Online reputation management (ORM), also known as social media management, is a discipline which makes use of several web based technologies to influence the public’s perception of a business or individual. Such technology includes social bookmarking, article submission, blogs, and web analytics in order to track and monitor the reputation management of companies or individuals. As a rule, when it comes to cleaning up search results, online reputation management services are more focused towards improving a particular person or business’ online image through positive PR or viral marketing techniques. There is however room for some criticism of this approach as some people may not be able to identify these techniques or methods. To illustrate this point, if there is a very negative press regarding a particular person or business, it will naturally be picked up by various news agencies and posted on various Internet news sites, given the increased likelihood of the story being picked up by these sources.
The other aspect of online reputation management services is in relation to managing negative news. Such news will invariably gain a lot of exposure through various sources, including informal press, blogspot, discussion boards, and forum postings, all of which will potentially gain a lot of public attention in a short period of time. In order to deal with this effectively, it is important for a business or person seeking such services to invest in some form of ORM strategy. This may include hiring professionals, purchasing software, or enrolling in courses that train people in the various techniques used to manipulate search engines and public relations.
In essence, ORM is about online reputation management and search engine optimization. A company or person who seeks to improve their public image through such a strategy must seek training in the various ORM strategies used, as well as develop an online reputation management strategy of their own. For example, if a company seeks to improve its image through social bookmarking and blogs, the website owner or blog manager should invest in learning how to use those strategies effectively. Those who are interested in reviewing their reputation might also do well to learn the various search engine optimization tricks. Learning these techniques can also help business owners who are trying to increase their payouts from Google, Bing, and other major search engines.