Do It Yourself Reputation Management with Google Reader

When your customers are searching for a solution online or begin to research your company, they usually turn to a search engine. Therefore, what shows up on that front page is very important. Using the following tools and procedures, you can stay on top of what the Internet is saying about your company or yourself.

Initial Setup

1. Determine which keywords you want to monitor. A good start would be your company name, the names of competitors and industry keywords.
2. Setup a Google Alert for the terms determined in step 1 with these settings:
   • Comprehensive
   • as-it-happens
   • up to 50 results
3. Create a filter in your email program for the email googlealerts-noreply@google.com to push the alerts to a designated folder.
4. Setup Google Feed Reader or your RSS reader of choice
   • Go to http://alp-uckan.net/free/monitorthis/
   • In the search box use the terms determined in step 1 and click “make monitor.opml”
   • Follow the instructions under “Usage:”
5. Use UserNameCheck.com and KnowEm.com to make sure you have control of your brand name across various networks.

The next step is to determine a review procedure.

Daily or at least Bi-Weekly

• Check email for Google alerts (the folder you created in step 3)
• Check your Feed Reader

Weekly

Note: Remove the []’s below and replace with your specific information.

• Review Overall Internet Buzz: http://whostalkin.com/search?q=[your terms]
• Review Google Search: http://www.google.com/search?q=[your terms]
• Review Incoming Links: Type or paste “link:[yourdomain.com] -site:[yourdomain.com]” into a Google search bar (without the quotes)

How are you managing your online reputation?