{"id":11287,"date":"2019-05-18T03:00:11","date_gmt":"2019-05-18T03:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.blueoceanglobaltech.com\/blog\/?p=11287"},"modified":"2025-02-11T11:54:09","modified_gmt":"2025-02-11T11:54:09","slug":"seo-vs-orm-what-is-the-difference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.blueoceanglobaltech.com\/blog\/seo-vs-orm-what-is-the-difference\/","title":{"rendered":"SEO vs. Online Reputation Management (ORM): What is the difference?"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row full_width=”stretch_row_content” css=”.vc_custom_1663841921154{padding-right: 10% !important;}” el_id=”blogmain”][vc_column css_animation=”slideInLeft” width=”1\/3″ el_id=”leftsection”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Jenny\u2019s Journey<\/a><\/p>\n

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SEO Vs ORM-Setting The Terms Right<\/a><\/p>\n

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Six Differences Between ORM And SEO<\/a><\/p>\n

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#1 Holistic Vs. Specific Aim<\/a><\/p>\n

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#2 Many Websites Vs. One Website<\/a><\/p>\n

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#3 Tailored Vs. Uniform Approach<\/a><\/p>\n

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#4 Brand Perception Vs. Sales<\/a><\/p>\n

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#5 Purchase Decision Vs. Information Seeking<\/a><\/p>\n

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#6 \u201cBe Liked\u201d Vs. \u201cGet Found\u201d Attitude<\/a><\/p>\n

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Using Reverse SEO To Build A Positive Reputation<\/a><\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”2\/3″ css=”.vc_custom_1616742558303{padding-right: 3% !important;padding-left: 3% !important;}” el_id=”rightsection”][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text css=””]What do you do when you want some information? You google it \u2013 and every single second\u00a067921 people<\/a>\u00a0do the same. Indeed, our next story starts online: and just like\u00a068%<\/a>\u00a0of online experiences do, it starts with opening a search engine and typing in some words.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner equal_height=”yes” content_placement=”middle”][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner el_class=”cta-1-left” width=”2\/3″ css=”.vc_custom_1654853436250{margin-left: 0px !important;padding-top: 20px !important;padding-right: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;padding-left: 40px !important;background-image: url(https:\/\/www.blueoceanglobaltech.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/background-cta.png?id=13450) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;border-radius: 20px !important;}”][vc_text_separator title=”Related” title_align=”separator_align_left” align=”align_left” color=”custom” border_width=”2″ el_width=”10″ accent_color=”#03315d”][vc_custom_heading text=”How Much Does Online Reputation Management Cost?” font_container=”tag:h2|text_align:left|color:%2303315d” google_fonts=”font_family:Lato%3A100%2C100italic%2C300%2C300italic%2Cregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic%2C900%2C900italic|font_style:900%20bold%20regular%3A900%3Anormal”][vc_btn title=”Read More” style=”custom” custom_background=”#ffffff” custom_text=”#03315d” shape=”square” align=”left” el_class=”border-btm-btn” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blueoceanglobaltech.com%2Fblog%2Fonline-reputation-management-cost%2F”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner el_class=”cta-1-right” width=”1\/6″ css=”.vc_custom_1654853237778{padding-top: 22px !important;padding-right: 20px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;padding-left: 40px !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;border-radius: 20px !important;}”][vc_single_image image=”14635″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” css=”.vc_custom_1661929958756{margin-top: 0px !important;margin-right: 0px !important;margin-bottom: 0px !important;margin-left: 0px !important;padding-top: 15px !important;padding-right: 38px !important;padding-bottom: 15px !important;padding-left: 38px !important;}”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner el_id=”one”][vc_column_inner el_id=”one”][vc_column_text css=””]<\/p>\n

Jenny\u2019s Journey <\/span><\/h4>\n

Imagine Jenny. She is Director of Communications and recognizes her company needs help with social media advertising. She goes online to search for \u201cdigital marketing consultant\u201d, and stumbles upon an interesting article on targeting online audiences. Jenny is interested and spends the next hour reading his blog.<\/p>\n

The first part of Jenny\u2019s story illustrates what\u00a0search engine optimization (SEO)\u00a0can do for a business. SEO is an online marketing technique used to improve content and make it discoverable for search engines. Had it not been for the interesting blog post written and optimized for the phrase \u201cdigital marketing consultant\u201d, Jenny wouldn\u2019t have known that the company existed.<\/p>\n

