Approximately 71% of consumers start their buying process on Google search. This is why no business wants to have a low online reputation.
Knowing how crucial image is to a company, most businesses prefer to hire online reputation management companies to maintain their reputation. As a business owner, the question you may ask yourself is how you can guard your reputation effectively?
Manually selecting your business daily on Google may somewhat help, but it may be an overwhelming task. There are more straightforward and efficient strategies that online reputation management companies can implement, such as:
- Monitoring
The first and most important strategy is to ensure that your reputation monitoring is on point. As a business owner or brand, people talk about you or your business all the time over the internet. There is no possible way of monitoring all these conversations manually.
Fortunately, there is an online reputation management software to do this job for you. This software helps you scan social media platforms, forums, or blogs automatically. The software you choose depends on your type of business.
- Handle Negative Feedback
Negative feedback is also a form of feedback and a necessary one too. Although it can bring disaster to your online reputation, it can create room for improvement. Negative comments can’t be ignored because they are in a public set-up.
The critical factor in handling negative feedback is offering a fantastic response to clear the air. The best approach to negative feedback is by:
- Give a professional approach because customers like to feel that their concerns have been heard and taken seriously. If you are patient enough to offer a solution, you might build a rapport with your clients.
- The faster you reply to negative feedback, the more you create room for customers to change their minds. Quick and calm feedback shows that you are listening to them, and you are ready to offer a solution.
- If possible, have a private conversation about fixing things over in a more private space.
- Apologize if you were wrong
- Invest in The Positives
Another vital approach in an online reputation management strategy is encouraging clients to leave reviews by reaching out to your most loyal customers. Make sure to respond to positive reviews, too, as they play a part in enhancing a positive online reputation.
- Focus on SEO
Search engine optimization (SEO) increases your business site visibility. Whether it’s of-page or on-page SEO, it can help your business appear in Google’s top search results.
- Create Content
Content branding is a crucial factor in online reputation and management. The tone variation and consistency of messages make a difference. The content you use will describe your brand as positive or negative, depending on how your content appears.
The replies you give your clients and your overall social media communication play a huge role in portraying your image to the customer.
- Choose Professional Influencers
The newest angle for most online businesses is the use of social media influencers. When considering influencer marketing, be very careful with the person you choose.
You are associating your brand name with this person so the right influencer can determine the direction of your online reputation. Here are the best methods of choosing an influencer.
- Choose influencers who are not taken by your competitors.
- Find out who mentions your brand frequently.
- Establish their general sentiments when they mention you on their posts
- Measure Your Results
You may have made promises to your clients, especially those who had negative feedback. The last step is to analyze the changes you have committed to making. If you offered these commitments publicly, you don’t want to look like a liar.
Make sure you do the things you said you would build trust with your clients. After investing in your reputation, you need to measure it to determine if your reputation strategy worked. Using a monitoring tool can come in handy. If your scores have ranked higher than before, or your sentiment analysis has gone up, your strategy could be working.
The Benefits of Online Reputation Management
An excellent online reputation benefits a business or brand owner in the following ways:
- It boosts sales- Businesses with positive online reviews tend to attract more customers and increase sales.
- Boosts visibility- The availability of a well-designed website that is rich in content boosts business visibility online.
- Build trust and credibility-Effective online reputation management allow users to build trust in your business and products.
- Attracts employees- An excellent online reputation attracts high volume applications whenever there is a job opening.
Online reputation management is an essential part of any business. A business that wants to maintain customer loyalty must maintain high online reviews. The best way to do this is by establishing a good relationship with clients and responding to all customer complaints.
People will always talk about you and your business. Maintaining a consistent online reputation marketing strategy provokes positive results that lead to increased sales for your business.
About the Author:
Ron Evan Tamayo del Rosario
Ron Evan is a Digital Marketing Specialist and a writer who takes his time writing articles about traveling, psychology, and digital marketing. He learned about the digital marketing industry accidentally almost four years ago. He is currently based in Taiwan, taking up an MBA degree with a focus on Marketing. During his free time, he enjoys going to karaoke, window shopping, and watching Netflix.
