Good Habits for Digital Reputation

Your digital reputation starts with posts, reviews, and searches, one at a time. The best part about building good habits for digital reputation is that you do not have to be in a crisis to think about it. There are just a few things you can do repeatedly to keep your name or brand looking great.

People look you up before they call, hire, buy, or invest. In a CareerBuilder survey, 70 percent of hiring managers said they research candidates on social networking sites, and 66 percent said they also use search engines. There are only a few things you can repeatedly do to make sure your name or brand stays in good standing.

Below are six habits that individuals, executives, and business owners can start this week.

Habit 1: Search Yourself on a Regular Schedule

Manage what is out there that you can’t see. Schedule a calendar event to search your name, your company’s name, and any misspellings of both on a monthly basis. Review the first two pages of results, the images section, and the news section, and be sure to use a private browsing window.

When possible, automate the process. Alerts are available to notify you of mentions of your name in any new information online. There is also a “Results about you” feature by Google where you can request that certain results featuring your phone number, address, or email are removed from the searches.

Keep a simple log of what you find each month. Over time you will spot patterns, such as an old article climbing in the rankings or a new review site picking up your business, while there is still time to act.

Habit 2: Pause Before You Post

A screenshot outlives a deleted post. Before you publish anything online, check your work with a simple three-question test: Will I be fine if my boss, a customer, or a journalist sees this? Does it tell the truth? Am I posting it when I’m mad, sleepy, or tipsy?

This list provided by CareerBuilder tells us which actions usually result in missed chances for success. Employers listed things like posting content about alcohol or drugs, revealing confidential information from a previous employer, or choosing an unprofessional screen name. All of this can easily be avoided if you learn to pause before posting.

This applies to comments, reviews you leave for others, and replies in group chats too. Anything you type online can be copied and shared, so treat every post as public, even when it is not supposed to be.

Habit 3: Lock Down Your Privacy and Security

A hacked account can wreck a reputation overnight. Scammers can post in your name, message your contacts, or leak private information. Protecting your accounts is one of the most overlooked good habits for digital reputation.

Start by turning on multifactor authentication for your email, social media, banking, and business accounts. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) says this simple step can make you 99 percent less likely to get hacked. Pair it with unique passwords for every account so one leak does not unlock everything else.

Review your privacy settings every few months because platforms change them regularly. According to the Federal Trade Commission, it is important to use privacy settings to restrict who can see and post on your pages. It also warns that even after setting your privacy settings, you cannot have full control over the process. Check who is allowed to tag you, view your friend list, or look you up through your mobile number.

Habit 4: Respond to Reviews and Feedback Calmly

Customer review and five star rating displayed on laptop screen. Concept of online reputation, user feedback, satisfaction score, digital marketing, e commerce trust, and modern business technology.

By wanchai peatoo

How you respond to criticism says more about you than the criticism itself. Make it a routine to scan your review profiles every week and respond to any reviews, whether good or bad, within a few days.

For bad reviews, keep it short and to the point. Thank the reviewer, acknowledge the problem without getting into an argument, and ask the customer to continue the conversation offline. Future customers will read your response just as closely as the original review, and a calm, helpful reply will earn you more credibility than a perfect five-star rating.

For good reviews, a simple thank you note will do.

Habit 5: Publish Positive Content Consistently

The best way to protect your reputation is to go on the offensive. By publishing accurate and relevant information on a regular basis, you give search engines better material to display when people search for your name.

Invisibility can be risky as well. According to the CareerBuilder survey, almost half of employers stated that they would be less likely to bring a candidate to an interview if they could not find the candidate online. If there is no information about you at all, there is a chance of misunderstandings or of someone else defining you.

Choose a pace you can maintain, whether it is one post on LinkedIn per week or one article per month. Fill in your professional profiles fully, share achievements and milestones, and make contributions to your industry.

Habit 6: Clean Up Old Accounts and Content

That forgotten blog from college or the old business page you stopped updating years ago can still show up in search results. Once or twice a year, make a list of every account you have ever created and decide whether to update it, lock it down, or delete it.

Also scroll back through the older posts on active accounts. Things that were once funny or just an opinion in the past may no longer reflect who you are today. Delete or archive any posts that are no longer you.

If a site has taken action to delete or correct their data on you but the old information is still showing up in search results, there is a way to request that the outdated information be refreshed via Google. When content online feels uncontrollable, it is time for professional assistance.

Make Good Habits for Digital Reputation Part of Your Routine

Protecting your name online is not a one-time activity. It is a series of small things that you do repeatedly: search yourself regularly, think before you post, protect your accounts, respond carefully to criticism, publish positive material, and clean out anything irrelevant. If you do them consistently, they will help make sure your search results work for you and not against you.

Some situations go beyond what habits alone can fix, such as damaging articles, false reviews, or a fast-moving online crisis. That is where TheBestReputation can help. As an online reputation management firm, TheBestReputation helps individuals, executives, and businesses build, protect, and restore their online presence through strategy, content removal, and search result improvement. If you are ready to take control of what people find when they search your name, reach out to TheBestReputation for a consultation.

Sources

TheBestReputation. Online Reputation Management Services. https://thebestreputation.com
CareerBuilder. “70% of Employers Use Social Networking Sites to Research Candidates During Hiring Process.” https://resources.careerbuilder.com/employer-blog/70-of-employers-use-social-networking-sites-to-research-candidates-during-hiring-process
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). “More than a Password: Multifactor Authentication.” https://www.cisa.gov/MFA
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). “CISA Challenges Partners and Public to Push for More Than a Password.” https://www.cisa.gov/news/2022/06/06/CISA-Launches-Morethanapassword
Google. “A New Search Tool to Help Control Your Online Presence.” https://www.blog.google/products/search/a-new-search-tool-to-help-control-your-online-presence/
Federal Trade Commission. “Living Life Online.” https://consumer.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/articles/pdf/pdf-0006-living-life-online_0.pdf