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Reputation Management
Strategy: Bash, Trash, Lie:
Note: Aviatech is now part of Mainstream Interactive.
Aviatech's Ryan Vaspra, at Aviatech's
blog, wrote about a strategy for reputation management when
complaints exist (emphasis mine):
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the primary strategy is to influence the actual
Search Results. This entails a combination of Search
Engine Optimization, Social Media Optimization,
and Content Publishing. If done correctly, over
time, what used to be two pages of Google filled
with negative content can be transformed to two
pages of neutral or positive content. Research has
shown that 92% of consumers researching your company
will never look past the first page; of the remaining
8%, only 2% will look past the second page. This
fact gives every company a manageable objective
when beginning a reputation management program. |
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Note: Aviatech is now part of Mainstream Interactive.
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Translation:
Put a ton of your own stuff online, which could include:
- New website(s) about
you (favorable, of course)
- Post comments at blogs
and forums, with a link to your site(s).
- Post at facebook and
twitter, with a link to your site(s).
- Write a bunch of articles
at free-submission sites, with links to your site(s).
- Post links to site
you want to bury -- post them at porn sites. Google may penalize
the site's ranking because of those porn links to the site. (I
have concluded there may be no ethics in the SEO/Reputation Management
business.)
If it works, your stuff
rates high on a google search and all the other stuff (complaints)
get pushed way down (buried) in the search results. If they're buried,
then hopefully people won't find them.
One of Aviatech's customers
is CertaPro Painters (as of this writing, February, 2011).
Two particular websites were critical of CertaPro:
CertaPro
Painters Complaints and
CertaPro
Sucks.
In addition, a number of complaints have been posted at online complaint
sites such as MeasuredUp.com.
I believe Aviatech worked
on a reputation management strategy on behalf of CertaPro Painters
using techniques mentioned in the blog excerpt (and translation)
above.
The following tactics
were observed:
- Establishing several
new websites: certaprotruth.com, certaprosuccess.com and painterspassion.com.
(There may have been others.)
- Posting numerous links
to these sites from other sites, some of those sites were existing
CertaPro Painters sites, some were links placed in self-sumitted
articles, some links were placed in seemingly innocuous replies
at blogs (franchise blogs, for example). Within about 5 months,
over 800 links were planted pointing to one of the sites and over
1,000 links were planted pointing to another of the sites. Google
places a high priority on links, so the more links, the better
your chance of appearing high in Google's search result.
- Posting a number of
videos at YouTube of franchisees saying favorable things about
CertaPro and blaming failed franchisees for their franchise's
failure. Many of these franchisees were relatively new to CertaPro,
a few had been franchisees for awhile. The videos were posted
using the username "larrycarnier".
- Writing a number of
articles at free article submission sites such as EzineArticles.com
and hubpages.com. These articles, when linking was possible, linked
back to the newly-established CertaPro sites.
- Numerous links (to
my websites) from porn sites appeared. Here are two examples:
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The object of posting links from places like porn sites?
Those "bad
links" can mean google will degrade your search
rating and placement. This was, in my belief, very nasty
and unethical "reputation management".
Those links were posted at the time Aviatech was extensively
involved in its CertaPro reputation management effort,
and I am of the opinion this was part of the Aviatech
effort.
YouTube videos, new websites, phony articles, and bad
links created -- all during the same time frame.
After UnhappyFranchisee.com published
an article about my websites, another post appeared
"CERTAPRO
PAINTERS: Failed Franchise Owner Accepts Blame".
I firmly believe the "Randy" who wrote the article
was working for Aviatech. There is no indication that
the website UnhappyFranchise.com made any effort to verify
"Randy" was, indeed, a franchisee.
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Did the tactics work?
The tactics worked, to a degree. But my websites still rank high
in google searches and they're still getting a lot of hits.
Time required:
It is believed work began around early- to mid-August, 2010 through
at least February or March of 2011.
Cost?
Unknown, but I'm sure it cost a bundle.
Was It effective?
Nah.
My websites still rank high.
It appears Aviatech rode off into the sunset.
Overall, I'd call it
an expensive failure and a demonstration in what was, in my opinion,
reprehensible and unethical conduct.
Aviatech
changed name to Mindstream Interactive
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