Adam Petrilli is a reputation management expert and CEO at NetReputation.com, an award-winning Online Reputation Management (ORM) firm.
Entrepreneurs and business owners know the importance of having an online presence. In these tech-driven times, achieving brand visibility and attracting potential customers is nearly impossible without a compelling and robust digital footprint. Yet, the internet can often be a double-edged sword. In fact, it’s just as easy for an online presence to become something negative, creating an unwanted first impression that damages brand integrity and eats into your bottom line.
Fortunately, there are ways to combat harmful info and ensure your online presence remains positive. As a reputation management expert, there are seven online factors that I often see contribute to a negative business reputation. Here’s how to avoid them and, in turn, avoid customers turning against your brand.
1. Your Website
Of all the brand assets you have on the web, your website is where you have the most control. Therefore, making that digital hub as appealing, informative and user-friendly as possible is in your hands and your best interests.
Addressing issues and improving user experience (UX) means first knowing which problems are mucking things up. Some of the most common elements giving site visitors pause and feeding negative impressions of SMBs include:
• Pages that are slow to load for various reasons.
• Pages that are difficult to navigate.
• Website designs that look clunky or outdated.
• Pages that contain incorrect or out-of-date information.
It’s crucial to regularly check your website for speed, quality and UX. Consider the help of a professional, an unbiased expert outside of your business, to look over your site and provide an objective evaluation. Doing so helps ensure everything looks nice and updated while providing intuitive, user-friendly navigation on desktop and mobile devices.
2. Online Reviews From Customers
Browsing online reviews is one of the first things today’s consumers do when deciding where to buy or who to turn to when needed. For many business owners, online reviews feel like one area over which they have little-to-no control. That’s because most review platforms market their reviews as unpaid, unsolicited and accurate—fair and honest feedback uninfluenced by businesses featured on their site. For small and midsize businesses, contesting that perception and fighting back against negative reviews can often feel like a losing proposition.
A negative review here or there will likely not deter most prospects from taking the next step, but it is prudent for business owners to regularly comb through brand reviews for things they can improve upon. For example, if recent reviews rate your customer service as less than stellar, that may signal the need to address your processes in that area.
3. Your Responses To Online Reviews
While business owners generally have no control over the reviews customers post, they do have control over the review response process, including the tack and tone taken with every reply. Without the proper guardrails in place, your review response approach can seriously damage your brand, hurting consumer trust and scaring away prospects before they even open the door.
No responses indicate a lack of engagement, which can indicate a lack of concern for how customers interact with and feel about your business. What looks even worse are defensive or snippy responses made to unhappy customers. These replies add needless negativity to a highly public forum, which ultimately enhances the crisis and reflects poorly on your brand.
The ideal response process is apologetic, fast, positive and solution-oriented. Take a solutions-minded approach showing a sincere desire to make things right.
4. Authoritative Ratings
In addition to customer reviews, many (if not most) companies have consumer and industry ratings featured prominently on sites like the Better Business Bureau. These ratings are significant for businesses that ask for a lot of trust and confidence from customers.
Poor ratings on high-authority consumer ratings can wreak havoc not just on consumer sentiment and trust but on your ability to attract and retain loyal customers. Ignoring such sites and their impact on your reputation can put your business at a significant disadvantage online.
5. Your Social Media Pages
Your social media presence, or lack thereof, is another key factor in your online reputation. If you choose to manage a social media presence on any popular social platform, it’s essential to post updates and engage with followers regularly. When people visit your social media page and find outdated or inaccurate info, they may have a hard time taking your company seriously.
Having no social media presence altogether can also pose a threat to your brand image, hurting brand relevance while making it harder to verify your credentials.
6. Google Search Results
Depending on your focus, relevance and outreach, your business may pop up across various search results pages. If some of these results are negative and appear on Google’s first page, they can put a dent in your image, creating an impression that sticks with consumers.
What’s worse: Unfavorable results often have nothing to do with an actual customer experience or event involving your company. For instance, sharing a name with an organization plagued by scandal or bad reviews can create a guilt-by-association issue, resulting in harm to your reputation and revenue.
Regularly searching your company’s name online can help you identify such issues and take appropriate steps to protect your brand over the long term.
7. Inconsistent Information
Having inconsistent contact and brand information on your website, business profiles and social media channels can make your business seem unprofessional, unreliable and untrustworthy. It can also hurt your reach and authority in Google, affecting how consumers interact with your business online. Correcting that misinformation and updating your profiles can help combat that issue and ensure consumers can connect with your business when they need you most.
In conclusion, regularly and carefully monitoring these online elements can provide a more complete picture of your online presence, allowing you to identify and combat threats before they snowball. When you know what consumers find when researching your brand, you’re better equipped to mitigate negatives, promote positives and ultimately take control of the online narrative.
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