If you’ve been abruptly dismissed, you need a plan to move forward with as little career gap as possible.

By Jim Wiederhold

When people hear the term “reputation repair,” it brings to mind extremely negative, even catastrophic, images. But reputation repair is broader than that in my mind. Managing your reputation is the work of every single professional, from those with a sterling reputation who are happy in their current situation, to the ones getting ready to make a career transition, to people dealing with the impact of negative press.

The Internet has changed the game for job seekers. The paper resume has been swapped out for a LinkedIn profile. Face-to-face meetings have been replaced with Facetime. Your local word-of-mouth reputation is small potatoes next to someone with a well-developed online presence. When it comes to the Internet, you are who Google says you are.

Fact: 92 percent of recruiters “Google” potential candidates according to a social recruiting survey.  LinkedIn is the clear favorite, with 94 percent of recruiters searching it to find top talent.  Potential employers also look at Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and really anything that search engines render when your name is entered.

How can you take control of your online reputation?

Three tips to rule.

When it comes to successful branding and marketing, content is king. Content can come in many forms— posts on social media sites, blogs, email newsletters, YouTube videos, etc. Quality content keeps your audience engaged, interested, and informed.

The problem: Many people have trouble producing high quality, relevant content on a consistent basis. It can feel time-consuming, laborious, and overwhelming when so many other priorities demand your attention, but if you want your branding efforts to be successful, you must commit to creating content.