It is possible to mitigate the impact of a negative review on a business or person, but only if there is a commitment to reputation management. It is very important to be proactive when it comes to your reputation, because this will ensure there is always more positive content than negative content on the internet. This is what reputation management companies do, and do very well, in the process also increasing online standing and brand loyalty.
Establishing a Positive Reputation
For businesses, there are three key elements to building a positive reputation:
-
Customer service. Customer service means businesses always respond to any feedback that they receive, using it as an opportunity to build a personal connection, creating trust. Once someone trust you, they will be less likely to voice their complaints in public. Good customer service makes or breaks a company, not in the least because people are now so vocal. A reputation management company can help when even the best customer service hasn’t worked.
-
Marketing. This helps a company to create the right brand image, which in turn helps to build a positive reputation. Through a reputation management company, a business can get exposure on online channels, such as blogs and social media platforms.
-
Public relations. This must be a strategic effort through which a brand can be protected. Not only does it stop a reputation from being damaged, it can also ensure that a reputation can be rebuilt after they have been attacked. A reputation management company will help create a proper PR strategy, tracking consumer surveys, online commentary, social media, and more.
Thanks to the internet, it is now easier than ever for individuals to voice their feelings and thoughts, whether they are warranted or not. This is why it is so important that companies and individuals focus on online reputation management and brand protection. Sure, positive reviews can build a company’s reputation, but you cannot guarantee that they will all be positive.
How an Online Reputation Management Company Can Help
Online reputation management company have strategies in place to protect an existing reputation and rebuild a damaged reputation. Some of the ways in which they do this include:
-
Pushing back negative commentary to the third page of the search engines and beyond.
-
Pushing positive commentary to the first page of the search engines.
-
Creating positive content.
-
Optimizing existing content through images, videos, PDFs, multimedia, and content.
-
Monitoring the internet for new information released about the company.
Many businesses don’t consider working with reputation management companies because it means they have to pay for those services. While this is true, if you were to calculate the cost of not working with such a company, which could be as high as a business going under completely, it quickly becomes clear that it is actually a very worthwhile investment. Your reputation is your most important asset, one that cannot be expressed in monetary value and one that you must protect.
