In the digital age, managing your business's online reputation is crucial, and we've gathered insights from CEOs and founders to guide you. From promoting transparency and honesty to ensuring consistent brand messaging across platforms, explore the nine expert tips that will help you maintain a stellar online presence.
Promote Transparency and Honesty
Respond Quickly to Negative Feedback
Regularly Monitor Online Conversations
Use Advanced Search for Unnoticed Mentions
Encourage Positive and Address Negative Reviews
Maintain Service Quality for Positive Press
Integrate Digital PR into Regular Activities
Humanize Your Brand for Real Connections
Ensure Consistent Brand Messaging Across Platforms
Promote Transparency and Honesty
To manage a company's online reputation, honesty and transparency are paramount, in my view. This necessitates being forthright about apologizing and accepting blame when things go wrong. It is crucial for organizations to maintain effective communication with their target audience, particularly in times of crisis or when responding to negative feedback.
A sincere apology and a plan for resolution can turn a negative situation into an opportunity to demonstrate the company's dedication to client satisfaction. Additionally, being open and honest about company policies, procedures, and changes can increase audience trust and credibility.
Timothy Allen, Sr. Corporate Investigator, Corporate Investigation Consulting
Respond Quickly to Negative Feedback
The core principle we follow in reputation management is to respond quickly to any negative feedback we receive. The last thing we want is for bad reviews to spread across social media without any chance to reply or control the narrative.
We use a combination of Google Alerts and regular profile checks on social media platforms to get out ahead of bad reviews. In cases where we were in the wrong, we apologize and offer to make amends in some way, usually with a partial refund. In cases where we feel we're being unfairly judged, we're not afraid to set the record straight.
Nick Valentino, VP of Market Operations, Bellhop
Regularly Monitor Online Conversations
To ace online reputation management, make researching, monitoring, and auditing your online standing a habit. Set aside time to regularly delve into online conversations about your business. This involves scrutinizing social media platforms, review sites, and industry forums. I highly recommend leveraging tools like Google Alerts, Brandwatch, or Mention, since they provide real-time insights into how your brand is perceived.
In addition, tools like SEMrush or BrightLocal can help you find and correct inaccuracies in business listings, ensuring that the online narrative aligns with the reality of your products or services. This kind of rigorous self-assessment helps you strengthen your online credibility and also highlights areas for improvement.
John Murphy, Owner, eBike Generation
Use Advanced Search for Unnoticed Mentions
Not everyone who talks about your company will tag you on social media or link back to your site, so it's easy for “soft” mentions to escape your notice. You can use Google's advanced search tools to monitor these.
On the Google homepage, click “Tools,” and then use the “Any time” dropdown to select the timeframe you want to check mentions for. Then search for both your name and your business name enclosed in quotes. This will give you a good sense of the questions people have about your business, what they really think of you, and areas you can improve.
When I did this exercise, I found that someone had mixed up my business with a company that was located in a completely different geographical area, and I could address the error.
Chloe Brittain, Founder, Monday Roadmap
Encourage Positive and Address Negative Reviews
One key strategy we've found effective in managing online reputation is proactively soliciting reviews from satisfied customers while addressing negative ones promptly and professionally. The positive reviews put forward the best image of your business, while dealing with negatives head-on shows your commitment to customer satisfaction.
For example, in the past seven years, we've supported countless businesses in managing and improving their online reputations. A clear example of this would be helping businesses incentivize positive reviews from customers, raising their reputation score by over 20% within a few months.
We also monitor reviews constantly, notifying businesses about negatives immediately so they can be addressed. A mix of active reputation-building and rapid response really does wonders.
Maintain Service Quality for Positive Press
As an entrepreneur, I pay utmost attention to my digital reputation. I know how impactful several critical reviews are and how they can change the course of my professional success. Because I own a travel company, my reputation as a service provider is paramount.
If I leave clients with a feeling they have not gotten the best assistance in terms of location and accommodation amenities, activity planning, or even a sense of personal connection, then I can surely expect negative reviews to follow. It is with this service-minded approach that I seek to come across as both an expert and a willing participant to make sure all the customer service boxes are checked. In this sense, I generate positive press and even prove my credibility as a travel expert and effective business owner.
One practice I use for keeping track of my online reputation includes regularly monitoring travel-related websites that may mention my company, as well as different related blogs and social media platforms. I would recommend other businesses do the same as well, just keep your focus on the goal of making viable changes as needed and do not get swept up in the details that may be out of your control or scope of service.
Saya Nagori, Founder, Wander DC
Integrate Digital PR into Regular Activities
Businesses should make digital PR a regular part of their activities because managing your online reputation is closely tied to marketing and public relations. PR helps businesses build credibility and authority for their brand.
It's crucial to stay in touch regularly with journalists and experts in your field. Let them know about your services, your company, and what your brand stands for. A steady and well-planned approach to reaching out to the media can lead to opportunities to share your thoughts, do interviews, and more.
My advice is to keep a close watch on media inquiries and journalist requests every day. Digital PR is a key part of PR strategies today, and it can be really beneficial for you. There are lots of journalists now who are looking for insights from people who know a lot about their industry for their articles. You can offer your high-quality views, insights, or even short quotes to help promote your company at the same time.
I strongly suggest using services like Help a Reporter Out (HARO), Featured, Help a B2B Writer, and Qwoted to find these kinds of opportunities. Most marketers and PR experts would agree with this, and the best thing is that the PR success you get from this can be very cost-effective, with a really good return on investment.
Thomas Franklin, CEO and Co-Founder, Bitinvestor
Humanize Your Brand for Real Connections
You can use all sorts of strategies like social media and SEO, but real connection with customers comes from being more than just a corporate name. The days when people were impressed just by big multinational companies are gone. Nowadays, people gravitate towards brands that show a human touch. Whether you're a small or large brand, showing the real people behind your business always leads to good things.
For example, you can use your online platforms to share stories about your employees and your business processes. This builds a positive image in consumers' minds. Fairness and ethical practices matter a lot to customers; some won't compromise on their views about these issues.
As a brand, try sharing weekly videos featuring employees from various levels of your company discussing their work life. Put this content on social media to boost your online reputation. The more you show the human side of your business, the more trust you'll build with the public.
Lucas Ochoa, Founder and CEO, Automat
Ensure Consistent Brand Messaging Across Platforms
The key to managing an online reputation is having a certain standard that allows you to produce consistent brand messaging. Consistency is essential to growing a brand's reputation and building strong relationships with your customers.
So, by having guidelines for employees to follow, enforcing brand values, and building a culture around your brand's values, you'll be able to maintain a consistent image for your brand across different departments.
Lauren Carlstrom, COO, Oxygen Plus