You did something, and it’s bitten you in the ass. You can’t change that now, all you can do is keep moving forward.

When your online reputation is decimated, though, it doesn’t only affect you. It can also screw with many other areas of your life, including destroying your business outright. Moving on from that as fast as possible is very important, but how easy is that?

This guide will show you how to start the online reputation repair process and return stronger than ever. Read on to discover the best ways to build a powerful reputation defense and show your haters just the badass you are.

Triaging the Impact on Your Business

Before you jump online and start bashing the rumormongers, you need to take a step back. Take a moment to assess the scale of the damage, examine how the bad press affected your sales, and what you expect to be the long-term impact.

Try to work out what the most damaging content is. Analyze which platforms are the most impacted and which parts of your brand need the most attention.

You can then start to set goals by defining what a repaired reputation might look like. Repairing your reputation online takes time and doesn’t always mean you’ll return to your same engagement level immediately. So, understand that you will need to be a little patient.

With all this information, you can prioritize your focus and triage your response where the most damage is. 

Burying Negative Stories with Good News

One of the easiest ways to get your reputation back to where it was doesn’t even need you to respond to the assholes saying shitty things about you.  All you need to do is overwhelm the algorithm with positive news instead, such as:

• Blog posts
• Press releases
• Case studies
• Service or product updates
• Outreach attempts

When you make this content, optimize it with keywords related to the issue in question. As your content becomes more popular, negative news stories will then push further down in the search results. This means those looking for you will only find things that make you seem like a hero, not whatever your enemies say.

Another useful step is to take all the great things people have already said and put them into a testimonial page. Having visible positivity about you can do wonders to push back on lies, slander, or people just being dicks.

How to Repair Your Online Reputation

When cleaning up your online mess, you must try to wipe the slate clean wherever possible. For locations reporting on lies as though they are true, you should engage with an attorney. They can submit takedowns on your request when the information is defamatory.

If the issue is simply bad reviews, then try to respond professionally when you can. Discuss solutions with dissatisfied customers, and correct them on misinformation. This means you need to assume they are not dickheads, so presume the best and take the stance that they are mistaken unless proven otherwise.

Navigating Through a Digital Shitstorm

One thing you won’t want to do, though, is respond to your worst detractors and people determined to take you down. This will only cause further harm.

Instead, use tools to track your brand’s reputation, such as Google Search Console, and create content that proves negative views wrong. This way, you can paint yourself in a better light without escalating the situation.

Instead, try to evaluate the situation. Determine if a response will mitigate or exacerbate the issue. Sometimes, critics want to speak to you in good faith, but other times they are seeking online recognition themselves.

If you choose to respond, do not escalate. Craft thoughtful and sincere responses, focus on solutions, and avoid replying to people who only engage in bad faith. You want to know that both you and the person on the other side of the screen want the best out of the situation.

Overhauling Your Public Image

When everything has blown over, you want to come back like a phoenix from the flame. Take time to redefine your brand and values while you resolve the situation, and see if you can change:

• Your logo
• Your website
• Your social media visuals
• Your online voice

This way, when things calm down, you can display a “whole new you” that people don’t associate with the issues of the past. You can instead move forward in a new, positive strength.

You can even promote this new brand, highlighting areas where you have improved, and look as though you are taking steps to resolve problems.

Teaming Up With Online Reputation Repair Services

If you do not have the time to handle such a situation yourself, you can always engage with an online reputation management service. Such people understand the danger that a negative public image can bring and also how to prevent an issue from getting worse.

Depending on their specialty, they can often help you develop content that avoids the negativity you may be tarred with. They can also pursue ways to give you a much better image in your online space.

The best reputation management companies can also collaborate with influencers. Leveraging such talent, they can give you a digital persona makeover. Showing someone popular and relatable discussing you in a positive light can have a huge impact.

Don’t Let Your Past Hold You Back

Your online reputation is fragile in the modern, online world. You shouldn’t wait to improve it, or you might have a lie hanging over your head for years. 

Reclaim the trust of your customers by working with Don’t Be a Little Pitch. Our online reputation repair service can promote the real you and not what others say about you. We do the hard work to bury misinformation, fixing your online image.

Contact us at Don’t Be a Litte Pitch for a consultation to get the kickass reputation you deserve, not the one others want to invent.