My presentation from SMX East 2010 on how to leverage search, PR and reputation management to manage ones brand online.

1. Search, PR & Reputation Management
In The Trenches With SMBs
Max Thomas, October 5, 2010

2. Max Thomas – ThunderSEO.com

3. From the global village
in the age of communication
…

4. Things Don’t Always Go As
Planned…

5. Online Reputation Types
We have so many
negative reviews &
listings – how do
we get rid of them!

6. Online Reputation Types
Our business keeps
getting picked on by
the media and angry
bloggers. It’s costing
us millions!

7. Online Reputation Types
We do our best to serve our customers.
We do our best to be good business citizens.
We can’t make everyone happy.
We’re prepared for whatever happens.

8. Historical “Online Reputation Management”
Focus on SEO & Rankings:
1. Identify “problem” sites that rank for target keywords
•Typically RipOffReport.com, ComplaintsBoard.com, negative
Yelp reviews, angry blog posts, etc.
2. Increase rankings for “positive” and “neutral” sites for
target keywords
3. Monitor and adjust ongoing based on rankings and
new reviews
• Add new sites for person or business like ning.com, blogs,
additional press releases, etc.
4. RipOffReport.com & Complaintsboard.com offer unique
challenges

9. Negative
Neutral
Positive

10. Historical “Online Reputation Management”
Pros:
• Easy to execute
• Fast results
• Online PR’s – Typically work for about 8 weeks max
• Effective if there are strong positive/neutral listings and
weak negative listings
• Effective for online brand management
Cons:
• Doesn’t address issue
• Short-term only
• Doesn’t build community or support around brand
• Transparent – people will see through efforts

11. Today: Proactive Online Conversations
Social Media (Facebook & Twitter)
• Set-up Real-Time Searches for Brand/Product Names
• Monitor Conversations
• Respond to Positive & Negative Comments
Twitter makes
it easy to
monitor brand
mentions

12. Today: Proactive Online Conversations
When Positive
• Keep Conversation Public…that’s easy!
Positive
feedback and
positive
response

13. Today: Proactive Online Conversations
When Negative
• Address publicly
• Remember: Responses and posts are public – you
may not convert unhappy customer, but you can
positively influence first-time visitors
• Don’t delete unless spam or cannot be solved
Company’s public response:
Single negative brand
not accepting blame, but trying
mention:
to help the customer privately

14. Today: Reviews Rule!
Respond to Positive & Negative Immediately
• Not always necessary to bend over backwards, but
definitely acknowledge customer’s complaint or issue
• Do not take personally
• Try to steer response toward understanding and
resolution

15. Reviews: Impact on Search
Brand Name
Search Pulls Page
1 Rankings for
Negative Reviews

16. Reviews: Negative Response Example
Negative Review
Reveals Mis-
understanding about CA
CAP Program. Accuses
Business of Scamming.
Business Owner
Responds Explaining
CAP Program and How
Others Can Benefit.

17. Reviews: Anger for Anger’s Sake
Upward Trend of Angry, Ranting & Hot Reviews
• General trend in increase of angry reviews
• Reviews aren’t event about actual service or for a
different company
• Even so, respond immediately with understanding and
helpful support
• Again, you may never be able to convert this customer
but you can leave a good impression for first-time
visitors who read the review and your response

18. Reviews: Angry Example
Review is for 3 Years
Ago. Doesn’t Address
Service Provided by
Dentist. Almost
Irrational Review.
Dentist Thanks
Reviewer, Acknowledges
3 Years Time Lapse,
States Ethical Belief,
Expresses Concern.
Very neutral response.

19. Counterpoint
When There’s a Barrage of Negative Press,
Reviews & Comments…
…Respond with an Integrated Strategy.

20. Counterpoint
1. Be Prepared – Ask for Help
• If Company has built-up an online community
around their site, blog and social media profiles,
then they have a ready-to-go network of
supports to ask for help, advice and even help
spread the word.

21. Counterpoint
2. Be Prepared – Media Contacts
• Leverage social media early-on to create media
and journalist relationships
• These contacts can help you reach media outlets
• Check out Muckrack.com, HARO enewsletter,
JournalistTweets.com

22. Counterpoint
3. Twitter/Facebook Responses
• Have a handful of templated responses ready for
dealing with the particular issue
• Especially helpful with controversial
announcements
• Monitor social media channels for comments
regarding company name, issue, etc.

