Do you know what people are saying about you and your business online? I mean, do you REALLY know? The answer might surprise you. Many of the businesses I consult with are shocked when I show them some of the less than favorable comments and reviews about their business. They simply had no idea. This is a common situation that stems from the fact that small business owners usually do not have the time, expertise, or desire to research and analyze this type of data. Additionally, they may think they have a very good reputation, and in general that may be true, so they are not looking for bad reviews or comments.
The problem with that mindset is that your receptionist, sales rep, or anyone else in your office might have been having a bad day or a bad week and could have delivered less than a first-class experience to your clients or customers. Even 1 or 2 bad reviews can seriously undermine any of your marketing efforts and drive your potential customers away from your business, and over to your competitors. The really scary part is, you may not even know about those reviews.
Why Most Business Owners Are Not Even Aware Of the Bad Reviews That May Exist Online
Many small business owners do not even think of looking online for bad reviews because in their mind they always provide first-class service to their customers. Usually the only time they become aware of a bad review is if one of their prospects or customers calls it to their attention, like the incident that happened recently with a new client of mine.
Further complicating the entire research and monitoring process is the fact that directory sites frequently aggregate results from other directory sites. So a bad review can self-perpetuate across the entire web, silently robbing you of profits without your knowledge. Is this how you want to be rewarded for all the years of sacrifice and dedication you have invested to build a good name for yourself? I hardly think so.
If you would like a FREE Reputation Analysis Report, you can click here for instant access.
Reputation Management by Itself Is No Longer Effective
In today’s ever-changing online world, marketing strategies often reach a point where they no longer produce the results they once did, calling for new strategies to emerge. For the past few years, many small business owners have utilized reputation management services to monitor their brand and track comments or feedback related to their business, in an attempt to mitigate the effects of negative posts and reviews. The inherent flaw with most of these types of services stems from the fact that when somebody is posting a review on a site such as Yelp or Google+, they do not normally mention the name of the company or the CEO because they are already on that company’s page. Therefore, many of these reviews will go unnoticed. This is especially detrimental if the review is unfavorable, whereby if the owner had addressed the customer’s concern in a prompt fashion, it could have been reversed. It is no longer effective for a business to simply “manage” their online reputation, since it is really a defensive position. More importantly, you don’t make money by managing. You make money by marketing.
Reputation Marketing Emerges As a More Effective Solution
According to Wikipedia, “The reputation marketing field has evolved from the marriage of the fields of reputation management and brand marketing.” Reputation management is certainly a vital component of an effective reputation marketing strategy, but there are several other considerations. These would include other vital strategies such as developing a reputation marketing culture within your organization, having systems and a process in place for delivering first-class service and soliciting reviews, and most importantly strategically marketing those reviews on a multitude of online and off-line channels. We will be covering this topic in more detail in an upcoming article in this series, so make sure you follow us to receive this vital information as soon as it is released.
Barry Craft is the founder and CEO of Your Marketing Crew, LLC and has been providing graphic design, web design and Internet marketing services to clients since 1998. To get access to your FREE Reputation Analysis Report, please visit www.YourReputationReporter.com or call us at 727-210-5046.
