In this increasingly digital age, anyone with access to the internet has an online reputation. From individuals to large corporations, everyone has an online presence, so it’s important for businesses in particular to understand where their reputation stands next to their competitors and how they can work to improve it. Even if your business has a great online presence, you can’t let you guard down! Managing your online reputation is a continuous process that should be integral to every digital marketing plan to keep you’re the online opinion of your business working for you.
What a Negative Reputation Can Do
In today’s day and age, consumers do most of their shopping online. This includes doing research on different products and services, as well as the businesses that offer them. Why does that matter? Even if you know you have a good business model and offer great products or services, your online reputation may not reflect that if you don’t control the conversation. If you’re not monitoring your reputation, you might not even know if it’s good or bad!
A conversation about your business is happening online whether you like it or not. Customers will want to look at reviews and understand what your business is all about, and if you’re not offering them the information they want, they’ll look elsewhere. This means that negative reviews, articles, or social media posts about your business can get more traction and work against you. People tend to click on sensational or shocking content just to learn more and be entertained. The increased popularity of negative content about your business means search engines will catch on and start bumping it up in ranking. If you’re not careful, rather than your website showing up when people search your business, it could be something negative instead!
Reviews can also have a big impact on your reputation. Contrary to what you might think, a few bad reviews are not the end of the world, but how you react to them could make a huge difference. Ignoring bad reviews might seem like the better option, but it can show potential customers that you’re non-responsive and don’t care about your customer service. Paying attention to negative reviews can also help to identify patterns and issues in your business that should be addressed.
Effects of a Good Online Reputation
Maintaining a good online reputation starts with getting yourself into the conversation so you can control the impression that customers are getting of your business. While people like to click shocking links to be entertained, they’re also searching for information. By providing up to date and relevant content, you can give consumers the information they’re looking for and improve your search engine rankings. Using keywords and SEO best practices, you can get your website and social media pages in front of more potential customers and drive the conversation towards your business.
Keeping your SEO and content relevant and new on your website and social media will also help keep customers interested in your business and curious about what’s new. You can gain a following of dedicated customers who will be interested in your latest products or deals, and who will want to share with their friends.
The second most important aspect to reputation management is to communicate with your audience online. Start a conversation and get involved with your customers, respond to reviews, both good and bad, and use your new understanding of your reputation to improve your online presence. When you’re paying attention to what people are saying and getting involved, you can control the conversation, and you’ll be able to control the impression your business is conveying online. Build your online presence around your brand and create the energy that you want customers to feel when they work with you. Managing your online reputation is the first step!
At Beyond Custom Websites, we understand how important reputation management is, but we also know how much time and effort it can take. When you work with us, you’ll get a comprehensive analysis of your online reputation that we will then use to create a custom action plan designed to meet the needs of your business. Contact us today to get started!