A reader wrote in today to ask a good question:
I was just wondering on items that we post to this site – like the comment fields on the brag basket.. would they be show up in google searches? My only concern was that if i posted “business” type things – I wouldn’t want them to come up in a google or yahoo search if a customer typed in our business name. We had a problem with this on our association message board where we all voiced “concerns” that we wouldn’t want blasted out to the world – then later found out they were showing up on searches! Anyway – just wondering…. Thanks.
Anything you post in the comment box here and on any other website is public. It is possible for your comments to be found by search.
I always follow the guideline of only posting comments that I don’t mind everyone on the planet reading. You can always comment, especially in the Brag Basket, without giving the details. Feel free to leave out your business name, or to skip over any details you wouldn’t want to share publicly.
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Becky started Small Biz Survival in 2006 to share rural business and community building stories and ideas with other small town business people. She and her husband have a small cattle ranch and are lifelong entrepreneurs. Becky is an international speaker on small business and rural topics.
So right Becky. And I had a friend who deleted a comment and it continued to show up in search results for a while. Putting our best foot forwards is the best way to go!
I offer the same advice that I’ve offered for years: Don’t email, post or comment to a blog, direct message, chat, etc. *anything* that you wouldn’t be willing to see as a headline in your local paper. If an email / posting / comment makes you angry, wait for 24 hours before replying. If you hesitate for even a moment on the “send/post/publish” button, DON’T click on it. The Internet is full of cautionary tales of people who did and now regret it. You’ll thank yourself later.
Janice and Ruth Marie, thanks for adding your thoughts. I think it comes back to our small town courtesy. If you wouldn’t want it to get back to someone, don’t say it.