The reputation of your company is an essential, vital and important aspect. It affects the way in which people interact with it, and consequently defines the growth or decrease of their business.
Many companies use social media to build this reputation, as well as to manage and manage communication about it and monitor the conversations in which it is involved, in order to anticipate any reputation crisis. In order to maintain a good reputation, we can highlight some practices and recommendations.
1. Establish your reputation online
Your brand or product are the most important for your company and that is why it is necessary to take care of what is said about it. When someone searches their brand on Google, it must appear in the first results. However, not only your brand should appear, but also your company’s site. The more popular your brand is, the more it will appear on other sites and with more reason it is important that those sites are yours and not third parties, which may be communicating incorrect information about your brand.
Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other social networks help you get those places. You largely control what is said about your brand or company in social networks according to its social communication policy. This is so that people have the correct information about their brand or company, especially if their brand or name is a common or popular term.
Social networks strengthen your online presence and ensure that the most recent information appears in the top positions of the search results.
If you do not control your reputation, someone else will.
The importance of monitoring what is said increases in cases like ours, in which an Italian advertising agency within your company name has our brand. Monitoring is key so that the audience that seeks your brand or service is not confused.
According to studies published on the Internet, the # 1 position within the results of a Google search, receives an 18% click and the second around 10%. Without giving much importance to the percentage, it is clear that the first positions are those that most affect the reputation of your brand or company.
Having different channels within the first positions, it will be easier to counteract the undesired effects of a crisis in which by omission or intentionally something incorrect or defamatory about your company or brand is discussed.
These channels help you lower these comments. Constructive criticism that is not always positive should always be welcome, however, it is not desirable that the reputation of a brand with false or defamatory information be questioned.
Conversations about your brand will happen, whether you want it or not. Ensure that you or your public relations team is the one who controls and leads the social conversations of your brand and get involved in those social channels where your brand is already talked about today.
2. Control responses during a crisis
Reputation crises can range from a simple malfunction of a page to a scandal by some demand.
Given that the human being is imperfect, it can not always be fulfilled and everyone looks good. It is important to know which battles should be fought and which are not and first of all to know how to fight each of them.
When you comment something negative about your brand in a social network, due to the problem that affects your brand, you should always come out to face it. It is important to respond with professionalism, the attacks on Twitter or Facebook.
The most important thing is to show your audience that you care. Who takes the time to monitor and read what is said of your company and who listens to your audience.
If the problem caused by your brand or company is serious and affects someone in particular, look for the opportunity to resolve it outside of social networks whenever possible.
Many times, people related to your brand will publish support comments to calm the disgruntled customer or visitor, however this may not always happen. Develop a strategy and lean on social conversation monitoring tools.
3. Monitor brand conversations
Once you have established social channels for your brand it is important to monitor everything that is said about it.
The monitoring tools are the first line of defense of the reputation of your brand. They allow you to take action when the problem still does not get out of control.
Would not it be great to resolve any setbacks before it appears in the first search results or becomes viral? The answer is yes and monitoring helps enormously.
Social Networks live in real time, so the response time should be short. So your customer service or visitor will be better.
People have the right to express their opinion, however, it is their task to remedy situations and turn bad experiences into positive opportunities and capitalize on them. Since social networks are public, it is under the scrutiny of your audience. The way you handle your reputation and how you solve eventualities can be a great strength for your company.