Online reputation management has become more popular in the past two years and particularly in the past year.  What does online reputation management mean? For many it has come to mean the process of repairing a damaged reputation in search engine results  The negative results that appear in response to a search for a brand or a name search can be caused by a number of issues, a malicious blogger, a disgruntled customer, an unscrupulous competitor, a vindictive former employee, or even a scorned ex-spouse or partner.

Many business organizations do not realize the impact of negative Google results.  The traditional PR consultants say “its just one blogger”  The fact is, if  that one blog post is in the top 5 results for your name or brand the collateral damage can be immeasurable.  What many companies fail to realize is that with the power of online word of mouth the viral affect of that one blog can be devastating.  The average user doesn’t understand that its just one blogger all they see is a post that says your company is dishonest and you immediately have a negative perception.

We rarely get calls from companies who wish to pro-actively manage their reputation online and maintain positive results which are under their control.  That would be reputation ‘management.’  What many companies need when they call us is reputation ‘repair.’  Any company that has taken time and money to build their brand should include reputation management as part of their overall online marketing strategy.  Fixing a damaged reputation can be extremely costly especially when the negative results are anchored into the top 10 on strong sites.  The time it takes to clean up the results can be extremely lengthy.

Companies often contact us with a severe problem and they want to throw a small amount of money at it and make it go away.    For that small amount of money they could have ‘managed’ their reputation by taking proactive steps to maintain a healthy top 10 but now find themselves in a situation where it’s too late.  Extensive reputation repair can entail building out as many as 10 sites - in other words 10 separate SEO jobs.  At the heart of reputation management is an effective organic SEO strategy, and as we know - good organic SEO is not cheap.

All companies should look to controlling the top 10 for their brand using micro sites, videos, images and other tactics to place corporate controlled material in front of the searcher.  Marketers and PR agencies have always understood the importance of maintaining a good reputation and a strong brand.  I find it astounding that the discipline has not automatically been taken online.  It is yet another indication of the overall lack of understanding of the web by traditional markers and brand builders.

I was a huge admirer of Seth Godin but now I am his #1 fan.  In his book Meatball Sundae, (which goes on sale on December 27, 2007) Seth talks about how some companies treat e-mails as an interruption.  He advises that e-mails should be treated as opportunities.

On Tuesday of  this week I e-mailed Seth and asked if he would consider providing some free copies of his book to use as a raffle at an AMA presentation I was giving on the Thursday.  I received a response from him within hours referring me to the person who would handle this.  Today just over 24 hours later I received the books in the mail. Now that is a marketer who has not only lived up my expectations as one of my all time super heroes but has now turned me into a raving fan.

Seth Godin writes practical advice that’s as easy to read as it is hard hitting and accurate.  All our team read his books and I encourage anybody running a business to read ‘Small is the New Big’ and ‘The Dip’ - to find them visit Seth’s bookfeed.

Working in the field of online reputation management at Elixir we are very familiar with flame sites and I must admit I have never felt like creating one until now. Well actuallt I do not really have the time but I certainly feel like it.   Perhaps this will help me to get it off my chest.  In the past 6 months I have flown 12 times on American Airlines and my experience has been miserable.  I changed from US Airways to AA this year due to their poor performance on punctuality and customer service.

I have been on 6 delayed flights, and one that was canceled.  Of the 12 flights I have flown only 5 have been on time.  On Tuesday the 4th of December I was flying from Chicago to Phoenix at 0955.  The flight was at first delayed then canceled for technical reasons.  I spent 7 hours at O’Hare Airport.  We were not given a beverage or an apology.  I had to walk from one end of the terminal to the other to get information.  For anybody who has been to O’Hare you will know that is no fun!

It was amazing that AA did not put customer service reps at the gate where the flight was cancelled to assist us.  The reps that were there could not help us.  Once again I had to walk to the other end of the terminal.  Upon arrival the customer service rep was rude to me. I was staggered when the rep I spoke to refused to re-book me on the next US Airways flight to Phoenix. Her colleague standing next to her was booking passengers on US Airways.  When I asked for an explanation I was told there was not enough time. I said I was prepared to try and she told me that her colleague could do what she liked but she was not going to.

I would have had to get back to the end of the line and hope that when I made it to the front again that I got her colleague.  And with the length of the line it was obvious that by the time I made it back up to the front again it would have been too late.   When I asked if the airport would call me to advise which flight my bags were on since at this point it was anybody’s guess she said “Of course not!! Do you think we have time to call 500 people!!”   I was simply stunned by the inconsistency.  If I missed the US Airways flights I then had 6 hours to get back to the AA terminal for the 3.15 flight.  I think I would have made it!!.

What has happened to customer service?  Are these staff being trained at all or has the whole airline industry given up? Airline travel has become a mass produced commodity.  I used to work in the airline industry so I fully understand the things that can go wrong but 7 out of 12 flights is a pathetic track record.  What is very alarming is that most of those delays were caused by technical issues. It is understandable that the plane has to be delayed to fix a technical problem as we all hope that safety comes first.  But why are there so many technical problems?  Have they cut back on servicing and engineering?

Traveling through security has become very stressful and is compounded by the fact that if you travel from an international to a domestic flight you have to do it all over again.  The airlines have done nothing to help only allowed their customer service and performance to detetiorate adding to the negative experience that air travel gives us.  The security measures are understandable and are there to protect travelers from terrorist’s threats.  However it almost seems that the airlines are now taking advantage of a traveling public who have accepted delays and inconvenience as the norm.

I am an avid traveler and have been traveling extensively for 30 years now.  The US domestic market is wide open for a carrier who can deliver some old fashioned customer service and an on time record to benchmark the rest of the industry and to improve the current dismal situation.  Right now I have to go back to the drawing board and hope to find a new carrier to hang my hat on, since American Airlines are permanently off my list.   Rant over!!

My new Search Engine Watch column went live today.  The title of the column is ‘Business of Search.’  As the name suggests I will look at topics related to running a search marketing agency.  My first article is entitled ‘SEM Agency: Uphill Battle?  Please give it a read and let me know what you think.

Here are some recaps of the Igniting Viral Campaigns session at SES Chicago this week.

Top Rank Blog

Web Pro News 

Real Estate Marketing Blog

I will post a more detailed account of the session when I get back from my travels next week.

I will be doing a presentation on behalf of the SEMPO Institute in Tempe AZ on December 13 from 3:30 until 5pm. The presentation is entitled ‘How to Plan and Implement a Successful Search Engine Marketing (SEM) Campaign.’ The location for the event is SRP Information Systems Building, Flagstaff Conference Room 1600 North Priest Drive, Tempe, AZ 85281