Imagine this: you are in a job interview with a recruiter or panel. You made it through the first round and now they are trying to assess whether you would be a good fit. The conversation is flowing and everything seems to be going well until they say, “So, we saw this news article online about why you left a position 10 years ago. Can you tell us what happened there?” Now, you have to explain your side of the story for the hundredth time and hope they understand.

You might think that meeting your potential new employer in person was your chance to make a good first impression: good eye contact, professional appearance, a firm handshake, etc. When, in fact, they have already “met” you by doing the modern-day equivalent of a background check: a Google search. And the old adage rings true: you never get a second chance to make a first impression.

Why Your Online Reputation Matters

Whether you like it or not, the first few search results for your name are your “online reputation.” These are the first bits of information a public agency will find when they do a background check on you as part of the hiring process. Or what reporters and community members will find when they want to learn more about their city/county leader. For younger Gen X and “elder” millennial managers, you may have started seeding your online reputation with blogs and social media while in your teens or early 20s. Was that version of you the best one to present to the world?

The internet has become the dominant place to make a first impression, and leaders in the public sector have the most at stake when it comes to their online reputations. The nature of your leadership role in local government puts you in the public eye. At some point, you may have to take an action that upsets someone or creates a controversy that results in media coverage. In the private sector, a mistake or poor decision could just quietly disappear into the ether. In the public sector, these situations can quickly spiral into stories about “wasting taxpayers’ money” or “government mismanagement.” This is part of the burden and responsibility of public service.

If you do not have a strong online presence, others can move quickly to fill the void with their own information. Even worse, one small misstep on your part could lead to search results for your name full of content that is out of your control and that sticks around for years.

The good news is that you do not have to passively accept what the internet defines as your online reputation. You can take your future into your own hands through a process called online reputation management.

Online reputation management is, broadly, the process of preventing and repairing threats to your online reputation. In practice, it involves building a stronger, positive online presence that you control. Over time, that positive content should mix in with (and potentially outrank) the less desirable search results for your name. That way, when someone looks for information about you, the first impression they should get is what you want them to find.

ICMA Can Help You During a Transition

ICMA recognizes that experiencing a career “transition” is a very difficult situation that many members face at some point in their local government careers. Any job change is difficult, but when it is forced on someone—sometimes, for reasons that often have nothing to do with their job performance—it can be traumatic.

ICMA and its partners has valuable resources for members who are between jobs. The best defense is a strong offense when it comes to your online reputation, which is why ICMA offers an online reputation management service for members in transition (MITs). ICMA subsidizes this service for MITs through Tripepi Smith, a California-based marketing, technology, and public affairs consulting firm that specializes in serving local governments.

About ICMA’s Online Reputation Management Services

The online reputation management services offering will help ICMA members shape online search results for their name by creating/optimizing personal social media profiles, publishing professional interviews, and/or launching personal websites. ICMA will subsidize the cost of each of the three service packages (up to 50%) for members in transition.

This member benefit provides three different packages to enhance and protect your online reputation:

1. The Blueprints package is for those who either do not currently have or do not actively use a LinkedIn profile, Twitter account, and/or Facebook profile.

2. The Breakground package is intended for intermediate social media users who are in search of a professional audit. The audit will provide you with an overview of your profiles while ensuring that best practices are being adhered to. In addition, Tripepi Smith will conduct an interview with you to create positive content on the well-respected local government news website, CivicBusinessJournal.com. Lastly, Tripepi Smith will provide prompts for you to author an op-ed article for PublicCEO.com, a digital local government publication that delivers news and insights to over 16,000 city managers, county administrators, public executives, and public employees every weekday.

3. The Remodel package is for those who are serious about protecting (or repairing) their online reputation. In addition to the services within the Breakground and Blueprints packages, Tripepi Smith will create a personalized website for you. The team will work with you in gathering content that showcases your professional achievements. Finally, the website will be optimized for major search engine algorithms. This will ensure that major search engines recognize this new website is relevant to your name.

Not a One-and-Done Process

Online reputations require care, feeding, and attention to detail to maintain. It is in your best interest to be proactive rather than reactive. After a negative story appears on a news network, it is likely beyond your control and will be difficult to displace from search results for your name. But if you have already taken steps to “own” at least some of the first page of search results for your name, others will have an uphill battle to insert their own narratives.

Learn More

If you want more control over the first impression your online reputation will make, visit the ICMA Online Reputation Management Services page. There you will find a brochure that explains the three service packages in greater detail and how to get started. Only ICMA members who are in transition are eligible for the subsidy on these services, but anyone interested in this service may email membership@icma.org for more information.

RYDER TODD SMITH is president of Tripepi Smith and Associates Inc.