Online Reputation Management: Step One
As we all know, a good reputation takes time and effort to earn but can be ruined in an instant. Online reputation issues take on a special importance when you consider that nothing is ever gone from the internet—once it’s posted online, it always exists somewhere. Monitoring is the first step in online reputation management. Think of it as a business metric to keep an eye on. Reviews and social media mentions are two of the most important things to monitor. Staying informed about customer perceptions helps business owners detect small issues before they become big problems. Comprehensive monitoring requires specialized software or online services. As more reviews and mentions show up online, it becomes more difficult for a human to find them all. At some point, it becomes impossible. Specialized tools make it easy, allowing business owners and marketing employees to spend their time on tasks that require a human touch.
Responding to Reviews
Your responses to reviews will help define how potential customers see your business when deciding whether to become actual customers. Responding appropriately to reviews will also encourage people who’ve already purchased services or goods from your business to continue doing so. It makes customers feel like they’re in a conversation with your business—like your business truly listens and cares about them—which enhances positive sentiment and builds trust.
Responding to positive reviews is easy. We all know how to respond graciously to praise. However, responding appropriately to negative reviews is more difficult. There are a lot of pitfalls when crafting responses to people who’ve just said bad things about what you do, but following certain guidelines can help avoid them while potentially restoring someone’s good opinion of your business. Here are some reputation improvement tips:
- Never express anger in your responses to negative reviews.
- Acknowledge the customer’s feelings and concerns.
- Express regret for the customer’s negative experience—even if it wasn’t actually your company’s fault.
- Explain important context without making excuses.
- Share a solution.
- Offer to discuss the issue further.
- Thank the customer for their helpful feedback.
Seek Positive Feedback
Internet reputation management is about more than responsiveness. Active improvement of your business’s reputation is another key component. Encourage happy customers to leave reviews. Google and Yelp are two of the most common options for reviewers, and you can also ask satisfied customers to share their thoughts on review sites for your industry. Just make sure not to incentivize positive reviews on sites that don’t belong to you. It violates the policies of review sites. Customer feedback strategies must follow all relevant rules. However, you can offer incentives for glowing testimonials to use on your business website.
Implement a Comprehensive Reputation Management Strategy
Strategy is a critical part of surviving in the world of business. Reputation management is no exception. Monitoring, responding to, and acquiring reviews requires a strong plan and systematic efforts. Make sure to create guidelines that will take the guesswork out of responding to reviews, making the process nearly automatic. Guidelines should include instructions about response time, brand voice, appropriate responses to negative reviews, platform-specific rules, and relevant laws. Considering the complexity of reputation management online, many business owners choose to rely on professional web marketers with histories of success.
