ProspectMatch Trying to Bury Negative Reviews

[sourdoughnibble]

Not sure if this is the right forum to share this, but here's the latest from the crew over at Prospect Match (copy-pasta'd from odesk). I hope this doesn't go unnoticed by a community that obviously values reputation and transparency.

Job Description

I am in need of a reputation management expert and see that listed in your description. I am looking for someone that knows what others do not. Listed below are all of the tactics that others
want to do for me and have done. However, they don't work as my problem still exists.

My issue is to push back Google search results from any of these domains:

www (dot) techdirt (dot) com
www (dot) insurance-forums (dot) net
www (dot) ripoffreport (dot) com

when anyone searches on "prospectmatch"

I need these pushed back beyond page 4 of the results and I need fast results.

I had successfully done this by creating 26 web sites with "prospectmatch" in the title. That worked well for several months but in early March, 2011, the negative items crept back to the first pages of results and I have been unable to move them back

Can you assist me and what do you recommend not listed below?

Below is a list of the weak tactics that others want to offer me:

Offpage Optimization would be as-
1. Manual directory submissions
2. Social bookmarking submissions
3. Article marketing
4. Blog submission
5. Deep link submission
6. Niche submission
7. Comments placed on related Blog posts
8. Blog post submission
9. Press release submissions
10. Related news blog creation
11. Link leveraging
12. Reporting
13. Web analytic report
14. User trend report
15. Keyword Ranking

On Page Optimization involves the following-
1. Comprehensive Keyword Analysis
2. Browser compatibility check
3. Page weight checking
4. CSS XHTML validation
5. W3C Validation
6. Meta tag modification & updation
7. Header tag modification & updation
8. Code to content ratio analysis
9. Duplicate content checking
10. Search engine spider simulation
11. Design modification
12. Content modification
13. Keyword relevancy modification
14. Link structure/ Frame work check
15. Creation of Robots.txt file
16. Sitemap Recreation
17. Navigation and file structure
18. MOD rewrite for dynamic sites
19. Restoring broken links
20. Image optimization

This honestly has very little to do with me, but I always find it interesting as a freelancer how some people prefer to treat symptoms than to improve their business model. I'd feel awful if this became listed as a private project and no one knew what our friends at Prospect Match are actually up to.

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

Yes and no. I don't know anything about Prospect Match however negative reviews on page 1 can offer an unbalanced view.

Here's what Google gets wrong...and it's not really Google's fault - if you have 10,000 satisfied customers that's fine. They're certainly not going to write a full article regarding their happiness. The reason it's not Google's fault is they don't know about the 10,000 happy customer since they're not posting anything.

However, 1 out of those 10,000 customers can get pissed and post an "avoid this scam" article. Boom. It's on page 1 almost instantly and sticks there like glue.

Every company needs to make sure page 1 is positive. Google any major lead company. Page 1 is clean. You'll have to go back many pages before you see rip off and scam reports. It's because they employ great reputation management tactics.

Good. I don't want to Google Starbucks and spend the first 3 pages reading about how someone waiting in line for 20 minutes then got the latte instead of a mocha.

Prospect Match can build up their Twitter page. Right now it's at 7 followers, following zero and the last tweet was the 25th of May. Same with their FB page - 3 likes and zero posts.

And finally, turn a negative report into more business. I researched this when someone posted something a ROR on my association about 2 years ago. The article suggested I offer something special to people who read it. So I replied to the ROR with anyone reading this article could get the first month for $1.00. In the irony of all ironies, my membership increased. People read the ROR, saw my "$1.00 1st month" reply and it was such a hit that I made that the standard.

Prospect Match could do the same thing; "If you're reading this, try Prospect Match for FREE. We'll give you 10 free leads if you mention this report. See for yourself!" Now....if you don't believe in the quality of your service, then....

 

[VolAgent]

Not speaking to ProspectMatch in particular, but why does a bad lead company deserve a clean page 1? Do you believe that NASE/Mega deserved a clean page 1? Does Liberty National or Aflac deserve a clean page 1? Allowing companies to bury any negative comments is just as bad as only allowing negative comments. Just as the OP said, perhaps ProspectMatch should focus on improving their business model.

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

If you're trying to research a company there are many ways of doing so without just the company name.

What about competition? Wouldn't a savvy competitor just litter the internet with negative reviews?

So, let's say in your example LibNat is "bad." That's easy - just post a bunch a of negative stuff about the "good" carriers and drag them right down...right?

 

[VolAgent]

I'm sure it happens. But I don't agree with a company having the right to surpress information that reveals their bad business practices. I don't have a problem with them trying, but to guarantee any company a clean page 1 on Google, no. Anyone who has done business for any length of time knows that one dissatisfied customer will drown out the voices of 10,000 happy ones. Why should the rules suddenly change because its the internet?

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

I'm not exactly sure what you mean by suppress. Even the companies that employ the best reputation management skills - just go back to page 3, 4, etc...and it's all there.

And you don't get my point. What "voices" of 10,000 happy ones? Have you been happy with any service lately....any company at all? Sure...and can you link me to the post where you wrote about it? That's my point.

 

[VolAgent]

How many people really go back to page 2, 3 or 4 on Google? I personally do a search for complaints on any company I'm suspicious of, but does everyone?

And I know exactly what you mean. They don't, but that is part of business. Again, why do the rules change when we move to the internet? People have always spoken loudly when they are dissatisfied and quietly or not at all when happy.

When you sold ultilities door to door and managed. I bet you got at least 1000 letters/calls from upset people to every 1 from a happy person. It is just how our society is. Internet companies don't get to suddenly change the rules because they don't like it.

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

Gonna still disagree. It's simply turned into an extortion business. About 3 weeks after someone filed a ROR on me, I got contacted by them. For a mere $10,000 they could help me.

Yelp is being sued - biz owners trying to go class action. A negative review is filed, owner apparently gets a call from a Yelp rep and it can all "go away" with a certain amount of money.

Yelp Hit With Class Action Lawsuit For Running An “Extortion Scheme”

The BBB called me. They had never called me but they did when my association got one complaint (same person who filed the negative review.)

I was not rated but with that one complaint they tried to make me an "offer I couldn't refuse" which was pay them to join.....or else. I asked "or else what? It's only one review?"

I refused to pay. So what's my BBB rating with ONE negative review? B? C? No...IHIAA Review - TRAINING PROGRAMS in Washington, DC - BBB Reliability Report - BBB serving Metro Washington, DC and Eastern Pennsylvania - an F. Odd, I didn't think one complaint is worth of a F. And it's not....I just have to pay.

Here's a little homework:

 

[VolAgent]

Sounds like other business owners should made their feelings heard about organizations such as Yelp, BBB, etc.

 

[djs]

I personally am not a big fan of prospect match, but they are not asking for anything that most internet based sales businesses don't have to do.

Personally, I hate it when google allows the company to have 20 something sites that are basically the same, just to hide content. I also realize that companies that do this are hiding stuff, in a big way.

Google will tweek their algorithm again and all of the sudden this stuff with all change again. They keep a LOT of people employed by chasing 1st page rankings and now by having people try to run stuff off of the first page.

Dan