The article linked below tries to identify the top ten trends online that are going to become bigger over the next year. An angry ex-employee or stupid mistake can ruin the reputation of a company quite quickly. This is why Internet reputation management made the top ten list so easily.

Last year, Domino’s Pizza landed itself into trouble when two employees posted a video of themselves handling food unhygienically on the internet. Cotton On experienced backlash on Facebook when it continued to sell baby clothes with slogans such as “They Shake Me”.

Griffin says businesses can avoid such catastrophes by carefully monitoring who is talking about their brand, and being ready to address any situation as quickly as it appeared.

With examples like this becoming increasingly commonplace, Internet reputation management will only gain popularity in the coming years.

http://www.smartcompany.com.au/internet/20100202-online-trends/2.html