Best Online Reputation Management Strategy for Your Business

Just a couple of years back, online reputation management (ORM) was only a big deal for large enterprises and public figures. Today, ORM has become a necessity for businesses of all sizes in all industries as customers increasingly turn to the internet for information about products and services.

With the advent of digitization, customers have become more empowered than ever before. They can easily find out everything they need to know about a business or brand with just a few clicks. This means that businesses need to be extra careful about their online reputation, as even a small mistake can tarnish their image and drive away customers.

Fortunately, there are a few simple steps that businesses can take to protect their online reputation. In this article, we’ll discuss what ORM is and why it’s important, as well as some tips on how to manage your online reputation.

What is Online Reputation Management (ORM)?

Online reputation management (ORM) is the process of monitoring, managing, and influencing the online reputation of an individual or brand. The goal of ORM is to protect and improve the reputation of a business or individual by suppressing negative search results, promoting positive content, and improving overall sentiment.

In this process, businesses can also take proactive steps to prevent future damage to their reputation. ORM is a holistic and long-term approach that requires businesses to continuously monitor their online presence and take immediate action to address any negative sentiment.

Why is Online Reputation Management Important?

There are several reasons why ORM is important for businesses. First and foremost, ORM can help businesses protect their image and reputation online. ORM can help businesses with:

i) Build higher brand credibility:

When businesses focus on ORM, they are more likely to create positive sentiments about their brand online. This can help build higher brand credibility and make it easier for customers to trust the business.

ii) Reduce the impact of negative publicity:

No business is immune to negative publicity and even the most well-run businesses can make mistakes. ORM can help businesses reduce the impact of negative publicity by suppressing negative search results and promoting positive content.

iii) Generate more leads and sales:

A good online reputation can help businesses attract more customers and generate more leads and sales. Customers are more likely to do business with a company that has a good online reputation.

iv) It’s online word-of-mouth:

In the past, businesses could rely on word-of-mouth to build their reputation. Today, word-of-mouth has gone digital and customers are more likely to read online reviews and testimonials before doing business with a company. This makes ORM even more important for businesses.

How does online reputation management work?

Now that we’ve discussed what ORM is and why it’s important, let’s take a look at how it works. Essentially, ORM involves three steps:

• Monitoring: The first step in ORM is monitoring your online presence to see what people are saying about you. This can be done manually or with the help of ORM tools like Google Alerts, Mention, and Hootsuite Insights.
• Managing: The next step is to manage your online reputation by responding to negative sentiment and promoting positive content. This can be done through various means, such as social media, press releases, and blog posts.
• Influencing: The final step is to influence the conversation about you online. This can be done by creating positive content, participating in forums and discussions, and engaging with influencers.

Tips for Online Reputation Management

Here are a few tips that businesses can use to improve their ORM efforts:

1. Monitor your online presence regularly:

The first step is to keep tabs on what people are saying about you online. You can do this manually or with the help of ORM tools like Google Alerts, Mention, and Hootsuite Insights. Moreover, make sure to set up Google Alerts for your brand name, as well as key employees and executives.

2. Respond to negative sentiment immediately:

It’s important to respond to negative sentiment quickly and effectively. The sooner you address the issue, the less damage it will do to your reputation. There is a huge business opportunity hidden behind each customer complaint so make sure to take advantage of it.

3. Create positive value-driven content:

One of the best ways to improve your online reputation is to create positive content that provides value to your audience. This could include blog posts, infographics, eBooks, and even videos that add value to your customers. When your customers start trusting your content, they will be more likely to do business with you.

4. Engage with influencers:

Another great way to improve your online reputation is to engage with influencers. This could involve guest blogging, participating in forums and discussion groups, or even collaborating on projects. When you engage with influencers, you’ll not only improve your reputation but also reach a wider audience.

5. Participate in forums and discussions:

Another great way to improve your online reputation is to participate in forums and discussions. This will help you build credibility and trust with your audience. Moreover, it’s a great way to reach a wider audience and engage with potential customers.

