In a time where things change rapidly, building a positive reputation and maintaining it can be very rigorous and time-consuming. For brands that already have it, maintaining it becomes a priority that needs to be looked after even in day-to-day activities.
With such a crucial aspect for any brand, we treat the brand’s reputation as our own and apply a holistic approach that caters directly to the enhancement of the reputation of any brand.
Reputation for any brand takes a lot of time in building. There are some things that can just not be ignored when it comes – we take the reputation as our own and treat it with that approach.
We ourselves may have experienced less than stellar customer service, had a poor dining experience, or purchased defective products. Armed with our digital devices, many of us take to the Internet (Twitter, Facebook, Yelp, Amazon, etc.) to share our negative feelings, while some go even further and fabricate bits and pieces to intensify their missives. The very personal nature and accessibility of social media tied to the weight placed on the business web and social media presence, transparent communication, and the overall necessity to respond leads to a need to manage reputations.
Reputation management incorporates efforts and campaigns to bury negative reviews, information, or search results and promote content that positively accentuates a desired image.
Think of the various consumer reviews sites such as Yelp and TripAdvisor or even the review or testimonial pages of a business website. Each is an organic and dynamic environment filled to the brim with information about our businesses or ourselves. What business owners may not know is that consumer review sites do not allow businesses to remove negative or damaging reviews. Disgruntled employees, consumers, or just your run-of-the-mill Internet trolls can wreak havoc in short order, which is why reputation management should become part of an overall communications program.
Reputation management can be condensed into three main tactics: repair, rebuild, and recuperate:
Repair: Should you or your business require reputation remediation, the first step is to repair some of the damage. Given the limitations of consumer review sites and the reach of the Internet, you should handle this in a concerted, thoughtful, and aggressive manner.
Rebuild: Once initial fires are dampened, the next step is to rebuild reputation and further grow a brand or business reputation through various public relations vehicles (press, social media, blog, etc.).
Recuperate: Finally, to bury the negatives, brands, and businesses need to optimize digital properties and reputation through SEO, regular response, and constant monitoring.
We not only manage to maintain, but we also manage to boost and are always looking to take it a step forward.