Reputation Management

Reputation management: What affects how long it takes?

The last few years have seen a rise in services that specialize in fixing the reputations of organizations online. The problem is that the internet has given an equal (and one could argue, an outsize) voice to everyone who has an internet connection. The question that most companies ask is: How long will it take?

It is not easy to answer how long a reputation repair campaign will take. The short answer is that it will take time. To figure out how long it will take to start seeing improvements, we need to look at the various factors that affect a campaign.

The factor with the most influence is the authority and reach of existing web properties. An organization with a limited web and social media presence will not see new pages rise in rankings overnight. Even for existing websites, it can take as long as a year to appear on page one. Outranking negative content will take time.

Time itself is another factor that will help. Google prioritises fresh content for a lot of search queries. Which also means that any negative reviews, will rank well for a time, and then start dropping in favor of new content. You can guide that new content.

Another factor is the name or brand. Negative content that targets a specific brand or name that is not a standard search phrase is more likely to drop in favor of content that is more relevant to the brand, especially from its website.