Golden rules for effective ORM:

There are a few important rules that every business should know about online reputation management, let’s look at all of them:

a). Dominate SERPs for brand searches:

The first rule is to dominate SERPs for brand searches. This can be done by creating positive content and optimizing your website for SEO. Additionally, make sure to claim your business listing on directories like Google My Business and Yelp. You need to draft an effective search optimization strategy that will help you rank higher in SERPs.

The biggest benefit of owning multiple top results in SERPs is that it allows you to control the narrative around your brand. Even if you’re in a competitive domain, you can still stand out by Creating great content and optimizing your website for SEO.

b). Encourage customers to leave reviews:

The second rule is to encourage customers to leave reviews on popular platforms like Google, Yelp, and TripAdvisor. Make sure to respond to all reviews, both positive and negative. There are several ways to encourage customers to leave reviews, such as providing incentives, sending follow-up emails, and adding links to your website.

Your customers are the biggest asset when it comes to online reputation management. Make sure to encourage them to leave reviews on popular platforms. You can do this by providing incentives, sending follow-up emails, and adding links to your website.

c). Monitor social media:

Monitoring social media handles is the third rule. This includes all the major platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You need to keep an eye on what people are saying about you and your brand. Additionally, make sure to respond to all comments and queries promptly.

Social media is a great platform to connect with your customers and build rapport. Additionally, it’s also a great way to monitor your online reputation. Make sure to keep an eye on all the major platforms and respond to comments and queries promptly.

d). Have a personalized ORM strategy:

The fourth and final rule is to have a personalized ORM strategy. This means that you need to tailor your approach according to your business goals. There is no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to online reputation management. Every business is different and so is its target audience.

Make sure to tailor your online reputation based on your previous experiences, business goals, and target audience. Also, perform a competitor analysis to see what’s working for them and try to replicate their success.

How to deal with the negative light on your brand?

The best way to deal with the negative light on your brand is to take proactive measures. This includes creating positive content, monitoring social media, and encouraging customers to leave reviews. Additionally, you should also have a plan in place for how to respond to negative reviews and comments.

When it comes to online reputation management, the best defense is a good offense. You need to take proactive measures to prevent any negative light from falling on your brand. This includes creating positive content, monitoring social media, and encouraging customers to leave reviews.

Additionally, you should also have a plan in place for how to respond to negative reviews and comments. On this note, let’s look at some tips on how to deal with negative reviews:

How to deal with negative reviews?

There’s no denying that negative reviews can be frustrating. But, it’s important to remember that they’re also an opportunity to show your customers that you’re committed to providing them with the best possible experience. Here are some tips on how to deal with negative reviews:

1. Respond Promptly:

The first thing you need to do is respond to the review as soon as possible. This shows that you’re paying attention and that you’re committed to resolving the issue.

2. Be Professional:

It’s important to remain calm and professional when responding to a negative review. This will help diffuse the situation and show that you’re willing to work with the customer to resolve the issue.

3. Take Responsibility:

If the negative review is justified, then it’s important to take responsibility for it. This shows that you’re willing to learn from your mistakes and that you’re committed to providing a better experience for your customers.

4. Offer a Solution:

In most cases, the customer just wants to know that you’re willing to resolve the issue. So, it’s important to offer a solution in your response. This could be anything from a refund to an apology.

5. Follow-up:

Once you’ve resolved the issue, make sure to follow up with the customer. This shows that you’re committed to ensuring that they’re satisfied with the resolution.

Negative reviews are inevitable. But, by following these tips, you can turn them into an opportunity to show your customers that you’re committed to providing them with the best possible experience.

Which businesses should opt for ORM services?

There are a number of businesses that can benefit from ORM services. This includes companies with a large online presence, companies that rely heavily on online reviews, and companies that have been the subject of negative press.

Additionally, ORM services can also be beneficial for companies that are looking to improve their customer service or build brand awareness. If you’re not sure if ORM services are right for your business, then it’s always best to speak with an expert.

