Yesterday, we shared an article from the New York Times explaining how businesses can use social media to both hurt and help online reputations, specifically with regard to consumer review sites such as Yelp. One of the biggest no-no’s from the New York Times piece was falsifying positive reviews, an unsavory marketing practice known as “Astroturfing.”
In an interview with the Associated Press, Reputation.com CEO Michael Fertik expanded upon how business owners get pressured into Astroturfing and Reputation.com’s role in the creation of the Online Reputation Management Association (ORMA).
Reputation.com CEO Michael Fertik (AP)
From the AP article:
Trade associations in the emerging fields of online word-of-mouth marketing and “reputation management” say they’re eager to stamp out tainted testimonials and are circulating ethics codes. But they acknowledge that economic pressures and the Internet’s scant accountability tempt some to bend the rules.
Reputation management company Reputation.com has been asked , and refused , to concoct both positive buzz and damaging attacks, said CEO Michael B. Fertik, who helped form his industry’s Online Reputation Management Association.
Such requests often come from people who say they are being unfairly maligned online and can’t trace the culprit, he said.
“They’re feeling helpless,” Fertik said. “I don’t think all the people who are asking us to do fake reviews are coming from a place of malice.”
As the need for Online Reputation Management continues to grow among individuals and businesses, there will be a greater need for organizations like ORMA to provide a level of transparency and accountability for the industry. Reputation.com is proud to be at the forefront of the movement to self-regulate the ORM industry and instill a uniform ethical code for ORM best practices.
For more information on ORMA, follow this link.
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[...] week, Reputation.com CEO Michael Fertik shared some insights on the prevalence of false reviews online and the importance of [...]
[...] week, Reputation.com CEO Michael Fertik shared some insights on the prevalence of false reviews online and the importance of [...]
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