Your online reputation is more important than ever in today’s world. Having a good reputation on the internet might be the difference between a customer choosing your business or your competition. Knowing how to protect your reputation online is the first step in managing and building your business’s online reputation. Here is everything you need to know to get started protecting and building your online reputation.
Problems Can Arise from Nowhere
One of the most challenging things about managing your online reputation is the fact that potential problems can seemingly arise from nowhere. Even if you believe that you are doing everything right as a business owner, there is no way to ensure you make everyone happy, including your employees. Any one of these employees or customers is liable to leave you a bad review or start a reputation crisis. It does not really matter where the problem may arise from, just that a reputation crisis may originate from anywhere, sometimes when you least expect it.
Your Reputation Follows You for a Long Time
If a reputation crisis arises, it has the potential to follow you for a long time if you are not prepared to deal with it properly. Having a reputation management plan in place will greatly benefit you when and if a reputation crisis arises. You don’t want a negative reputation following your business around, so it is in your best interest to take a proactive online reputation management approach.
How Should I Manage My Business’s Reputation Online?
If you have decided to approach reputation management for your business proactively, there are several things you can begin doing right away to help better your online reputation. Use the following tips to help you get started managing your business’s online reputation.
Address Complaints and Compliments Right Away
Anytime you receive a complaint, you should think of it as an opportunity to show off your customer service skills and a potential area for improvement with your business. Responding to complaints and compliments promptly shows your customers that you are listening and care what they have to say. When you respond to customers, the first thing you need to do is thank them for their input, whether it is a compliment or complaint. You should carefully craft your response, either highlighting the good things the customer has to say or telling them how you plan to improve and ask them to give you another chance. While you can’t make every customer happy, you can show that you care and are listening to them by promptly responding to every bit of customer feedback you receive.
Monitor What is Being Said About Your Business
To best manage your online reputation, you need to know what people are saying about you online. There are a few obvious places to check, such as your Google My Business, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Google, to name a few. Simply doing a search of your business name on the internet and various social media platforms is an excellent place to start if you have not looked into what is being said about your business online.
Establish a Presence Through Regular Content Publishing
The best way to establish your business online is through the regular publishing of high-quality and relevant content. There are many places you should be doing this, but the main places include your website, Google My Business, and social media channels. Regularly publishing content online is the best way to shape your brand’s image on the internet and control the conversation surrounding your business online. You should become the single source of truth for everything related to your business.
