Better online reputation management can benefit everyone – business and consumer. Here are some tips to improve yours.
1: Focus On Search Results
Search results for your business name or brand play a crucial role in having a good online reputation. You can confirm this by searching your name or brand to discover what you need to do to own the search results and control the trajectory of your reputation. That means your objective should be to ensure that you feature more on the top slots on the first page of the search results.
One effective strategy worth considering is having an online resume in which you register a domain under your name (your brand or personal name) and share it throughout the social networks. Once you have this up and running, you then should focus on bagging as much high quality and authoritative online properties as possible, be it on the social media platforms or websites. The result of this will be gaining several rankings for your business or brand name on the first pages of the search results. Yes, it costs money but reputation management’s price is often worth it.
2: Routinely Check Your Search Results
You should do a deep search for your company name and brand at least once every month. If your business is not named in the online news that often, then you need to do something to change this. Consider setting up Google Alerts for primary keywords that mention your company or brand so that you receive alerts whenever there is new content that talks about your business or brand name online.
As you invest in achieving a high ranking on the first page of the search results, you also should not make this your sole focus. In as much as many users will rarely go past the first page, you also should check the second and third pages to see if you are mentioned positively or negatively. Keep in mind that search rankings can change suddenly, and the negative content on the other pages of the search results can find its way onto the first page causing further damage.
You should keep a record of your ranking on search results pages (SERPs). You can use a spreadsheet for this and sort the data based on URL, page title, page status (if an influencer manages it, its a controlled page or you manage it), and include your views (positive, negative, or neutral).
3: Engage Customers To Share Positive Experiences And Reviews
If you have a growing consumer base, then figure out how you can maintain it while also doing what you can to keep it growing. As you do this, remember to engage your customers and encourage them to share their experiences. Consider pushing for the positive reviews and comments about your company and brand. Request this without coming across as nagging or needy. For instance, you can ask then if they feel you exceeded their expectations and then request them to share their positive experiences.
You can place such a request as the bottom of a receipt, on your web pages, or a noticeboard in the establishment. It should be where customers will not miss seeing. Studies show that many customers will share or complain about something or their bad experiences compared to voice their contentment or appreciation of excellent customer service or experience. So, to mitigate such an outcome, you should offer excellent customer service and then request for the positive reviews and mentions before the negative ones are posted. You, therein, will be doing some preventive management for your brand reputation.
4: Encourage Customers To Solve Problems
Please do not focus on making money off your customers, but show them that you value them. One of the best ways of doing this is by engaging with them to genuinely know more about who there are, their needs and expectations. You can create a social media account for this, where your customers can force your concerns and complaints, and you can offer solutions. That way, you will be telling and showing them that you care, and this will have a positive impact on your company and brand reputation.
5: Regular Updates
To own the search result, you must ensure that you are consistently relevant. You can achieve this by doing regular updates to your website, social media accounts, blogs, and any other online property linked to your brand. Content will be crucial, and it must be fresh, relevant, and exciting while also targeting a specific audience.
You can hire content curators so that you can shift a bit more of your time and effort on other aspects of your company. The material you post should cast a positive light on your business and brand to help bolster your online reputation.