Building and preserving a solid online reputation takes time and energy. No matter how much money you spend on branding, quality assurance, or customer service, it only takes a single slip-up or bad customer feedback to ruin everything.
The internet is flooded with millions of negative comments that can scare off hundreds of potential buyers. Unfortunately, you can’t stowaway every ounce of negative publicity.
Instead, you have to be more strategic with your online communication and avoid the following online reputation management mistakes that could make things worse. Let’s learn about these mistakes!
3 ORM Mistakes You Can’t Afford to Make in the Digital Age
1. Responding to Every Negative Comment or Review
The first thing you need to run about running any business is that you can’t make everyone happy. No matter how good your products, services, and practices are, there will always be a small group of customers or followers that become offensive to your work.
Deep down, you’ll feel the urge to respond to every negative criticism online and protect your reputation. Time is money in the digital age. Therefore, you can’t waste your time addressing everyone on the internet. Instead, it would be best to learn how to differentiate between genuinely displeased customers and trollers or anonymous haters and manage your responses accordingly.
2. Posting Fake Positive Reviews to Suppress Negative Information
Unfortunately, many companies employ black hat tactics to improve their rankings on Google and suppress negative content that causes reputational damage. Some create fake websites while others spam different third-party sites and social media groups. Some brands also post fake positive reviews on their sites to increase their star ratings and traffic.
However, this tactic usually fails when people visit their sites or do business with them after going through their ratings on Google or Yelp only to be disappointed with the outcomes. This can tarnish their online reputation further due to the backlash they face online after being misled by fake positive reviews.
Therefore, instead of using these outdated, unethical tactics, you should ask happy, satisfied customers to write genuine positive reviews about your business and services. Since you’ve already gained their loyalty, they shouldn’t have a problem showering your site or social media pages with praises.
3. Negative Responses to Negative Comments
Many startups and small businesses fail to realize that negative comments and reviews are often a blessing in disguise. Whether due to their passion for their business or frustration, they often react to criticism defensively. No matter how irritated or angry you are, you should use zip your mouth and listen in most cases.
Feedback is an essential aspect of business growth. In other words, negative criticism could be to unlocking the next level of success. So, craft your responses in a way that shows you’re thankful for their feedback.
For instance, you can publicly accept when you’ve made a mistake or reward customers who report bugs in your app or issues with your service. This approach will humanize your brand as it shows you put your customers and clients above everything else.
Bottom Line
So, there you have it – three ORM mistakes you can’t afford to make in the digital age. When it comes to building a solid online reputation, the general rule of thumb is simple – the more work you put into online reputation management, the more control you’ll have over your brand image as long as you avoid the mistakes above.
Moreover, if you need more advice or professional intervention to help repair or enhance your online reputation, opt for RMG Digital Solutions. We’ve helped hundreds of businesses bury bad reps and build positive public perception from scratch. So, feel free to get in touch with us and let us devise a custom solution for you.