Blog written by Maggie Hassler
Managing reputations has become increasingly difficult with the development of the Web and easy access information through search engines. In today’s world the easiest, and therefore most common choice of researching a person or business, is through the internet by way of search engines. Unfortunately, not everyone is proud of the information that pops up on the computer screen.
When you Google your name, are there unflattering pictures of you from your wild days in college? No problem! Call up the specialists. Firms such as Reputation Defender and Tiger Two specialize in online reputation protection. According to a recent article in the UK Sunday Times, these firms can ensure that “only friendly entries appear on the first few pages of results when a client’s name is run through search engines such as Google.”
At fist appraisal these tactics seems a bit unethical but consider the type of client that might benefit from this service. One client of Reputation Defender such as this is an academic psychologist hoping to “bury” his written works on his own depression. Another example is a concert pianist who was jailed for harassment after calling Priceline.com 215 times in efforts to receive a refund on an airline ticket he never purchased. Yikes!!!
Another consideration is that information still remains available on the Web. The services simply move it to the second or third pages of search engine results. First impressions are everything for some people and clients. However, if someone does indeed intend to find unflattering information, they will.
What do you think?