Tips On Online Reputation Management for Freelancers

The freelance industry is growing very fast. Only in the U.S., almost half of the workforce (42 percent) is expected to be comprised of freelancers representing different fields by 2020. So, you can imagine how competitive it will become very soon. Thus, your reputation as a freelancer is what you should pay close attention to if you want to be among the top talent.

Let’s talk more about the reasons why you should start paying closer attention to your online reputation:

• Your work goes live. You should be prepared for a fact that your work may be accessed by anyone if your client decides to share it.
• People may start discussing your work on different platforms like Yelp and Google, and sometimes comments may be negative. To maintain a strong reputation as a reliable freelancer, you’ll have to learn how to manage such situations.
• If you’re using a platform for freelancers like Upwork or People per Hour, your online reputation will directly affect your projects and whether potential clients will be interested in hiring you. A bad online reputation management may kill a career of even the most successful freelancer.

You may think that managing your online reputation is close to impossible, and you’d be right to some extent. The internet is ginormous and you cannot keep track of absolutely everything.

However, there’s something you can do. Take a closer look at the following tips on online reputation management for freelancers.

Tip #1: Peruse online search results (background check).

To launch your online reputation management, start with a background check. This will allow you to check the credibility of your online persona and see what your clients say about you.

It’s clear that the internet is a huge place, and keeping track of your online presence is hard, but there are tools you can use to keep up and get updated each time your name is mentioned somewhere online. Here are some useful options:

• Reputation Manager: This tool helps you manage your online reputation on the go. This mobile app makes it possible to access online reviews from one place, it sends you real-time alerts when new reviews are posted, and it also allows you to answer online reviews without leaving the app.
• Hootsuite: This tool makes it easier to manage all of your social media accounts, helping you access them from one place. Besides scheduling your posts, you can monitor your brand and manage your reputation on social media with the help of this tool.
• Truth Finder: This is a comprehensive online tool that is often used by the companies who frequently hire freelancers. This tool covers everything, from social media to websites with reviews.

Using these tools will save you a lot of time, as you won’t have to spend hours browsing Google and Yelp, looking for online reviews of your work and doing damage control. Some of these tools even allow you to do online reputation management on the go, which is very convenient if you don’t have access to your computer.

Tip #2: Ensure a consistent social media presence.

It’s no surprise that our social media accounts are no longer private. Rather they’ve become a place where potential employers check you out before hiring you. “For many employers, social media activity of a potential employee may become a decisive factor during the recruitment process”, says Martin Slawski, an HR manager at the international real estate company Flatfy. Martin adds that his company notifies potential employees that they may take a look at their social media profiles during the recruitment. Some times companies can use such tools as Cake HR, that helps them with the recruitment process.

If you’re a freelancer, your potential client will be even more interested in looking at your social media profile. Why? Because you’re an independent contractor, and your name may be mentioned on their website, with the links to your profiles.

There are many things that your potential clients may notice on your social media profiles that could influence their decision to work with you. Among this that affect their decision, there are:

• Unprofessional Screen Name;
• Overly Frequent Posts with No Value
• Sharing Confidential Information Concerning Previous Employment
• Discriminatory Comments, etc...

So, when managing your online reputation, briefly go through your social media activity to take a look at things that may affect your credibility as a professional. Such social media checks are necessary for damage control and ensuring that your reputation remains spotless.

Tip #3: Consider blogging.

You may ask what your online reputation management may do with the blogging.

A lot. A blog is a place where you share your professional opinion, and having one means that your expertise is good enough to hire you. Having a blog also showcases great writing and communication skills, showing your best professional qualities.

Your blog also collects a lot of analytical data, from random visits to comments that your readers leave, which also has a lot to do with online reputation management. You will also get data on where your visitors come from, allowing you to track channels where they’ve read a review about you and, as a result, do damage control.

To Sum Up

As a freelancer, you are not just self-employed, you are your own brand. So, managing your online reputation is one of the must-do tasks, necessary for your success and staying relevant in general. Hopefully, these tips will help you manage your online reputation efficiently, including you into the army of top-talent freelancers.