Have you done an online search of your business name through Google or other major search engines? If you haven’t, your company’s reputation could be in danger.
Many business owners put up a website and think that this is maintaining an online presence. These business owners don’t understand that there is more to doing business online than having a website or a page on social media. Developing an online presence also involves protecting the company’s online reputation.
Some business owners don’t realize that they may not be the only ones publishing information about their business online. In today’s world, consumers are publishers too, and consumers can be extremely vocal online about their interactions with a company.
Search Engines are Reputation Engines
Google and other major search engines serve a dual purpose. Not only do they let customers locate businesses online, they also serve as reputation engines. Consumers regularly look up reviews on products and companies online in order to make smarter purchasing decisions. Consumers also check out how companies handle complaints and other issues via multiple online venues. Consumers also air their opinions about products and services through social networks.
If businesses don’t spend time monitoring their online reputations, they could be losing business without knowing why. Here are six effective keys that will help business owners effectively keep track of their online reputations:
Monitor Major Search Engines
Business owners would be wise to know what’s appearing on the first couple of pages of results on Google, Bing, and Yahoo. There are tools available such as Google alerts to monitor for changes that will provide business owners with an alert of information changes.
Listen & Respond to Consumers
Monitor social networks using SocialMention.com and hashtags on Twitter to ensure that any consumer mentions are addressed if necessary. Address any issues in a diplomatic manner. Always be mindful that interactions with consumers are visible to multiple parties.
Appoint a Reputation Manager
Hiring an outside party to manage a business reputation can be a great idea, but it’s not always feasible. However, someone should be appointed to the task who has some familiarity with social media, marketing, and search engine optimization.
Maintain Transparency
Always acknowledge and wrongs or instances where the company has dropped the ball. Offer apologies and explanations along with solutions to ensure that something similar doesn’t happen in the future.
Publish Content Regularly
Most businesses can’t get away with a simple online web page anymore. Business is interactive and consumers expect business to publish content on a regular basis. Businesses that regularly create content establish themselves as though leaders and maintain visibility with potential customers and leads.
Ensure Content Encourages Sharing
Every morsel of content a business creates should offer consumers the ability to share the content using a simple button or link. Creating content that is easy to share encourages readers and fans to share content and increase visibility while garnering respect by being validated by outside entities and people.
Reputation is everything for the small business owner. Bad reviews that aren’t addressed can lead to decreased sales and business failure. Maintaining a positive online reputation is vital to online business success.
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