What does an online reputation manager do?

Combating negative content as well as increasing positive content about a brand, company or person on the internet has become a separate necessity. The name of this method of combating this kind of negative content was “online reputation management”.

Before the consumer buys a brand, he is using forums that include the opinions of those who have experience with that brand. Before a staff member is hired, he is researching the company, or vice versa, the company is investigating the history of the staff he will hire. Even when a doctor or lawyer is called, decisions can be made by looking at their reputation online. While a bureaucrat is being appointed, the press immediately tries to gather information about that person by scanning the news that has previously been published about that person. As a result, we are in a period where we determine our impressions about people, brands or companies according to search engine results and their activities in social network.

While a person used to be the subject of a report only had an effect on that day, it is not possible to get rid of the person’s past since the news has been published on hundreds of sites. For example, even if a person who was arrested for an accusation was acquitted afterwards, the news that he was arrested for many years can be easily reached. Even if an article written about the person is unfounded, it is possible to spread it to large audiences with comments added on it and social media posts. The same goes for brands and companies. Because even if promotional activities are carried out with the most plentiful budgets, it may not be so easy to prevent negative content on the Internet.

Good analysis and attention required in online reputation management
A new sector, emerging under the name of online reputation management, tries to delete negative content through law, on the other hand, it uses technical methods to bring positive content to the fore. By using article 9 of the Internet Law No. 5651, it is possible to remove negative content in a few days by first warning and then by a court decision.

Of course, this work also has a right to freedom of expression and criticism. Negative content may have emerged as a result of the use of freedom of expression and has not exceeded the limits of criticism. In this case, the courts do not always respond to the removal of negative content by drawing attention to this direction. This is the correct thing because it is necessary to prove that the limits of unfairness or criticism have been exceeded in order to remove negative content.

Sometimes trying to remove negative content can create a Streisand Effect. Attempting to remove a negative content that is not able to reach too many audiences legally or technically, may lead to the multiplication of the negative content and reaching more people. For this reason, online reputation management needs to be well analyzed and carefully done. Perhaps it would be more appropriate not to interfere with some negative content at all.