No one knows the importance of a business’ reputation more than Jeff Hecht, chief development officer for Abnormal Advertising. As a long-time Phoenix public relations professional, Hecht said: Unfortunately, no one is immune to criticism online, and the first step to controlling the conversation is being aware that the discussion is happening. After all, if you aren’t monitoring your own social media, how will you know when negative feedback is knocking on your door? Tony Felice, founder the Felice Agency in Phoenix said: According to a Domain.ME research study by Wakefield, 61 percent of Americans believe that a social media profile can tell you more about a person than a resume. What might this mean for you or your business’ online profile?
Tools to Monitor Your Reputation
Tony also suggests monitoring social media sites for mentions of you or your company. And if you do receive an alert that needs to be addressed, make sure to respond quickly. In the same study, 83 percent of respondents who have been impacted by negative feedback actively monitor their reputation online. Our experts suggest to simply start monitoring your reputation by signing up for Google Alerts.
How to Respond
At some point, there will be a negative comment or feedback about your brand. So what do you do? Sure, it’s easy to get fired up and defend your reputation with venom and vigor, but that could end up being the worst thing to do. How an online rant can impact your brand As for the trolls that have an aggressive agenda, it’s important to respond professionally and not to over-engage. If you do need to defend your reputation, make sure to stick to the facts.
Preventative Care of Your Reputation
The consequences of not monitoring your online reputation can be anywhere from a slight inconvenience to death of a brand, Jeff said. It’s important to get some preventative measures in place so you can maintain control of the conversation. In the same study, 31 percent of respondents either created online content, purchased domain addresses that contained their name or requested endorsements to boost their online reputation. According to our experts, keeping a constant positive conversation going about your brand can do a lot of good. No matter what happens, maintain your integrity when managing your online reputation. Gregg Ostro, CEO of Go Media and Integrity Business, said, Read more advice on managing your online reputation at TechCo This article was brought to you in partnership with .ME, the premium top-level domain for professionals focused on building their online reputation. Learn more at www.domain.me.
