Search Engine Reputation Management Engine

Yep, SERME in short. I just found it via John Battelle’s Searchblog and I can only shake my head in amazement. The company having announced this is Converseon (what a name). As John, I’ll simply quote part of the press release:

_“SERMA©” Combines Innovative Content Management Techniques Together with Sophisticated Optimization Skills To Help Companies Better Manage Their Reputations and Brand Online

Converseon, a leading digital communications agency, today announced the global launch of the industry’s first search engine reputation management service (SERMA) designed specifically to help companies manage their corporate reputations in search engines. SERMA was created in response to the increasingly important role search engines have in determining a company’s reputation.

“Search engines have become the primary resource for journalists and other constituents to gather information on a specific company,” says Robert Key, President & CEO of Converseon. “Yet, while many companies may pay close attention to how the traditional media portrays them, most companies are completely unaware of what information is appearing when search engine users type in a company’s name.” He points to examples like McDonald’s and Nike, where users typing in the companies’ names on Google are exposed to highly negative information, including McSpotlight.org, a “protest site,” and the “Boycott Nike Homepage.”_

In general, they are monitoring search engines. I’d suggest Google Alert.