However, she is not ready to request a company training yet. Before buying, Jenny needs to learn more about the expert. She does a couple of quick searches on his name. Most of the results are positive, but his LinkedIn profile looks rather vague. Jenny then finds a review three-star review that highlights a mixed experience with the social media professional.<\/p>\n

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\"Jenny-finding-digital-consultant\"<\/p>\n

Jenny is confused. She is torn between her desire to request training for her company and her hesitation about the expert. So she turns to her LinkedIn account and searches for her network\u2019s recommendations about freelance social media consultants. She also tweets to some of her fellow marketers whether they know the guy in question.<\/p>\n

Jenny\u2019s decision-making process is where online reputation management (ORM) kicks in. Unlike SEO, ORM includes\u00a0everything<\/strong>\u00a0a business or an entity can do to improve its image and build a positive reputation online. ORM services enhance the\u00a0entire online presence\u00a0of the business\u00a0or entity and they are increasingly important for sales \u2013 recent data shows that about\u00a080-90% of people check online reviews<\/a>\u00a0prior to making a purchase. Successful ORM lies behind Jenny\u2019s decision to hire the consultant.<\/p>\n

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SEO vs ORM-Setting The Terms Right <\/span><\/h4>\n

ORM is broader and more general than SEO. It involves everything from building an\u00a0SEO-friendly website\u00a0with relevant content to having a positive presence on social media, online review websites, forums, blogs, etc. Whilst SEO is a technique that helps websites appear higher on search engine results pages (SERPs) ORM combines different disciplines\u2013 online PR, content marketing,\u00a0social media marketing<\/a>\u00a0and monitoring, SEO, community management, web analytics, and psychology \u2013 to proactively build and control the brand\u2019s reputation online<\/a>. (ORM) also extends to the management of specific profiles to cater their services to particular online audiences. for example, <\/span>reputation management for lawyers<\/a> will include (ORM) Strategies for promoting the client’s profile to the right audience.<\/span>This\u00a0multi-disciplinary and multi-channel<\/strong>\u00a0approach<\/strong>\u00a0is what differentiates ORM from SEO.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, SEO is foundational to all successful ORM campaigns. After all, every brand needs a great website! SEO improves the website\u2019s visibility with\u00a0on-site optimization<\/strong>, or managing the technical aspects of the page such as creating HTML code, meta descriptions, and tags. As part of a content marketing strategy, SEO tactics help optimize the website\u2019s content by using specific keywords. The other aspect of SEO,\u00a0off-site optimization<\/strong>, deals with building quality inbound links that can serve to \u201cvouch\u201d for the website in front of Google\u2019s spiders. Off-page SEO uses social media marketing and external websites to create traffic.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner content_placement=”middle” css=”.vc_custom_1654079830380{background-color: #0b4c89 !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}” el_class=”cta-2-sec”][vc_column_inner el_class=”cta-2″ css=”.vc_custom_1654084713893{background-image: url(https:\/\/www.blueoceanglobaltech.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Group-338.png?id=13390) !important;}”][vc_custom_heading text=”We Value Reputation,
\nLet\u2019s Rebuild Yours.<\/b>” google_fonts=”font_family:Lato%3A100%2C100italic%2C300%2C300italic%2Cregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic%2C900%2C900italic|font_style:300%20light%20regular%3A300%3Anormal”][vc_column_text css=””]A High Reputation Comes With a Cost, Put Value on It.<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_btn title=”Download Your ORM Package” css=”.vc_custom_1739275002344{margin-right: 50px !important;margin-left: 50px !important;padding-top: 2% !important;}” el_class=”solid-button-1″ link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blueoceanglobaltech.com%2Fblog%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2022%2F12%2Ffix-your-reputation.pdf|target:_blank”][vc_btn title=”Contact us” css=”.vc_custom_1710839124699{margin-right: 50px !important;margin-left: 50px !important;padding-top: 2% !important;}” el_class=”solid-button-1″ link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fcalendly.com%2Fblue-ocean-global-team|target:_blank”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner el_id=”three”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Six Differences Between ORM And SEO<\/span><\/h4>\n