23. Counterpoint
4. Online PR
• Online PR’s rank quickly for targeted keyword
searches
• If consistent news coverage for company name
(or name + keyword/issue), push series of PR’s
utilizing same keywords in title
• Submit to primary free PR sites (which then
get picked up by other sites)
• Consider paid PR channels for specific
messaging

24. Counterpoint
5. Blog Posts
• If site has well-indexed blog, post
responses/articles that leverage target keywords
in the blog titles
• Depending on scope of exposure, post daily or
several times per week
You may
remember the
Apple vs. Adobe
flash for the
iPhone debate

25. Counterpoint
6. Youtube Video
• Create 60-120 second video spots
• Optimize for target keywords
• Add to business’s Youtube channel
• Pull in video to homepage and/or blog
• Have video template already created with
branded header and footer graphic
• Submit video sitemap to google
• Video’s from Youtube have a good chance of co-
ranking or out-ranking news video search
rankings

26. Counterpoint: Example
Situation:
Mercy for Animals releases video
showing undercover footage
depicting cruelty to animals.
Farmers were outraged that it
was an unfair representation.
See “When Social Media Conflict Comes To The
Farm” by Michael Gray on SEL.com 8/20/2010

27. Counterpoint: Example
Response:
Farmer Ray Lin fought back.
Started blog with stories and
pictures about his farm …
See “When Social Media Conflict Comes To The
Farm” by Michael Gray on SEL.com 8/20/2010

28. Counterpoint: Example
Response:
Farmer Ray Lin fought back.
Started AgChat foundation
to train farmers on how to
use social media …
See “When Social Media Conflict Comes To The
Farm” by Michael Gray on SEL.com 8/20/2010

29. Counterpoint: Example
Response:
Farmer Ray Lin fought back.
Launched AgChat Facebook
fan page …
See “When Social Media Conflict Comes To The
Farm” by Michael Gray on SEL.com 8/20/2010

30. Counterpoint: Example
Response:
Farmer Ray Lin fought back.
Launched AgChat Twitter
profile …
See “When Social Media Conflict Comes To The
Farm” by Michael Gray on SEL.com 8/20/2010

31. Counterpoint: Example
Response:
Farmer Ray Lin fought back.
Launched AgChat YouTube
channel …
See “When Social Media Conflict Comes To The
Farm” by Michael Gray on SEL.com 8/20/2010

32. Counterpoint: Example
Response:
Farmer Ray Lin fought back.
Launched AgChat Linkedin
Group …
See “When Social Media Conflict Comes To The
Farm” by Michael Gray on SEL.com 8/20/2010

33. Counterpoint: Example
Response:
Farmer Ray Lin fought back.
Held first AgChat conference
in August …
See “When Social Media Conflict Comes To The
Farm” by Michael Gray on SEL.com 8/20/2010

34. Counterpoint: Example
Moral of the Story:
• Farmer Ray Lin has built a vibrant online community.
• Farmer Ray Lin is prepared.
• He’s now setting the ground rules.
• He has support when there’s a crisis.
See “When Social Media Conflict Comes To The
Farm” by Michael Gray on SEL.com 8/20/2010

35. Agency – Client Ground Rules
1. Internal Communication & Management
• In working with clients, there must be direct lines of
communication with customer service and sales teams.

36. Agency – Client Ground Rules
2. Client Responds to Sensitive Comments
• Agencies can help spot sensitive comments right
away and guide how best to respond
• Response is “voice” of client
• Should be sincere, transparent (as appropriate) and
thoughtful

37. Agency – Client Ground Rules
3. If Issues Persist
• If negative comments continue, it’s probably an internal
problem
• Don’t rely on agency/reputation management campaign
Some
brands have
consistently
negative
feedback
and fail to
respond

38. Agency – Client Ground Rules
4. Client/Brand Must Engage in Online
Conversations
• Even though client can’t control what’s being said
about them, doesn’t mean it can be ignored
• The conversation will happen online whether the
company is paying attention or not
• Better to pay attention…and respond!

39. Agency – Tips
1. Be Careful What You Wish For
• We used to promote “online reputation management”
as a service but noticed that most prospects were
mostly “problem clients” with questionable operations
• We dropped “online reputation management” as a
service offering

40. Agency – Tips
2. It’s Not Cleaning Up – It’s Branding
• Now we offer “online reputation management” via a
holistic approach to a company’s online footprint
• E.g., Search, social media, video, etc.
• In other words, online reputation management is now
part of the online marketing process

41. Agency – Tips
3. Client Must Be Onboard…
… Or You’ll Constantly Be Putting Out Fires
that Client Can’t/Won’t Fix.

42. Thank You
Max Thomas
max@thunderseo.com
@thundermax
Facebook.com/thunderseo