No matter what industry you’re in, online reputation management is important. ORM services can help you build a positive reputation and prevent any negative press from damaging your brand. If you’re not sure if ORM services are right for your business, then it’s always best to speak with an expert.

Why hire professional ORM Companies for Your Business?

There are a number of reasons why you should consider hiring professional ORM companies for your business. This includes:

1. Expertise: Professional ORM companies have the expertise and experience needed to effectively manage your online reputation. They’ll be able to create and implement strategies that will help you build a positive reputation and prevent any negative press from damaging your brand.
2. Time-saving: Managing your online reputation can be time-consuming. By hiring professional ORM companies, you can free up your time so that you can focus on other aspects of your business.
3. Cost-effective: Professional ORM companies are often more cost-effective than hiring in-house staff. This is because they have the necessary tools and resources to effectively manage your online reputation.
4. peace of mind: When you hire professional ORM companies, you can rest assured knowing that your online reputation is in good hands. This will give you peace of mind and allow you to focus on other aspects of your business.

5 Online Reputation Management Techniques for Brands

Online reputation management is a holistic, long-term process that builds on the basic ideology of SEO. It is used to improve your online image in totality and is a continuous process.

Online Reputation Management is the theme of your SEM or search engine marketing strategy. It is the fast, majority impressive modality to deal with the press that has tried to promote negativity on the search engines about you and your company.

By removing all those negative listings from the first page of all the major search engines online reputation management protects your business you from those harmful acts of others. This is one of the best things that can be done for maintaining the online reputation.

Online reputation is important for all businesses. It will be really effective to set up an optimistic online presence. It has been found from surveys that around 86% of people hesitate to purchase a product from a business having negative reviews. 

Negative online publicity is considered one of the biggest challenges that have to be tackled by companies. The source of the negative publicity is not known. Those names are usually unattached to those blog posts and forum threads. Thus, it becomes tough to find out the real source of those complaints.

Apart from this, the growing usage of social networking websites has made it easier to hurl any kind of negative reviews against any company or individual.

9 online reputation management tools

1. BrandMentions

BrandMentions is a social media monitoring tool that allows you to listen in on every social channel as well as a variety of blogs, news, and review sites. It then gives you an overview of how your brand is being talked about as well as who is talking about it. You can also see who is talking about your competitors, which gives you insight into the reputation management strategies they are using.

Website: https://brandmentions.com/

Started Pricing: $ 99/mo

2. Buzzsumo

Buzzsumo allows you to search the web for any content around specific terms or brand names. You can see how popular a piece of content is, as well as who has shared it and where. This is a great tool for identifying any negative sentiment around your brand and tracking your share of voice online.

Website: https://buzzsumo.com/

Pricing: Free

3. Mention

Mention is a social media monitoring and content marketing tool that helps you understand what your audience is saying about you, your brand, and the products and services you offer. The platform provides you with a deep understanding of who is talking about your brand and what they are saying. You can respond directly to specific social media conversations, as well as create social media content based on audience trends you are observing.

Website: https://mention.com/

Pricing: $ 41/mo

4. Google Alerts

Google Alerts is a free tool that will help you stay on top of any mentions of your name, brand name, products, keywords, and competitors. Once it finds a mention of the terms you entered, it will automatically send an email to you with the link. It’s easy to set up and even easier to use!

Website: https://www.google.com/alerts

Pricing: Free

5. Socialmention

Socialmention is an online tool that lets you search for conversations about your brand from the past day. It will return results from blogs, microblogs, images, and more.

Socialmention can help you find discussions about your brand that you might miss otherwise.

6. Reputology

Reputology is a review monitoring platform that can help a business manage its reviews. It can track reviews for your brand across multiple review platforms, allowing you to respond to them and poll customers at key points in the customer journey so that you can identify and address problems before they become significant.

Website: https://www.reputology.com/

Pricing: $ 40/mo

7. Birdeye

 

Birdeye is the best way to manage your online reputation. We help you build a strong brand, gain more customers, and get more leads. Our tools can help you automate reviews and ratings on hundreds of review sites so you can focus on growing your business.

