Every morning when you unlock the door to your local office, shop, or restaurant, you envision crowds of people from the neighborhood coming in, sharing a friendly word, and spending their money to boost your profits. Advertisements and special offers can increase traffic through the door, but how people perceive your company creates more ongoing success. This requires reputation management, and it’s not all about a friendly smile and a firm handshake anymore.
What is Reputation Management?
The process of building and maintaining a positive reputation requires multiple foci. Since 97% of consumers use the internet, often from mobile devices, to search for local companies to fulfill their needs, managing their opinion goes well beyond the storefront. However, what you do on your home turf contributes to online reputation, too.
Your reputation grows from a combination of brand recognition, quality products or services, and customer service. Someone can walk in off the street, find a product they want or hire you to perform a service, and, if they are happy with the outcome, pass on their positive experience through word-of-mouth advertising. This process is the same both online and off.
How to Build an Online Reputation
What do consumers look for when they search on their smartphones for a local company? Reviews and comments from other consumers matter more than anything you have to say. Claim your spots on the most popular directories and review sites to boost brand recognition and give customers a platform to share their opinions.
Use social media to engage with customers. Encourage reviews, comments, and questions, and respond to them quickly. With the goal of positive information in the top search engine results for your company, the more positive exchanges you make, the better.
Negative comments and reviews will happen, and you cannot ignore them. They represent an opportunity to let your customer service skills shine. Respond online the same way you would in your local shop or office. Accept responsibility, apologize when necessary, and make things right. Consumers may care more about the respectful handling of complaints than they do about a spotless 5-star rating.
The online side of reputation handling will bring more potential customers or clients through your doors. How you serve them in person will convince them to come back. In these ultra-connected days, it will also convince them to go back online to leave reviews and comments that boost your brand popularity even more. Local businesses get the best of both worlds if this process is handled well. For more information or help implementing a reputation management plan, please contact us at Empowered Pulse today.