What is Search Engine Reputation Management?
SERM, short for Search Engine Reputation Management, is an online marketing strategy that encompasses a range of activities. These activities include Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Paid Search Marketing, Press Optimization, Blogging and Social Media. Through SERM, businesses can increase their visibility in search engine results, while managing their online presence to ensure they are portrayed in a positive light.
Search engine reputation management (SERM) offers businesses and websites the chance to be mindful of processes that could potentially damage their reputations – and those which could boost them. These processes include SEO, Paid Search Marketing, Press Optimization, Blogging and Social Media. With SERM, companies have a powerful tool to protect and enhance their online reputation.
Why is SERM important?
ReviewTrackers data indicates that 94% of consumers are deterred from engaging with a business after reading a bad review – an impressive statistic that supports the importance of consistently monitoring and nurturing your online reputation. Here are the key reasons why such effort is worthwhile:
– Your company’s market value is directly dependent on its reputation.
– Many people make their opinion on whether to engage with an individual or a brand after searching online.
– Given the immense popularity of review sites across the web, people are likely to read what their peers say about you before forming an opinion.
Search Engine Reputation Management in Indianapolis (Indiana)
Our experts are dedicated to making sure your online reputation looks its best to potential customers. It’s essential to be aware of your online presence – not having knowledge of what’s being said on the web isn’t just irresponsible, it can be detrimental to your business. Monitor and take action to protect your reputation and ensure success.
How does SERM Work?
Once the reputation of a brand is challenged, the next step is regaining the trust and support of the public. We understand what it takes to successfully guide a brand towards a favorable online view through well articulated and trend-informed online reputation strategies. At our company, we offer a suite of Search Engine Reputation Management services to manipulate and influence public perception in a positive light. SERM is a multidimensional process combining key elements of SEO, social media, content marketing, and public relations to affect online reputation recognition. Our approach involves steps such as:
- Utilizing SEO tactics to ensure constructive content is visible in search results
- Expanding your social media presence and engagement
- Creating and distributing content of excellent quality
- Utilizing multiple channels of communication with the media
1.- Proactive Monitoring
To ensure the highest level of protection and improved reputation on the Web, proactively monitor your presence online. Utilize search engines to keep track of how your company is perceived, review blogs, read feedback and ratings from other various platforms. Over time, make sure you are present wherever your customers are engaging online. This approach will enable you to pick up and quickly address any pressing questions or concerns of customers – this can help to eliminate potential negative feedback.
2.- SERP Cleansing
SERP Cleansing is the practice of removing negative search engine results from the top pages. To optimize the top ten search results for your business, create new, impactful content such as customer reviews, media coverage, guest posts and other positive content about your company. Aggressively publishing this type of content can have a huge impact on your search engine results.
3.- Improve SEO
To improve SEO, it is important to:
- Analyse the existing website backlinks and work on improving their quality
- Detect and fix any broken links within the website
- Develop a content strategy and generate high-quality content
- Use relevant keywords which better target the target audience
- Optimize page and images for mobile and desktop search
- Improve page loading and response speed
In order to improve your website’s SEO, it is essential to analyze the current backlinks and work on improving their quality. Additionally, detecting and addressing any broken links within the website is important to ensure that users have an optimal experience. Furthermore, a content strategy should be developed to create and publish high-quality content on a regular basis and using relevant keywords to better target the desired audience. Moreover, pages and images should be optimized for both mobile and desktop users while improving page loading and response speed.
4.- Respond to Negative Content
Responding to negative content is critical in order to improve customer relationships, and there are several avenues to do so. Communities, forums, and review platforms offer a great opportunity to connect with an unsatisfied customer. By showing your concern and apologizing for their negative experience, you can go a long way towards appeasing and potentially influencing their opinion. However, if you are not actively monitoring the sentiment of customers, you may have to take drastic measures or risk your brand reputation.
5.- Social Media Presence
Social media is a powerful tool to help build credibility, authority, and trust with your customers. By consistently engaging and connecting with your audience, you can significantly enhance your SERP positions. All of the positive comments and feedback that occur on your social media channels provide Search Engines with an indication of your trustworthiness and authority, resulting in improved rankings.
It’s an excellent way to continually connect with your customers and promote your brand. By actively participating on social channels, you’ll create more opportunities to engage with your target audience and gain a more positive online presence. Ultimately, this will lead to improved SERP positions.
6.- Push Positive Content
Social media can be an incredibly powerful tool for achieving your business goals. It is effective at connecting you to potential customers, improving your visibility on search engine result pages, and boosting your standing in terms of trust and leadership. With increased engagement on social networks, your credibility with search engines is boosted, making it more likely that you will be seen at the top of the list when someone runs a search on the topic. Posting positive reviews and feedback of your product or service will also have a big effect on SERPs, helping to create a search engine-friendly environment for your brand.
Conclusions for SERM
Getting started with SERM is easy when you take cognisance of a few key things. First, it’s important that you monitor your online and offline presence – this helps you protect your reputation. Additionally, it’s essential that you foster a good online presence through active social media, helping you build and maintain relationships with your customers. Finally, don’t forget to pay attention to customer feedback – responding to both positive and negative comments can win you trust and respect. If you need extra support, the Search Engine Reputation Management experts at our networks of agencies have worked on projects in more than 30 countries and counting.