YOUNG PROFESSIONALS NETWORK
Managing Your Online Reputation By: Nathan Butrum, Realtor®, NextHome Excellence
“F
ind Yourself First, the Rest Will Come.” A quote like that may make you think of monks, hidden temples, or spiritual inspiration, but think again. I’m speaking of searching for yourself…online. When we don’t know an answer nowadays, we pretty much look to Google to find the resources to help us make a decision. Well, your potential customer is very much like you. What would pop up? Some random college party picture? Something derogatory you said? A mugshot even? Not very flattering when you’re asking someone to trust you with handling a major financial transaction. Managing your online reputation is one of the first major steps in ensuring that you don’t lose business and relationships before you even begin. Set a Google alert to let you know when something new is added with your name so that you can stay on top of it.
YOUR REPUTATION The definition of reputation is: “the beliefs or opinions that are generally held about someone or something.” Nowhere in that description does it say it has to be the truth. Is it fair? Who cares? Perception does not have to be reality in order for someone to believe it’s truth. What beliefs and opinions are your customers holding about you? The phrase, “your reputation precedes you,” isn’t some affable social exchange meant to pay homage to a bygone era of civility.
CHANGING LANDSCAPE Today’s landscape has changed drastically for many of us. The things we once took for granted, as a matter of fact, have different consequences. I know the saying about assumptions, but this is one of the times that you can assume that your private life is not so private. Your online profile, via social media, is one of the best ways
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to express yourself to a wide audience instantly. You WANT your presence to be seen, heard, and felt, but what image are you crafting for them to see? What are your posts telling them, and how do they feel about it? You can have dissenting points of view without being negative and combative online.
DOING WHAT’S RIGHT We are judgmental creatures even though most of us try not to be. I’ll be honest, even writing this to you, I feel torn between saying what I want to say and being careful how my peers are going to read and interpret this. At the end of the day, do what you think is right and be the best version of yourself while doing it. You know this! I’m not telling you anything new, but maybe you’ll think twice before sending a comment or post and ask yourself, are you contributing to the problem or the solution? •
