In today’s new media landscape, the saying “no news is good news” is no longer applicable. One potential client approached us with a situation that clearly illustrates this.
This client has a large, reputable project and is backed by a multi-national corporation with a similarly good reputation. They approached us because their project was attacked by a person with an ax to grind, and unfortunately, it was someone who had the resources to distribute a press release through an effective wire service. This negative press release created a firestorm on the web, and was then picked up by a couple of well-known print news outlets. This led to bottom-feeding attorneys launching their own press releases, seeking clients on whose behalf to sue the project and the company behind it. (Side note: See the domino effect a single press release can create?)
Because there was no source of positive news available about this project, the only news coverage people were finding were the negative attack stories generated from the original press release. To remedy this, we suggested to the client an immediate brand repair campaign, starting with our proprietary article marketing program.
Here’s the idea behind it: Flood the web with positive news about the client and the project, and bury the negative coverage. Had the project already garnered positive news, the damage would have been much harder to do in the first place – but at least this shield of positive news would bunt the impact of the attack considerably.
“No news is good news” might sound catchy, but it’s an outdated adage. The new rule is this: Put the good news out there yourself. If you don’t, you leave the door open to anyone who wants to damage your reputation for any reason. Proactive reputation management is just a necessary reality in the new media world.