This document discusses online brand reputation management and monitoring. It provides tips for controlling what people find when searching for a brand online. Key points include: - Why it is important to monitor for negative sites, reviews, and mentions to control your brand image. - Methods for monitoring include Google alerts, RSS feeds, and hiring a professional firm to track brand mentions across the web. - The importance of engaging on social media like Facebook and Twitter, responding to comments, and using analytics to measure engagement. - Tips for using press releases, corporate blogging, and social media to positively promote a brand's reputation.

1. Online Brand Reputation ManagementWhen people search for your brand, can you control what they find?

2. Who Am I?Got on the Internet in 1986Working online with search since 1996Paid & Natural Search – all aspectsEcommerce, Publishing & High TechWorked with Orange, Sony, COIBlogging, Online PR

3. Topics CoveredWhy MonitorWhat To MonitorHow To MonitorPress Releases & PRCorporate BloggingLeveraging Facebook

4. What is reputation management?The active monitoring, engagement and manipulation of information publically accessible in order to present a company or person in the most positive possible light

5. Why Monitor?On a brand search, you may find negative sites come up for your company nameConsumers increasingly turning online for 3rd party reviews – distrusting company PRAngry & happy consumers increasingly blogging, commenting, engagingCompetitors can undermine your imageDiscover problem or issue previously unaware ofTrack customer service issuesDiscover news mentions for PR use

9. You, Your Brand & What It MeansYou are a brandUnique, valuable, identifiable

10. Why Monitor Yourself?Employers performing searches before hiring on Google, Facebook and TwitterYour image is dictated by what is found thereCompanies on CV being checkedNeed to be aware of possible questionsOn a search, you may find negative sites come up for your name or your company nameBeing aware of brand you will impress employersDiscover news mentions for personal PR useManage your reputation

12. Some of these were not me!

13. MUCH BETTER!

14. What to MonitorEverything related to your company including variations of your names, key employees name mentions, all product or service namesDon’t forget the competitionIndustry newsTrack forums, lists, user groups, boards, etcTechnorati, Digg, Reddit, etcWatch out for RipOffReport, ComplaintsBoard, PissedConsumer and the like – ‘reviews’ may be false

16. Digg, Technorati & Reddit

17. How to MonitorSimple Google/Yahoo search for your target termsCreate and use RSS feeds to monitor keywords - BloglinesGoogle alerts & Yahoo alertsCreate shortcuts to quickly monitor (vertical search, tag search, etc)Hire a professional firm

18. Subscribe to Search Results

19. Subscribe to Search Results

20. Example Feed

21. Yahoo alerts

22. Google Alerts

23. AnalyticsKnow your goal: reach, engagement, traffic, etcSet a benchmark of your goalUnderstand Twitter – no one reads all followers tweets above a certain volumeHave appropriate tools in placeLove your analytics at least an hour a week

24. Twitter AnalyticsPotential reach is direct account followers plus followers of those followersMessage must be shorter than 140 for ease of RTAround 20% of followers on some accounts will be spambotsNot everyone will retweet (RT)May be picked up for blog or news – use unique URL with bit.ly

25. Analytics

26. Press Releases & PRUse press releases for news-worthy items including hiring new department heads, new ad campaigns, and new product launchesDon’t undervalue your company’s achievements – shout about themUtilise one PR distribution channel – you will not impress a journalist by spamming themLink press releases with website pages dedicated to the news but use different copy

28. Corporate BloggingAuthentic voice – PR company cannot write CEO’s blogTalk beyond PRs and news items – consumers will engage more when less formal, more “personal” information is sharedEngage – respond to comments (don’t flame or respond to trolls)If valid negative feedback appears, consider it, respond and follow upPromote employees’ blogs even when not official corporate blog – ie. IBM, Microsoft

29. The CEO Blogs…Where time is at a premium, the CEO could blog as part of a larger project. Note the personal, genuine voice here with the CEO of McAfee– it is essential

30. IBM Features All Bloggers

31. Leveraging FacebookConstant engagement required – cannot just set it up & leave itObserve how competition has done it & do it betterFeed corporate blog through to pageCreate buzz through specials for Facebook fansAdvertise Facebook presence through emails and normal communicationsApplications and widgets can do well but focus on engagement through fan pages first

32. Questions?