debate
about opinions.
2. Do Not Argue; Offer a Solution
Instead If there is a problem that is highlighted in
the post, such as a situation where you or your company
failed to react in the appropriate manner, acknowledge
the problem and offer a solution. If the original post
was part of a blog, post a follow-up note after the
problem is resolved so that others will know that the
situation was corrected and resolved.
3. It is Okay to Apologize
There is nothing wrong with apologizing when a legitimate
mistake is made. In fact, consumers typically respect
an individual or company when they acknowledge their
mistakes and apologize for any short comings.
4. Remain Professional
Always stay professional. If the dialogue in a blog
discussion degrades into a mudslinging fest, you should
remain calm, take the high-road, and keep your comments
and public statements professional.
5. Control Search Results
Lets face it, when something negative appears in the
search engines as the result of your name, your company,
or your product being searched, it can be very disconcerting.
One solution is to create alternate search results,
containing positive information, which will appear higher
in the search results when those same keywords are searched.
This sounds difficult, but really it is not. Use the
standard Search Engine Optimization techniques, and
watch the "positive" material inch up in the search
engine rankings, which in turn forces those pages containing
negative material to lower (and often ignored) positions.
None of us enjoy having our name, our
company, or our product smeared and sullied online.
Online libel is difficult, if not impossible, to prosecute.
Learn to use the tools within your grasp to manage your
reputation and minimize the impact of any defamatory
comments.
About the Author:
Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll http://www.feedforall.com
software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds
and podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for
RecordForAll http://www.recordforall.com
audio recording and editing software.
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be greatly appreciated send an email to sharon@notepage.net
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