“Cops and robbers, that’s what is all about,” said the charismatic and opinionated social media guru and consultant/entrepreneurduring a breakfast talk hosted by The Slaer-Trainor Group at UBS. 

How can this help your online reputation? 

Gary Vaynerchuk pinpoints the reason for the “flavor of the day” shifting social media platform hierarchy by describing the fickle nature of what is popular and why succinctly.

Facebook was cool and teens drove traffic; they’ve left because it’s been discovered and all ages are now using it.  Snapchat was popular with the under 18 year old crowd but is now “so last year” and is being used more by businesses and brands to tell their story.

Why does this matter if someone wrote a bad blog post about you and it shows up on the first page of Google?  Because you need to be active on social media to spread the good news, but knowing which platform is best or reaches who you want to reach is crucial.

Some other great points from Gary:

• We must learn how to tell stories online to engage with our followers, clients or prospects.  Personalize the company or brand—but it doesn’t have to be a person. The best story telling is by sharing actions and passions.  This becomes the new advertising since most people are cynical to ads (also, Google Adwords usage have declined by about 15%).
• Context is everything. After you tell your story, give it a framework so it will be effective.  How?  By delivering what your audience wants to hear.  Answer their problems, questions and show that you know them.  If you are selling wine, for example, introduce them to trends they may like, share a recipe and include a wine that might go best with it, talk to them about different grapes, etc.
• Build for the long term even if there is pressure for immediate results.  It’s like hunting vs. farming: growing is nurturing, and takes time.  Don’t buy Facebook friends or mindlessly gather Twitter followers.  How effective is that?  How would they help?  It’s not just a numbers game: engage with real people.
• Some new platforms to keep an eye on are Vine, Medium, and SnapChat, mostly because they offer restrictions, are limited and must be viewed by a certain time.
• Finally, do what you love. Not doing your passion will leave you with regret.  It seems a bit off topic but I agree—and it’s good for business.

Keep an eye out or pre-order his new book coming out in November “Jab Jab Jab Right Hook” with case studies and how-to instructions on all things Social Media. 

The Bottom Line

Gary Vaynerchuk’s ideas of building a story and a context is key to engaging with users or clients, and these are some of the foundations of online reputation management and repair.