Reputation management has become one of the single most important parts of an executive’s job. A single bad online review can cause enormous issues for a company. Couple that with how incredibly easy it is for an anonymous bad actor to put up false or misleading information, and hiring an outside reputation management firm is increasingly necessary.
Reputation management now heavily involves monitoring online mentions and moving quickly to expunge false information. Firms can be invaluable allies in the fight against libel and are able to respond quickly to incidents, but they aren’t miracle workers.
A Good Defense Against Grudges and Erroneous Information
Online reviews and customer perception can make or break a company. The vast majority of the world uses Google to search for a company, and if the first thing that comes up is negative, the company will suffer. Good reviews, on the other hand, lead to more business.
Reputation management firms use sophisticated tools to monitor a company across the entire internet, receiving notifications or reports whenever their client is mentioned. Some of these tools even report on perception, giving them the ability to quickly zero in on negative information.
Legitimate complaints are one thing, but online libel is nefarious and it should be combated quickly. As the internet changes the world, so must we modify our strategies to align with it, which is why we must have the ability to get defamatory content taken down or engage directly with disgruntled customers or ex-employees on social media sites.
No Substitute for Outstanding Customer Interactions
Reputation management firms cannot, however, make up the ground lost by consistently poor customer service or a lack of online customer engagement. A company needs to make customer relations a priority. Legitimate negative reviews leave a reputation management firm limited options.
The most important thing a company can do with legitimate online complaints is take them seriously and improve customer experiences. Making every customer interaction outstanding can keep a company from having to do damage control. Reputation management lives by the age-old anecdote that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
It’s critical that companies safeguard their online reputation with the requisite amount of care and concern. A company like Massive Alliance can certainly assist with that.
