Do You Need to Remove Negative Images From Google?
Sometimes negative search results take the form of images. Most often negative images cannot be removed from the internet. When they can be removed it is usually from the blog post, mugshot site, or article on which they reside and they must be removed by the publisher. Google will remove some pictures from search results under certain circumstances, but it is rare. Here’s what to do when an image cannot be removed from the source or from search results.
Summary of steps to fix online image problems
If an image cannot be removed from Google (check their guidelines here) or from the website on which it resides, then you can reduce the visibility of the image, effectively removing it from Google using these steps that are discussed in detail below:
Create more compelling images
Name the pictures correctly
Embed the images in the content of many sites
Make the page the picture is embedded on all about the subject
Embed those images in turn on 3rd party sites
Extra tip: Make them shocking
To remove negative images from where most people see them they must be replaced by something else – something better – that people searching want to see. Just putting a bunch of pictures up on various websites doesn’t work. Search engines want relevant information to show in search results. When an embarrassing or distasteful image shows up in search it is because the search engine thinks it’s the best image to show. The trick with reputation management for images is to get Google to believe the negative content isn’t as relevant (good) as the positive content. When this happens, search results change.
How to make negative images drop in search
A relevant search result is essentially the one people wanted to see. If someone performs a search in Google for ‘Lindsay Lohan pictures’, the search engine will return some images. Over time various people click on a subset of these images more often than others. Every time someone clicks on an image, the search engine says ‘ah-ha! I did well – this is an image the user wants to see for that search key phrase!’. The search engine remembers it and will probably return that image again the next time someone searches using that key phrase.
The best way to keep on top of all online information is to use an effective reputation management tool such as this.
Original Article: feedproxy.google.com
