How to Build up a Solid Reputation

How to Build up a Solid Reputation

Reputation management is a complex and vital task in terms of making a business successful. It takes years to earn a reputation but it can take just a matter of minutes to completely destroy it, unfortunately. This is why most businesses dedicate a lot of time to making sure that their reputation is maintained. This is something that matters as much to large companies as what it does to small businesses. In today’s world, much of someone’s reputation is determined online, which is why reputation management services tend to focus on online work in the main.

How to Manage Reputation

There is no magic formula that will enable someone to have a solid reputation. Customers can be fickle and they are impossible to control. You simply do not know what they really think about you. While surveys and analyses can work, they still don’t always paint a full and proper picture. This is why you need to focus on a number of different factors. These include:

  • Excellent customer service. Customers tend to be more forgiving of companies that listen to them and offer them a good service, even if they did have a problem with their product, delivery or any other issue. Hence, make sure that your customers can always reach you through a variety of tools, including social media.
  • Customer relationships. You need to build personal relationships with your customers so that they are no longer seen as consumers, but as partners. This is all down to interaction, and not just when they come to you. Ask them for their feedback, send them newsletters (if they agree to it) and so on.
  • Focus on reviews. There are now many review websites, some of which you sign up to, others that you are added to simply by being a business. Some common ones include Yelp and the Better Business Bureau. Make sure that you monitor your reviews with all those websites. And if somebody does leave a negative review, you need to contact them to find out how you can remedy the situation.
  • Follow advice and feedback. If a customer tells you that certain aspects of your business could be improved, you have to listen to that. You may not agree with it, and you may not even implement their advice. But if you show people that you have listened and that you have given their advice consideration and that you took it seriously is incredibly important.
  • Get on the news. Press releases are fantastic tools to improve your reputation and they are also great local SEO (Search Engine Optimization) tactics. This means that it becomes more likely that people in your local area find you. And, when they find you in media outlets, they will immediately trust your business more.
  • Invest in excellent PR. This is about building a brand that people trust. Some of the largest brands in the world have been fraught with controversy, such as Nike using sweatshops, yet people still continue to shop with them.