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\"SEOHere are the main differences between ORM and SEO:[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner el_id=”four”][vc_column_text css=””]<\/p>\n

#1 Holistic Vs. Specific Aim <\/span><\/h4>\n

ORM tackles a very\u00a0elusive and intangible concept<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 reputation. Therefore, it uses a holistic approach to build a brand\u2019s reputation and to ensure that people find mostly positive information about the brand online. In contrast, SEO is specific and easy to define: it helps a website appear on the first page of a search, because\u00a095% will just look at that page<\/a>. SEO uses specific tactics to increase the rankings of a website ahead of the Google search algorithm changes, which occur around\u00a0500-600<\/a>\u00a0times per year.<\/p>\n

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#2 Many Websites Vs. One Website<\/span><\/h4>\n

SEO efforts focus on one website only, the company\u2019s own website, while ORM tracks how the brand is mentioned on all possible places on the Internet, including the company\u2019s own website. ORM also includes mentions on blogs, review and ranking websites, social media, and forums \u2013 and trying to make the best opinions and articles easier to discover.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner el_id=”six”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

#3 Tailored Vs. Uniform Approach<\/span><\/h4>\n

No matter the market niche or segment, SEO will use similar techniques to promote a company\u2019s website. An ORM campaign will differ widely depending on the company, the industry and the target market. Some ORM campaigns will be more aggressive to ensure quicker positive results and broader community outreach.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner el_id=”seven”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

#4 Brand Perception Vs. Sales<\/span><\/h4>\n

ORM is oriented towards general brand perception, while SEO is more sales-oriented. Although the ultimate goal of online reputation management is not to influence a purchase, but to change brand perceptions, a successful ORM campaign will eventually lead to more sales, because the positive reputation will convert potential clients into paying clients.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner el_id=”eight”][vc_column_text css=””]<\/p>\n

#5 Purchase Decision Vs. Information Seeking<\/span><\/h4>\n

Remember Jenny? Her story is an example of a consumer buying journey. All consumer journeys go through the phases of:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Problem Recognition <\/span><\/strong> (the person has a problem and needs a solution)<\/li>\n
  2. Information Seeking<\/span><\/strong> (the person searches online for a solution)<\/li>\n
  3. Evaluation of Alternatives<\/span><\/strong> (the person finds a lot of brands and services offering various solutions \u2013 this is the stage where all businesses compete for the client\u2019s attention)<\/li>\n
  4. Purchase Decision<\/span><\/strong> (the person chooses to buy a specific product) and<\/li>\n
  5. Post-Purchase Evaluation<\/span><\/strong> (the person receives the product, evaluates it, is happy or not, and decides to leave a review or post on social media about the company).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    SEO comes at phase 2 of the consumer journey \u2013 an\u00a0SEO optimized website guarantees that the potential client will find the business on the information seeking phase. However, unlike SEO, ORM plays a role in all phases, with a particular focus on the third, fourth and fifth phases. A positive brand reputation will influence a client to evaluate a brand more positively than the competition. Online brand management<\/a> also allows business owners to effectively control the narrative by mitigating reputational risks. This leads to clients forming trust in the brand.<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner el_id=”nine”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

    #6 \u201cBe Liked\u201d Vs. \u201cGet Found\u201d Attitude<\/span><\/h4>\n

    Basically, SEO wants a website to be found, while ORM wants only the best content about the company to be found.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner el_id=”ten”][vc_column_text css=””]<\/p>\n

    Using Reverse SEO To Build A Positive Reputation<\/span><\/h4>\n

    Reverse SEO demonstrates how SEO and ORM can work together for the brand\u2019s benefit.<\/p>\n

    One single negative mention, especially if it has a high Google ranking, can overturn the hard-earned reputation of any brand and instill distrust in potential clients. Psychology calls it\u00a0\u201cnegativity bias\u201d<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 we are simply wired to remember the bad news. Our Jenny spent a lot of time scavenging forums and social media platforms after she found a vague LinkedIn profile and questionable review.<\/p>\n

    Because no brand is ever spared a negative opinion, reverse SEO saves the day for ORM. Its aim is to suppress negative content in the search results pages and place positive content higher. Reverse SEO uses a variety of methods and focuses on off-site optimization, blogging and social media to change the rankings of a given article. Some of the techniques might include the following:<\/p>\n