Perhaps an individual just developed a business or has been running a business for a while. Once developed, the online reputation of that business is now a top priority. The way people see others as well as businesses is key to sustainability. One bad review or one negative comment made at the precise moment can cause a wildfire and pretty soon that business is Canceled. This is where online reputation management comes in.

Online Reputation Management

Online reputation management broken down is simply how a business is perceived. When someone searches the name of a restaurant or hair salon, what comes up affects that business. As a business owner it becomes imperative to control the information that others see when seeking information about their business on the internet.

Recent studies have shown that now more than ever, consumers are utilizing online reviews as a basis to determine if that brand is worth it. Consumers want the best for themselves and the way a business is perceived by others determines their choice of going with that company or product.

Good Reviews vs. Bad Reviews

Ultimately, businesses want to see positive reviews on their products, employees, and their business as a whole. Consumers spend hours online seeking out the best. If the negative reviews outweigh the positives, that business, product, etc. probably just lost business from that individual. A business’s online reputation of them and their products matter. So, how can a business manage their reputation better? Good question, let’s find out.

Available Tools

1st, find out what others are saying about the company, the brand. Ask around to know what others think. In an effort to weight out biased reviews from family and friends (they just want to offer support), there is reputation management software. One such tool, known as “The Brand Grader” works by inputting the business name and seeing what “influential bloggers,” and others have said about the business (stablewp.com).

It identifies the number of positive and negative “mentions” so that as a business owner, a better gauge can be used to determine just where the reputation of the business and brand is at. It also allows the user to see how other competitor companies are fairing. Seeking out complaints only, businesses can also use Go Fish Digital which “runs your name on over 40 complaint websites,” to identify at a faster rate the number of negative reviews the brand has (stablewp.com). Programs such as these can aid businesses and developers alike in identifying quickly areas that consumers state improvment is needed.

Own It

What’s the use of creating a brand if consumers can’t tie it back to the business itself. When managing online reputation, the only thing worse than negative reviews (which can actually be helpful if improvements are made) is not owning the website related to your business and brand. If an owner is curious to identify brand “name” availability, a good reputation management software is KnowEm.

It is free and allows the owner to check name availability “on over 150 domain names” (stablewp.com). In league with owning brand name and sites, businesses need to own their brand on social media. Have accounts on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn. Don’t just have accounts though, be active on those accounts.

Response

Finally, good online reputation management comes in your responses to both positive and negative content. If a consumer leaves a negative review with information on a particular problem, address the concern and then work on it. Determine what is worth responding to and act.

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