Have bad online reputation? Blame the publicist.

That’s what tennis athlete Michael Russell did.

One little problem: he didn’t have one.

At least it’s not clear if he really had one or  not.
Either way, your reputation is your responsibility, and letting a publicist—whether it be a real or a “phantom” one–be in complete charge can lead to problems down the road. After all, even if your account does your taxes, you look them over and sign them (well, you should).

While I’m a tennis fan, I never heard of Michael Russell, except when watching Wimbledon online and saw some “cheesy” ads for an online tennis store (not a knock—they had low production values and one ad was extremely annoying). At the time, I did what most people do: Googled him.
The whole issue came up during a tournament in Newport, Rhode Island, where Russell called Hewitt a “douche bag” and a “racist” on Facebook posts.
These were deleted but the damage was done.

I ONLY use twitter linked to my Facebook account. I NEVER post directly on Facebook if that answers anybody’s doubts! Good night all
— Michael Russell (@MRusselltennis) July 15, 2013

To be 100% clear about recent statements on my Facebook page regarding Lleyton Hewitt, unfortunately, my publicist posted those statements
— Michael Russell (@MRusselltennis) July 15, 2013

without my knowledge or approval. However, I realize it is my responsibility to monitor each and every statement before being posted on my
— Michael Russell (@MRusselltennis) July 15, 2013

’
It’s unclear whether a player ranked around 100 in the world would even have a publicist, but the main point is, “I realize it is my responsibility to monitor each and every statement before being posted.”

Not making your own posts or monitoring them can damage your reputation just as easily if you made the post yourself. Now when searching for Russell, four negative links show up on the first page—some by major news sources–which can be very hard to remove or push down.

Some tips to prevent this:

Create a Reputation Policy

Make a strategy or policy clearly describing roles, what subjects will be covered online, and what is the tone. In other words, how do you want to be perceived online? Snarky? Lighthearted? Professional? Who will write the posts—yourself, a publicist, an online reputation manager? What will be covered—tennis only, other players, or other subjects such as politics or hobbies?

Monitor Your Social Media Sites

Be sure to check everything yourself. Set up free Google Alerts to monitor everything that gets published about you, but review your social media sites yourself daily to make sure the reputation policy is being carried out.

Have a Backup Plan in Place

If something goes wrong, have a plan in place so you don’t have to scramble. Get ready to apologize! Removing negative posts, even if it went out by mistake, can still create a problem and makes you look culpable.

Build a Good Reputation

As soon as something bad goes out, start writing good content. This will suppress the negative and will gradually push it off the first page of Google. This includes writing blogs, posting videos, adding images, Tweeting, posting on Facebook, etc.