Website: https://birdeye.com/

Pricing: $ 75/mo

8. GatherUp

 

GatherUp is a full suite of tools that focuses on the customer experience as well as review management. It offers review request tools, review response tools, and social media tools that allow you to easily share your positive reviews. It also has a built-in review widget that can be embedded on any website. As a result, you can gather Voice of the Customer feedback and monitor your online reputation.

Website: https://gatherup.com/

Pricing: $ 45/mo

9. Meltwater

When you need to know what your customers are saying about you, Meltwater’s all-in-one brand reputation management solution is the answer. It allows you to monitor a large number of sources, including social media, online news, print media and podcasts, review sites, and more.

The platform also provides a social media management tool for publishing content and engaging with followers. Additionally, it includes a social influencer management platform to identify relevant influencers and runs reputation management campaigns.

Website: https://www.meltwater.com/

Below are the top 5 important steps for undertaking online reputation management for business:

1. Analysis of Your Present Reputation:

You must take stock of the current online reputation of your brand. Take a look at the search engine results. Get an idea of what people are discussing on social media, blogs, and forums about you.

With this analysis, you will get the total information that provides you with an insight into the image of people about your business and related activities.

Apart from the analysis part, several previous campaigns, social handles, existing content, and reviews that are present on the website and related to the business may have to be changed.

You have to assess whether the details presented are correct. You should check whether the employees have any role play in shaping your online reputation.

2. Identify The Changes Required:

You must plan out the method which should be followed by Online Reputation Management. The plan should be created in a manner to establishes a positive reputation. The changes that are needed to minimize the negative impacts have to be identified.

Social media monitoring tools can help you to develop the upcoming steps of this method. These tools provide you with significant insights into the current reputation of your brands and how you can improve the same.

3. Determine What is Most Effective:

Once the research work is completed, you have to determine the most efficient resources to be included in your ORM strategy. You must find out which platforms can perform better for an augmented online reputation for the company you own.

There are a few recommended approaches are as Social Networks, Blogs, Online Press, Forums, Profile creation, review sharing, etc.

4. Develop an Effective Reputation Strategy:

In Online reputation, you should implement the most critical strategy of content sharing. It is very effective in meeting the desired targets.

Fresh content helps you to update your ranking on all the major SERPs which may remove or lessen the negative stuff from those pages. In simple words, you should promote some positive, fresh, and relevant contents that tell show the positive sides of your business.

Such plans always help in maintaining a steady flow of business. A consistent flow of online customers can be maintained.

You should maintain a presence in your local listings too. Do the listing for your business on Yelp and Google maps. It ensures that your business is represented in the best possible manner and is offering the latest information on all available platforms.

Your target customers can be one of the best resources to help to build your reputation in the web world. It’s a good idea to ask them for feedback as well as testimonials about your products or services. Your customer’s reviews and testimonials help to build trust with others about your business.

Once you get the reviews and testimonials from your satisfied customers, don’t forget to share them in relevant places as a part of your content marketing technique. Include them on the website, Social media, etc.

5. Start Building & Monitoring:

There must be a regular process of creating new content. It should be simultaneously managed for maintaining your digital reputation. Update your listing, and business profiles with new content, and also look for new reviews.

You must play an active role in monitoring the appearance of your brand. You should keep on monitoring your business processes and the new reviews that are getting posted, competitor’s analysis, etc.

Try to find new and more effective ways to interact with your customers. Try to understand the service satisfaction levels of customers.

All these initiatives from your end will play a major role in improving your relationship with your clients to a great extent.

Online reputation management is a long-term procedure that is developed on the fundamental principles of search engine optimization or SEO to make your online image better than before and in a sustained fashion.

Get Started with EZ Rankings!

EZ Rankings is a leading Online Reputation Management company that offers a wide range of services to help businesses build and maintain a positive online reputation. We have a team of experienced professionals who are experts in the field of online reputation management.

EZ Rankings offer a variety of services, including social media management, and review management to help you gain an edge.