Online Reputation Management (ORM) is a way of protecting the good name of your organization. The last thing you want when a prospective customer researches your business is for them to find a series of negative reviews, Facebook posts, or even news stories. It only takes a couple of unhappy clients to muddy the online waters for you. ORM can help you take control of the image that you present online.
ORM doesn’t try to eliminate the unwanted content- instead, it buries it below positive content that will appear first in search results. The likelihood that someone is going to go to the second or third page in Google Search is low, so the goal is to push those bad reviews out of the way with new content specifically designed to promote you and your organization in a flattering light.
You also then get the opportunity to present your best face to the public- you get to control the conversation, rather than letting your competitors and dissatisfied customers take charge. As well, if you are active on your own site, as well as various social media platforms, you are going to quickly become aware if there are problems in regards to your reputation and brand, and will be able to quickly act to counteract it.
In the end, you need to take your reputation on the Web into account when planning a business strategy. Whether you are warding off problems before they develop, or taking remedial action to eliminate existing negative content, maintaining a strong, positive online profile is essential to running a successful business today.