Here are --- ways to make sure your internet reputation is stellar.



1) Check up on yourself. We all do it, even though we might not like to admit it. And if you run an online business, it's crucial to your job. Run your name through the search engines on a regular basis to make sure you don't need to put out any flames.

2) Don't be afraid to use your name. Make a point to own the domain name for your company, as well as your own personal domain name. If you don't want to link your personal name domain to your business site, use the personal site as a resume of sorts, just to make sure that your real name has a positive presence. Also, be cold about posting under your real name on message boards and blog posts. The less anonymous you try to be, the more people will trust you.

3) Say cheese! Use photos of yourself in your website to verify who you are. This instills a sense of for anyone who is searching for your name.

4) Be your own PR person. Talk yourself up. Essentially, make yourself look good. Send press releases about what you and your company have been up to recently and submit those releases to press release submission websites. When members of the media contact you to members of the media contact you, be willing to do interviews. The same goes for speaking engagements.

5) Advertise Yourself. Start your own podcast-it's the equivalent of having your own mini radio station.

The more you put yourself out there, the more people will recognize you as an authority on a given subject. Everything you put out there has the potential to bring you a wider audience, which means more traffic and more business.

Many people make the mistake of not wanting to "toot their own horn", but in today's online arena, that's a mistake. You have to be willing to make the first move, which can be a little scary sometimes.

Essentially, it is up to you to make yourself look good. Eventually, other people will talk you up too, but in the interim, you must be willing to market yourself shamelessly.