Ask Alex - Real Estate Broker Faces Reputation Attack From Former Employee

Today's Ask Alex About Stalking and Bullying comes from Kim who writes; 

Alex, I owned a real estate office, that due to divorce and ill health struggled and finally closed two years ago.  While the entire process was painful and humiliating, the situation was made 1000% worse by a temp who took to the internet to slam me and the business. She only worked for me for two weeks and so she knew almost nothing about the problems and certainly didn’t know me or my husband or the other workers. 

For months after the business closed she made posts on social media that were bizarre, offensive, and damaging to my reputation.  Thankfully, she eventually stopped and I figured that she moved on and focused on some other poor soul.

Last month, I decided to go back to work in real estate as an agent for a large company. A couple days ago, the broker called me to his office and revealed that he had been sent social media posts claiming that I stole money from former clients, that I wasn’t a licensed agent, and all sorts of other lies. My broker who did the paperwork to transfer my license to his firm, knows that the posts are ridiculous. But he is still concerned that this nut’s posts will have a negative effect on his business. He’s right to be concerned. I don’t know why she is so fixated on me or why she is doing this. I don’t know how to make her stop. I sent her an email asking her to stop and she responded that she can post whatever she wants under the First Amendment. Help!  -  Kim

PR & Crisis Management expert, Alexandrea Merrell answers question about stalking, bullying, online harassment, and hate campaigns, and helps adults deal with personal and professional reputation crises to ultimately rebuild a stronger, more resilient, and joyful brand and life. AlexandreaMerrell.com