Related to a recent post here about online profiles, you do need to give some thought to your online reputation management. Remember that you want accurate and professional looking information about you whenever you are posting articles, or even making blogs comments and forum comments. You do not want to be spammy, snarky, or write opinions that may come back to haunt you, your business, and your reputation. One good test is to always remember that whatever you put online will potentially be there forever. So give this some serious consideration to this before you place your name and personal information online.
Since we are using profiles to get links as part of our overall strategy, go the extra step to monitor your online reputation as part of your SEO plans, like you do with any other aspect of link building. This is not just for RSS feeds and link wheels. Online profiles and reputation management are often ignored, done in the wrong way, and sometimes poorly managed. I strongly suggest that you don't overlook guarding your reputation when planning your online marketing strategies.
You need to be aware that this drills down to the products you promote, reviews you make, and even how you market via email. There are plenty of horror stories about seasoned online marketers making a small mistake and then losing everything. The worst case scenario could even be legal or criminal actions against you and your business.
I guess you could consider this the dark side of online marketing. Just be aware that things can come back to bite you, so my advice is to always follow the Golden Rule. Run your online ventures with integrity, be honest, and treat folks fairly. This is one last thing you will have to worry about, and you will sleep better, too.
Take the right steps to build your online reputation, and then make sure you keep it.