MONITORING WHAT’S SAID ABOUT YOU

Conversations about you can take place any time. You can’t stop them even if you’re the NSA and building the biggest spy center in the US (Wired, Mar 2012).

At least the NSA knows what’s being said online. Do you?

Google Alerts

The easiest way to monitor the attention you’re getting is with  Google Alerts (see track what matters to you).

Last week, I got interviewed by Larry MacDonald for the Me and My Money feature in The Globe and Mail (see beyond the interview).

Here’s the Google Alert I got when the article went live online.

If you have a common name, you’ll have trouble getting found. You’ll get better results monitoring your Twitter name because that’s unique. I have several Alerts with different criteria. The reporting frequency varies from real-time to daily to weekly.

PressDisplay

Did you show up in a newspaper? Use PressDisplay to monitor for you. Here’s the alert I got.

You pay to access the article. However, you might get free access from the newspaper’s website or iPad app.

Other Ways

Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn send alerts when you’re mentioned. This typically happens when a connection shares your content.

You might also get emails and phone calls from connections.

Respond?

The Me and My Money article already has 29 comments. They range from “All actuaries are frauds...just like all mutual funds” to “Wise man, and sound advice.”

I’m tempted to respond to the negative comments but this is a time to resist temptation. Opinions will vary. Some won’t be relevant or directly about you. Readers will draw their own conclusions regardless.

Fear of criticism is a basic fear. Hiding isn’t the solution because you can still get discussed online. Get desensitized instead. How we react to criticism is a measure of our character.

The Benefit

When you’re discussed in a major publication like The Globe and Mail, count on your web traffic spiking upwards. That’s what the graphic shows for the last 30 days. Notice how the upward trend is continuing.

You invite traffic by informing your connections about an article and inviting them to tell their connections. This is easy with Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

To benefit from traffic, you must have a web presence.

Links

• Actuary invests in himself: beyond The Globe and Mail interview
• The six basic fears from 1937 (Napoleon Hill)
• Interviewed on Liquid Lunch about Taxevity
• Reasons to get interviewed on web TV
• Interviewed by the Toronto Star about online marketing
• Interviewed by The Globe and Mail about income replacement insurance
• Getting interviewed by a journalist
• Your digital tapestry

PS To avoid inbox clutter, I use a special email account to receive the Alerts.