Protecting Your Brand’s Reputation

Before you ReTweet, repin or share that content – READ IT!

We should all aware by now that what we post online, especially public content, will live forever. What you post can have profound, long-term effects on your brand reputation. Even a single post, tweet or comment can take on a life of its own.

Where am I going with this?

I was dumbfounded recently when I read an article that was heavily repinned and RT’d. The content discussed how to drive more reach for your Facebook Fan Page and ultimately your website or blog. Catchy headline, catchy image. The issue was the actual content. The author was advocating click baiting – something in itself I find unethical – but more importantly, something Facebook discussed in August: ‘Facebook is announcing the pursuit and war against attempts to entice clicks through headlines that are misleading.’

I couldn’t believe so many people were sharing content that would actually HURT others in their social media efforts and was exactly what Facebook was working to stop! Regardless of why the content was shared, it was obvious it wasn’t read first (though I will concede that some share may have been from those that did read it and agreed with the Black Hat practice).

Since our brand reputation is affected by what we post, both our own and curated content, it’s imperative that we read everything we intend to put our name and stamp of approval on, even if that takes time, regardless of the source.

When discussing this topic with a colleague it was mentioned that content from a trusted source may need less scrutiny and maybe none. It may be true that the source may will be far less likely to share or post such content, even the experts make mistakes.

Sharing great content (even from a trusted source) doesn’t mean your brand reputation won’t come under fire. Sharing content counter to your beliefs, what you advocate, what your followers / fan base expect can be just as damaging. I have generally have no desire to share the content of even the best known / trusted social media or marketing experts (or experts in any field) if I do not agree with their position. Would you give someone who’s views are counter to yours access to your audience? Unless you’re looking for a debate, no. Yet sharing their content on your social media profiles is doing just that.