If someone was to search for your name in Google, what would they find? This is a question that is getting asked more and more as social networks are quickly indexing and documenting everything we see, say and do. To make the issue even more pressing, now companies and employers are performing personal searches for everyone they receive a resume or application for.
In short… what you put on the internet is here to stay and what people find on the main page of Google can give you an instant good or bad reputation.
However, Google can also be our friend and help us learn more about what is out there and how we can try to eliminate the bad with potentially good.
Here are some of the top ways you can start using Google to check your online reputation.
1. Simple Google Search
The most basic way to get started with a search for your name is to head over to http://google.com and type your name in and see what comes up. If you are fortunate enough to share the same name as a well known personality or celebrity then there is a good chance you won’t be ranking on the first page. However this doesn’t mean that anyone search for your name will stop after page 1. Keep searching til you find your own social pages or anything else about you.
How to Use Google to Check Your Reputation Online
2. Google Image Search
While many people are using Google to search for web sites to find what they are looking for, Google also has their own search function for just images as well. Using http://images.google.com you can search on anything and have a wide range of images shown. If you’ve ever posted pictures to a social network, blog, web site or photo directory and titled or linked back to these contents with your name, they might just be ranking in Google’s image search as well.
How to Use Google to Check Your Reputation Online
3. Google Alerts
New content is going live on the internet every second and the last thing you are going to want to do is have to continually visit Google to see if anything new is coming up for your name. Thankfully “Google Alerts” was created and this tool will allow you to put in the keyword or name of your choice and Google will send you an email every time a new article is indexed with that matching text. You can play around with the options to set how often you would like to check and receive notifications.
How to Use Google to Check Your Reputation Online
4. Google “Me on the Web”
The last tool on the list is called “Me on the Web” which is another feature Google came out with to allow anyone to better manage personal date. “Me on the Web” will allow you to search for yourself, setup alerts and review your Google+ profile but will also allow you to look for and track any personal data such as your email address or phone number if they are published anywhere online.
How to Use Google to Check Your Reputation Online
As scary as it might be when you think about what could be out there when someone searches for your personal name or business, Google does provide you with the necessary tools to find what’s out there.
Whether it’s negative comments, embarrassing photos on social networks or even negative reviews and feedback about your company or brand… you need to know what’s out there so you can take immediate action.
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