Learning how to manage your online reputation, whether it's for personal considerations or for your business or organization, has never been more important than it is today.
In today’s day and age, more people than ever before are using the Internet to conduct research. From determining which stores offer the lowest prices, to finding out what local plumber has the most positive reviews, the Internet is a great source of information.
At this point, you may not understand the importance of online reputation management.
However, this is not something you want to overlook. If you're not paying attention to how your company is perceived online, you may soon regret the decision.
According to a recent study by emarketer.com, more than 80 percent of consumers agree that online reviews impact their opinions about a particular company. Along with this, the same percentage added that negative information available online has forced them to change their mind.
Believe it or not, one bad review can lead to a variety of headaches including lost profits.
How To Manage Your Online Reputation
1. Listen to what is being said about your company, both the good and bad. From Google Alerts to Social Mention, there are tools that can help you stay on top of what others are saying.
It is nice to see people saying good things about your company, but that doesn’t mean you can overlook the bad.
2. Stake claim to what is yours. Do you own the Twitter handle with your company’s name? If not, go out and grab it right now. The last thing you want is a third party using this against you. Even if you don’t plan on using a particular social service be sure to claim your company’s name. A handy tool for doing so en masse is KnowEm.
3. Do whatever it takes to dominate the first page of the Google results for your company. When somebody searches for your company, you want them to find information such as your website, Twitter page, and Facebook page. This way they are turning to you for information as opposed to a negative review or angry competitor.
4. Don’t be afraid to ask others for reviews. In addition to adding testimonials to your website, for example, don’t be shy about requesting that customers leave a positive review, if they see fit, on other service related sites.
You don’t want to come across as forceful. Instead, let your customers know you would appreciate a review and provide some easy to follow step by step instructions on how to do so (on the review site you're targeting of course).
5. Stay engaged. It is one thing to monitor your online reputation. It is another thing entirely to stay engaged with those who are leaving reviews or talking about your business.
For example, if somebody mentions your company on Twitter you should respond to them. This is just one of the little things you can do to show that you care.
What now?
If you don’t have a plan in place to manage your online reputation, there is no better time than now to dive in. If you need help with this area of your business, contact us today for a free consultation.
