It is quite possible that some consumer is searching the web for you right now, or has been waiting to look you up. You must make sure that what they view is positive and you control your pages and profiles they visit. Otherwise, it’s time to take your online reputation seriously instead of ignoring it.
Needless to say, first Impressions matter the most on the Internet and social media. Please know that viewers are pretty impatient and the moment they perceive something adverse or negative, they will turn away from you – may be never to visit your site again.
It’s no secret that friends, relatives, and potential customers will all look into various search engines and social media channels for more information about you and your company when they want it. When it comes to potential employers or consumers interested in you, it’s important to make sure that the things they find about you truly reflect who you are or what your business is.
You don’t have to be a job-seeker or business owner to understand the importance of your online reputation. You can even be a freelancer or self-employed professional that wants to control their image, or just someone who doesn’t want your name dirtied.
As a first step, do a Google search and find out where you stand and try to erase any negative remarks. It is indeed a good idea to know what others see when they search for you. Then you can tweak what you find so that it is reflective of your true self that you want the public to see, not just what Google reveals.
Search for yourself on both Google and Facebook. You might have probably done a Google search before, but if not, now’s the time to do it.
Take extra pains and go more than a few pages deep, and make note of what you see. Remember, making a good first impression requires actually means you have an immaculate profile. If nothing is found means no one is interested in you and that can be pretty bad too.
You should also view your public self on all major social media channels like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Google+. See what’s visible and whether it adversely affects your true self.
You can see what your profile looks like to someone who stumbles on you, even if you’re not easily found. Try to do an even deeper dive on search engines and social media channels. Most people won’t go to such lengths, but if you’re curious, give it a try.
Make it a point to clean up any results you don’t like or anything that badly portrays you. Now that you know what others see, it’s time to get rid of anything you don’t like.
Learn to fix internet embarrassments before someone tricked you and set up fake profiles to defame you, or someone’s been impersonating you online.