We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: everything comes back to search engine optimization. Unfortunately, many brands don’t realize that it’s one of the best weapons in defending and improving an online reputation. Reverse SEO is a strategy every brand should understand, so we’re breaking it down today in 3 easy steps.

How to Use Reverse SEO to Fix Your Online Reputation

If you find that Googling your biz name is bringing up things you’d rather forget (like that time your store manager’s furious spouse showed up and caused a scene) reverse SEO could be the answer to your prayers. Let’s use that scenario to teach you how to employ this favorite tactic of reputation management companies worth their salt.

The Steps Reputation Management Companies Take

When Taylor’s spouse came up and caused a scene, the local newspaper reporter just happened to be shopping in your space and ended up with a now viral video and blog post about how your shop is the place for drama hounds to hang. In fact, your website now doesn’t show up above the fold when you search for your business name. Instead the top three results are about the incident. Here’s what to do.

Step 1: Keyword Research, Reimagined

Usually keyword research is done to figure out what people are searching for and create new content. In the case of using reverse SEO to repair an online reputation, it’s a little different. Here, the idea is to outrank the articles you want to suppress. So the first step is to take those first three results about the incident in your shop and figure out what keywords they are ranking for. To do this, pop them into Yoast along with adding the meta, seo title, post title and any other info you can find. Look closely at the “prominent words” and you’ll be able to figure out what to target.

Step 2: Generate New Content

Now that you know what keywords to target, generate new content using those same keywords. But not just for your website. Consider guest posting elsewhere using those same keywords (especially to high-quality sites), too. By creating valuable content you’re more likely to push down those negative articles with fresher, better content that shows you in the light you deserve.

Step 3: Re-Optimize Your Site Using Traditional SEO Practices

When the bad stuff hits the front page of search engines it’s also a great idea to audit your site and make sure that pages haven’t gotten stale. Or, get an audit done by a professional. When using reputation management companies, make sure they understand reverse SEO—it’s more than acceptable to ask them about their practices. If they say they will work with publishers to have information taken down, back away from any deals with them. It’s usually impossible to do this. Instead, look for a company that will use organic SEO and reverse search engine optimization to help repair your tarnished image.

The Digital Firefly Marketing Difference

The reputation management experts at DFM understand how to employ ethical, tried and true strategies to help search engines focus on what matters: your business and the value it brings. Contact us for a free reputation audit and to find out how we can help return the spotlight to your business, not that unfortunate incident.