What Causes a Bad Reputation Online?
Nowadays, companies face intense rivalry from competitors. Thus, having a bad reputation online can be the cause of your company’s downfall. On the other hand, maintaining an excellent online reputation enables businesses to gain a competitive edge.
How? Based on a recent study, over 85% of customers make purchase decisions based on online reviews. Companies have to identify the importance of online reviews. But what causes a bad reputation online?
Ignoring customer comments and online reviews
Not only should businesses create an online presence but also take their time to engage with their audience. Therefore, they should monitor all online reviews and respond to them immediately. Shortening the time of responses offered portrays your company’s efficiency.
Keep in mind that it is impossible to control all your customer feedback. So, whenever you get negative feedback, take the time to read and understand it before giving a reply. Make sure you identify the source of the misunderstanding. Find out what happened by asking everyone who took part in the client’s project. Afterward, come up with a polite and professional response. Own your mistakes and offer compensation if necessary.
Prospective customers will see that you care for your customers. Consequently, you will improve your brand visibility. In turn, you will expand your customer base and increase both your sales and revenues.
Lack of an online presence
If you have a business, ensure you are present in all social media platforms where you can generate leads. Otherwise, having a business with no online presence can result in a bad reputation online. Some of your customers can leave feedback on online review sites like Yelp without your knowledge. If you are not present online, your reviews will not receive responses, which can destroy your reputation.
The constant evolution of technology calls for online brand presence. Millions of people search for everything through the internet nowadays. So, if you don’t have a website and social media platforms, you lower your brand visibility.
Furthermore, you portray unreliability anytime your customers do not find your contacts online. In the end, they opt for another company that has a smooth online communication system.
Additionally, companies should post relevant content on their social media pages regularly. If you don’t do this, you can put off potential clients, especially if they are looking for specific information about your company. Some of them may think you are inexistent.
Social media also allows you to form partnerships with other companies, thus boosting your brand visibility. Ultimately, even if your company has the largest clientele, be active online.
Post relevant and useful content
The first step to growing your business is to create a website. But what is the point of creating a website with inadequate and plagiarized content? When the content on your website is questionable, it raises a red flag to your prospective customers. So, anything written and posted on your website should be relevant and easy to comprehend. Ultimately, it should help you generate sales leads for your business.
On the flip side, if your target audience finds nothing meaningful on your website, they will search for another company. Let your website portray your credibility and trustworthiness. This way, you will increase your customer base and your sales will go up.
Examine all your online staff profiles
Before hiring people to work for you, ensure you check their profiles. They have to portray trustworthiness and professionalism. Keep in mind that some of your customers will look into your employee’s profiles and judge your company.
Suppose clients identify something they don’t like about your clients; they might look for another company to work with. Your staff members ought to portray dependability and brand loyalty. If your employees criticize your brand, customers will find you unreliable.
The Bottom Line
A bad reputation online can result from various factors. Nonetheless, companies should strive to build their online reputation by increasing the number of positive reviews. Thus, company owners should consider employing the best reputation management companies like Manage Rep.
Here at Manage Rep, we help you identify the causes of a bad reputation and help you fix them. Our experts are professionally trained to boost positive reviews through an efficient reputation management system.
