Let’s assume that you’re just like every other joe or jane on the street. You don’t own a company. You haven’t been slandered in the press. No one is saying anything bad about you online. In fact, no one is saying anything at all about you online. You don’t have to be a marketing guru to do a little basic reputation management. Let’s say you’re looking for a job or, maybe, thinking about looking for a job, and you want prospective employers and head hunters to learn about you online.

On second thought, maybe you just hate searching for your name on Google and finding results for some other guy or girl with the same name. Each circumstance will be unique, but here are a few quick and easy ways to improve your online reputation without paying a professional:

1. Buy a domain name. Try to buy your name as a domain name (example: johnsmith.com). I recommend DreamHost to register and privately host your domains. If your name is common and the exact match is unavailable, look for a combination of your name and either a location or a professional title (example: johnsmithdallas.com or johnsmithcopywriter.com). Pick something you like, but make sure your name is up front. If you register at least one domain in this manner, you can go ahead and check to see if your name is available with hyphens (example: john-smith.com). Owning this domain is fine, but I would operate it as a second domain, not as your one and only. Hyphenated domains don’t always rank as well for keywords.

It’s not enough to OWN a domain name. You need a live site and you need readable, relevant, content. Since you are not likely a web designer, I recommend you download WordPress blog software for free and start a blog on your new site. Write at least once a week and remember that what you write will be read by your professional peers and potential new employers - each blog post you write is an opportunity to showcase your personality, intelligence, wit, and your grasp of your chosen profession.

2. Join several free article publisher websites. I recommend Buzzle, Amazines, Content Articles, Helium, and Ezine Articles. These are listed in order of importance and current search engine authority. Join each of these publishers and post at least one article on each that you write. Pick a subject that you are somewhat of an expert on and keep it simple and informative. Remember that any headhunter or interviewer may review these words prior to your interview, so you’ll want to make sure you’ve posted well written pieces.

3. Join several social media / networking sites. Top recommendations include: LinkedIn, Twitter, Naymz, Delicious, Technorati, and Magnolia. When you are trying to build search engine results for your name, each site you join must be joined under your real name. Use nicknames and handles for those sites or profiles meant just for your personal enjoyment. Create each profile for reputation management under your first and last name and be sure to add background and professional information when possible. Other sites you should consider joining include: Digg, Reddit, Propeller, and Facebook.

4. Register your blog with several blog directories. Top picks for blog directories include: Globe of Blogs, Blog Catalog, Blogflux, Bloghub, and Blogarama. Register under your first and last name and follow the online directions to add your blog to each directory.

5. Read other people’s blogs and write comments. Most blogs require you to enter your name and email address before you can post a comment. This is another chance for you to write intelligent responses to what you read, and to earn some low level rankings for your name as well. Go ahead and enter your blog URL in the field available. This gives you the added benefit of sending a few blog comment readers to your site.

6. Create a blog that is hosted on the blog software URL. Blogger and WordPress are the two most popular blog platforms and their URLs already have some strength. You can create a blog on Blogger’s or WordPress’ site and piggback off of their search engine authority (example: johnsmith.blogspot.com and johnsmith.wordpress.com). I know it sounds like you’ll have to write copy for several sites, and you WILL, but taking 30 minutes per blog per week shouldn’t be to hard to fit in, especially if you’re motivated to create some good search results and content to promote your career.

Each one of these options is free. They take a little time, but the rewards of a solid search reputation is well worth it. Of course, you will have some questions along the way like “how do I add WordPress to my blog?” or “how do I set up my new DreamHost hosting account so I can put a blog there?

Personal repute management can be handled quite well by individuals working from home. This is especially significant for those who aim at running their personal businesses online or find a home business opportunity profitable for them. As published in the home business review journal increasingly high number of people is eager to find work at home to avoid the hassle and cost of commuting long distances while some others work from home for the ease and flexibility it offers.

Feel free to shoot me any questions you might have about the finer points of building your online reputation.

Let me start by describing the majority of businesses I meet with. First, there’s the small business. The average small business I encounter has a cheesy website they threw together five to ten years ago simply because they wanted to be “cutting edge.” Their ugly sites are usually difficult to read and navigate, and you have to know the exact URL to find it because it’s not likely to turn up on a Google search.

Then there are medium-sized businesses who may have a fancy looking Flash website. The site is mostly cool photos design with little text and is still difficult to find on Google or anywhere else. The owners are generally proud of their fancy Flash website, though sometimes they grumble about whether or not it could be more useful.

There are, of course, many exceptions to these types. But from small business to billion dollar business, too many websites lack the web savvy to strengthen customer relationships online.

Regardless of company size, each company website should have a blog. This is my reputation management recommendation for all businesses. Create a blog on your site and post to it regularly. Every day is ideal. Weekly is minimum. And before you dismiss my suggestion as “too difficult” or “too time consuming”, let’s look at the benefits. Regardless of company size, you’ll find that the benefits outweigh the costs in time and money.

Benefit #1: Thought Leadership

A blog allows you to comment on what is happening in your industry. You can cover news, technology, prominent figures, economic issues, provide warnings, make suggestions, explain concepts, and promote your industry. Many industries do not have a thought leader in the blogosphere at this time. Even in industries where several companies/individuals have established themselves, there is always room for a unique perspective.

Benefit #2: Customer Relationship Management

A corporate blog provides a forum for customers and potential customers to voice their concerns, questions, comments, and opinions. For many industries, a blog is an excellent opportunity for getting the customers and clients involved, allowing them to submit posts which will be made public after you approve them. Know your audience. If having a voice is a big deal to them or even some of them, give your readers and customers a voice. The opportunity to contribute and the time spent in interaction reinforces the investment each person makes in your company and brand.

Benefit #3: Relevance

Chances are that at some point, someone in your vertical will decide to establish themselves as the expert. Repetitive exposure is relevance. Combine a blog with a monthly email (following email marketing best practices, of course) to remain in the forefront of their minds. Provide value to your customers above and beyond your standard product or service. Blogs are value added relevance. Get over the “I’m too old school for this” attitude and either make yourself take the plunge or find someone else who can. Ask Coca-Cola, Google, and Amazon. Each of these companies rose to the top because they understood the principle that regular exposure is key to remaining on top. Allow someone else to come in and steal the attention and you’ve lost market share.

If you are extremely uncomfortable with web technology and you need a helping hand, feel free to ask? I don’t have all the time in the world, but I can easily walk you through a blog setup on your website. WordPress is a breeze, and I think more useful than the other blog softwares out there.

Contact your local webmaster or interactive agency about setting up a company blog. Heck, drop me a line if you need to. IT’S THAT IMPORTANT! Don’t let this slide. Make it a priority. THIS WEEK, make sure that you have set the ball in motion to establishing your very own company blog.

Brief Warning:

Don’t go starting a .blogspot or .wordpress blog as your company blog. Host your blog on your own website, or create a new domain name for your blog that links back and for to your company site. The two most popular placements of a company blog are www.company.com/blog and http://blog.company.com. I prefer the former because it’s easier to remember and it’s the same formula for all information on your site: site.com/stuff.

The free hosting on blog companies’ domains are unprofessional, difficult to remember when trying to find it a second time, and a waste of your time. Go ahead and set one up on their hosting if you want to, but use it only to control your company name on their server and direct all traffic to your REAL blog hosted on your company’s site.