There has been a lot of press lately about embarrassing online mistakes that have cost individuals and businesses significantly in reputation and credibility.
The internet has brought an incredible amount of transparency to business dealings, meaning small business owners can no longer afford to ignore what’s going on and what people are saying about them. Whether you pay attention or not, there are conversations happening about you and your business online. Have you taken the steps to protect its online reputation?
Here are 5 basic steps to protect your small business reputation on the web…
1. Give Your Customers a (Great) Place to Go
Make sure you have a well designed website; it’s the foundation of all your online communications. A poorly designed or unpleasant website experience can really tarnish your reputation. Customers are becoming more web savvy and will make a decision about the credibility of your business upon first glance at your website.
Your website should be a place that welcomes customer feedback and interaction. Ask customers for their opinion: and respond. Provide your customers with different ways to get in touch with you: a contact form, an email address, a phone number. And make sure that this contact information is easy to find.
If you make it hard to be contacted or don’t answer, you run the risk of an angry customer publicly commenting on their experience.
2. Own Your Online Real Estate
Have you claimed your business on major online directories, such as Google Places, Trip Advisor, OpenTable and Yelp? As mentioned in Google Places Update: What it Means for Small Business, 93 per cent of consumers look to the web to find a local business, therefore if you’re not listed it might be a red flag that you’re not a credible business.
Don’t get confused if you are already listed in a directory. Many directories grab information from business websites to create a basic listing without you knowing it. Even if you are already listed in this way, take time to check that the information is correct, that it is complete and that there are no negative reviews which customers can see that you have not responded to.
Once you have listed yourself on these directories, make a careful note of their locations and details and be sure to check back regularly to respond to any comments, positive or negative.
3. Monitoring Twitter
If your target market is active on Twitter, it’s not enough to simply monitor your @mentions. Not everyone talking about your business will bother to mention you. You can easily keep tabs on conversations surrounding your business by using Twitter search, a function that will allow you to see any tweet that includes your business name.
Even if you’re not on Twitter, there could potentially be conversations going on about your business. You can still search for these conversations without an account or you can set up an account purely for research.
4. Google Alerts
Google Alerts is a great free business tool for monitoring your online reputation. Simply go to Google Alerts, set up an alert for your business name, and you will be emailed whenever it’s mentioned on the web. There is no need to sign up for a Google email account if you don’t already have one, alerts can be sent to any email address of your choice.
These alerts are a great way to keep tabs on what is being said about your business on a website and respond to any comments made.
5. Address Trends and Ingrained Beliefs
Depending on your industry, there may be misconceptions or misunderstandings about your product or service or there may have been some recent press around an issue relevant to your business. These influences can easily impact the reputation of your business, and make potential customers hesitant about buying from your company if not managed correctly.
Address these misconceptions directly on your website, in your blog, and through your other communication channels. By giving your side of the story in an open and transparent way, you will boost your credibility, and may gain some new customers along the way.