There are some great tools you can use to monitor your online reputation. Online reputation management is an effective way to see what information is out there in cyber-land about you/your company.

The first tool to use is Google Alerts (http://www.google.com/alerts). All you have to do is type in the keyword (in this case your name/company name) you want to monitor, select the “comprehensive” list feature, choose how often you want to get email updates AND enter your email address. Search results will be emailed directly to you… very easy to use and the best part is it’s free.

It’s also important to check what people are saying about you/your company in the mini-blogosphere, such as Twitter. Check out Twitter Search (http://search.twitter.com/). Type in the keyword(s) you want to search for and this Twitter Search will show all “posts” that relate to that particular keyword.

The best way to manage your online reputation is to be proactive and create original, quality content yourself (refer to my blog post, “Build a Strong Online Presence with Social Media in 2009”). This will help you build a strong, positive image… and will definitely make monitoring your online reputation a whole lot easier.