In the age of the Internet, your business reputation is more important than ever. A few negative reviews can send customers running for the hills, and it can be hard to recover from that kind of damage. That’s why it’s so important to stay on top of your business’s online reputation. Here are five tips for managing your business reputation online:
Google Yourself Regularly
If you want to stay on top of your business’s online reputation, you need to Google yourself and your business regularly. This will help you keep tabs on what people are saying about you online, and it will allow you to nip any negative reviews in the bud before they cause too much damage.
Claim Your Business Listings
There are a number of business listing sites out there (like Yelp, Google My Business, etc.), and it’s important that you claim your listings on all of them. This will allow you to control the narrative around your business, and it will give you a platform to respond to negative reviews. If you don’t claim your listings, someone else could end up doing it for you—and they might not have your best interests at heart.
Foster Positive Reviews From Happy Customers
One of the best ways to combat negative reviews is to have a healthy supply of positive reviews from happy customers. Make it easy for your customers to leave positive reviews by providing links on your website and social media accounts. You can also offer incentives for leaving positive reviews, like discounts or coupons. Just be sure not to cross the line into bribing reviewers, as that could come back to bite you later.
Respond To All Reviews—Good And Bad
It’s important that you respond to all reviews—good and bad—in a timely manner. Ignoring negative reviews will make potential customers think that you don’t care about customer service, which is a death knell for businesses these days. But responding in a calm and professional manner shows that you’re willing to listen to criticism and make things right. It also shows future customers that they can expect good customer service if they do business with you.
Monitor Social Media Accounts
Another big part of managing your business reputation online is monitoring your social media accounts. This includes making sure that someone is regularly checking and responding to comments and messages. It also means being proactive about addressing any negative sentiment online before it has a chance to spiral out of control.
These days, managing your business reputation online is more important than ever before–especially if you want to attract new customers and keep the ones you already have. Google yourself regularly, claim your business listings, foster positive reviews from happy customers, respond quickly to all reviews (good and bad), and monitor social media accounts closely for any negative sentiment. Do all this, and you’ll be well on your way towards maintaining a positive online presence for your business!
