REPUTATION MANAGEMENT
The other day the advice of a colleague ran through my mind: “Makiziwe, you should start a blog; you always have something to say.” I rolled my eyes deep into the back of my head since starting a blog was the furthest thing from my mind.
I mean, what would I say? Who would I write for? Who cares what I have to say? The only blogging I do is for my clients. When people read a company’s blog they rarely know who is the author and that was precisely what I liked about corporate blogging– anonymity!
I took a huge gulp of the Cabernet Sauvignon that was in my glass. “Should I blog?” I thought aloud. “But how would that benefit me?” In this internet era where social media is king, and people believe whatever they read or hear about you, controlling the narrative is key!
Who knows more about you than you? Instead of letting people assume who you are, perhaps you should tell them. Which is precisely why I created my own blog. WELCOME!
Social media is a very powerful tool and can be used to either build or destroy someone. Some people use Facebook, Twitter, blogs, Instagram etc. to cyber bully– to destroy someone’s life/reputation; another reason I started my own blog.
I too have fallen victim to the evil that is social media. Being targeted in an online smear campaign can harm your reputation; it can cost you a job, relationship, friends. So what do you do? You take control of the narrative!
In my line of work, public relations, it’s known as reputation management. In a country as small as BARBADOS, word will spread like wildfire especially with the internet acting as an accelerant. People automatically run into hiding once they are being targeted online. But what good does that do? No good! In fact, you should do the opposite.
Amplify your social media presence by posting content which portray you in a good light– having fun with friends or something work-related.
Maintain a strong online presence and ensure that the content you post is optimised. That way, the positive things you want known about you will appear on the first page of google. You have more power than you realise.
Show people that you are unfazed by what’s happening even if you cry yourself to sleep at night. Not only will people begin to question the veracity of what they heard about you, they’ll quickly forget it. A fire started, quickly put out, will soon be forgotten.
Reputation is more important than character. What people think about you is more important than who you really are.
