What is online reputation management?
Online reputation is now a sub-category of public relations while becoming its own discipline. The role of public relations is above all to maintain contact with the media. Provide new information that brings positive value to the image of the company. The traditional tools of public relations are press conferences and press releases. However, the Internet has become a powerful medium. In which it is increasingly difficult to distinguish the producers and recipients of content. There is no need for relations in the press agencies. Or to go through the traditional media to affect and influence the image of a company.
By using social media, it is indeed possible to quickly write a scathing comment. For example to an existing message, and to share it, which can spread it at lightning speed, especially if the comment finds sufficient resonance. Thus, opinions can spread quickly without the public relations department being able to really react. Thus, it is the role of e-reputation management to devote itself to the management of social networks and the World Wide Web in general and to meet these new challenges. You can contact Professional Online Reputation Management Services Company.
6 Tips for Successful Online Reputation Management
Why is online reputation management important?
Good online reputation management guarantees a company a positive image over the long term. The benefits are obvious and numerous, but what are they based on? Where do reviews play a critical role for businesses? From an economic point of view, the following advantages result from a positive image or a good reputation online:
- Increase reach : A good reputation rarely remains confidential and the best publicity is often word of mouth. With a positive reputation, customers are the best brand ambassadors to attract new customers to your online channels.
- Increased Sales : Reach alone is not enough, it must be supplemented with leads and sales. A good reputation will guarantee more leads and sales as it will build and build trust. For example, undecided potential customers who know little or nothing about your brand may be persuaded by reading positive reviews from other customers about your products or services.
- Market value : The reputation of a brand obviously has an influence on its value. Investors are interested in a company’s image and its reception to an audience. The search for investors is often vital for many companies and especially for start-ups.
Every company, whatever its size, has an image to build, protect and preserve. However, managing an online reputation is not an easy task.
Before the advent of the Internet, if someone had something derogatory to say about your business, it likely remained in the hands of their circle of friends and family. But with the rise of social media, as well as the introduction of review sites such as Google Reviews, the opinion of a single customer can have a major impact on how the world perceives your brand.
With this in mind, managing your online reputation is essential. In this article, you’ll learn how to manage and protect your brand reputation. You can contact Professional Online Reputation Management Services Company.
Online reputation management and its impact on your business
Your online reputation determines how others perceive your business when they search or find it on the Internet. Online Reputation Management is a set of actions that must be carried out before and after a communication crisis, in order to protect a brand , a person or an organization against damage to its reputation . It proactively influences what information people will find about you.
Did you know that “ 85% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations”? Moreover, “ 49% of consumers need a rating of at least four stars before choosing to use a company”.
Given these statistics, the importance of your personal and professional online reputation cannot be underestimated.
Can reputation be managed?
People will say bad things about your business no matter what you do. Sometimes their words are unfair, sometimes they are completely justified. Unfortunately, Internet users are not able to disentangle the true from the false and cannot know whether the opinions posted are representative of reality or not. Therefore, they have no reason not to believe what they read.
However, nothing prevents you from managing your reputation. Customer reviews , whether positive or negative, are essential for your development . Indeed, they represent opportunities to prove to your loyal customers and prospects that you care about them and their shopping experience. In addition, a relevant response to a bad review can transform the customer’s attitude, even convert him into a loyal customer. By doing so, you demonstrate your desire to satisfy your customers , however many they may be.
In sum, managing your online reputation involves knowing how to plan for brand awareness and how to react to the potential fallout from a negative review.
How to control your online reputation?
Some reputations can be tarnished by poor customer service or poor quality products. Others may see their reputation tarnished by their own poor working conditions or unethical practices.
If your brand is affected by any of the above reasons, then these are issues unique to the business you have created. To prevent consumers from complaining about your poor quality products, improve them. If you don’t want people to protest the opening of your new cheap fashion store, improve the working conditions of your employees.
For other brands that are trying to do good and provide a quality service or product, there are many practices you can adopt to manage your online reputation.
Social media
Your customers now have a channel where they can communicate with you and you can in turn respond to them in a fast, personal and useful way.
Of course, social media isn’t just about customer support, it’s about presenting your best possible profile. Convey the image of a pleasant, useful, entertaining and above all committed company with which people will want to connect.
Don’t just communicate with the people who nominate you directly. It’s also essential to monitor social media for indirect mentions of your brand. Surprisingly, 31% of tweets containing a company name do not include their Twitter handle.
It’s also naive to expect every customer who deals with your business to be 100% satisfied with their experience. No matter how streamlined, well-organized or well-trained your customer service teams are, there will always be human error.
The key is to be able to deal with disgruntled customers as quickly and as satisfactorily as possible.
Customers’ opinion
First, the most important thing to do is allow customer reviews on your site. For good reason, they are particularly effective in increasing the conversion rate . They help eliminate any doubts that other customers may have about your service or product. Thus, Internet users will be more inclined to buy on a site that publishes user reviews.
By allowing customer reviews, you necessarily expose yourself to negative reviews. If you have any, don’t ignore them! Unchecked negative comments can spread like wildfire on social media. Reacting quickly is the best way to minimize the damage caused.
But now is not the time to get angry or take revenge on the client. It’s essential to let them know that you’ve acknowledged their concerns and let them know about your efforts to address them.
For more complex scenarios, you should strive for a more personalized approach. It is best to encourage the customer to speak to you directly or call you to resolve the issue more efficiently. You may contact Professional Online Reputation Management Services Company
The best way to minimize reputational damage is to take the conversation offline and deal with the issue face-to-face.
On the other hand, if your site has bad reviews, it is clear that something is wrong and you need to rethink your service in depth.
Blog
Running a blog can be a great way to maintain a positive brand perception . Just like your social media profile, it shows your more human side. It can be both a personal introduction to the personalities behind the brand, or even provide insight into your activities or your way of thinking. In other words, it can be entertaining, funny or useful to highlight your expertise.
The other advantage is that it provides regular content that you can post on social media. It also populates search engine results pages with your own content when someone types your brand into their query.
Engage your community
Galvanize your fans. Make them part of your brand to convert them into real ambassadors . Thanks to YouTube, Vine, Instagram, and other social video platforms, it has become easy to develop creative relationships with social media followers.
For example, you can partner with a creator to make a video or organize a contest. In order to engage with your community, you might consider asking them to submit their own videos to post on your professional channels. Thus, you will help to retain your fans , create ambassadors for your brand and prove how close you are to your community.
What you must remember
Your business’s online reputation can be an incredible asset or a devastating liability.
Building and managing your e-reputation means actively influencing the impression your business leaves on users. The first step to a good reputation is deciding how you want your business to be perceived.
Your website, your blog and your social networks are three digital marketing channels that help shape your online reputation. Be sure to respond to reviews as quickly and appropriately as possible to prevent people from interpreting your silence as a lack of consideration on your part.
Responsiveness is the key to enjoy a good reputation.
