What is online reputation management? This question has been asked many times since the industry rose to prominence over the last decade. JW Maxx Solutions, one of the definers of the movement, reveals its true meaning after many years of navigating and researching the World Wide Web. What is online reputation management can be amorphous at times, but there are a few strong parallels that hold it together.

“Online reputation management is closely tied to SEO,” says JW Maxx Solutions CEO and founder Walter Halicki. “To get the right kind of press funneled to search engines, you need to understand how they rank data.”

SEO, or search engine optimization, is how material is ranked and ordered for results that pop up on a page and it’s got everything to do with what text you use on your web site and where you put it. For example, headings and subheadings carry more weight in terms of page rankings than the body text. In addition, the first and last paragraphs also value key words more highly. The optimal rate of key word or key phrase frequency, according to JW Maxx Solutions is between 2 and 4 percent.

Helping to build one’s online “rank” in determining what online reputation management is serves two main purposes, according to the online reputation management firm. Primarily, the focus is to inject promotional, positive material all over the first page of search results and hang onto it. This proactive approach not only paints a very positive picture of the business, but also adds legitimacy to it. With a LinkedIn, a Facebook, a Wikipedia page and a Twitter, a company looks comprehensive and responsive, solidified in the market it which it operates. The other purpose of a strong page presence, according to JW Maxx Solutions, is to suppress or negate any negative publicity that exists now or in the future. Taking a reactionary stance to bad press is never as good as preparing for it beforehand and an organization should not wait until it is plagued with negative information to start on the road to online reputation management.

What is online reputation management has been redefined by JW Maxx Solutions. The company, founded in Scottsdale, Arizona, is a global online reputation management firm that works with clients in a diverse array of businesses. With clients in industries ranging from travel to entertainment to high-tech, this leading online reputation management firm specializes in helping companies define or redefine themselves as prominent, successful organizations in the online marketplace.