Managing Your Online Reputation

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Belch.Com has been online for over ten years now.  Because the site is so old, many things I have on the site, even old content from years ago, ranks near the top when someone does a google search. 

So it doesn’t surprise me when someone contacts me occasionally to ask that I remove their name from something I have posted-  usually an old recorded belch that they did when they were 16 and messing around with the family computer.  But now they are 26, out of college and are worried that their name ranks so high on a Google search.  You see, they don’t want a prospective employer googling them and seeing something foolish about them on the internet. 

This recently happened with a Vice President of a major computer manufacturer.  His name was very unique, and he was rather well known at the company and on the lecture circuit.  But when you did a Google search of his name that was on his business cards and stationary, you didn’t get his bio at the major computer company-   you got his disgusting wet belch that he submitted with glee when he was in college.  His bio page was number two.  Obviously, this was embarrassing to him, so when I was asked, I changed the name on the page.

One of the first things employers do today when they consider hiring someone is an internet search.  If you did something stupid, or went to jail in a spectacular fashion, your name and your deeds will show up, unless of course, your name is so common that it would be difficult to distinguish from everyone else.  Like John Moore or Jill Brown.

That’s why managing your reputation is so important.  And not just on a personal level, but as a corporate entity, it is important to manage your reputation too.  CNET has a great article on do’s and don’t of managing your reputation here.