As a business owner, you have a million things fighting for your attention. Managing your online presence may not be at the top of your to-do list, but it’s critical to the success of your business! Part of promoting your company online is harnessing the power of what your previous customers have to say about your products and services in the form of online reviews and mentions on social media.
Get this: According to reputationx, 87% of consumers will trust an online review just as much as they trust a personal recommendation!
Knowing how to respond to online reviews, both positive and negative, will help move your business forward and gain the trust of members of your community. In this article, our Such n Such Media team shares information about online reputation management and tips for how to respond to online reviews.
What is Online Reputation Management?
Online Reputation Management (ORM) includes monitoring what people say about your company or brand and positively influencing the public’s perception by creating relevant content and interacting with your customers in an engaging way.
Online Reputation Management Includes:
Monitoring and Staying Aware of How the Public Perceives Your Company – Start by tracking social media posts and comments, reviews, news articles, and more. Then, analyze that information to develop a strategy for improving your reputation and adding value to your potential customers. This will improve your brand awareness and likeability. There are numerous tools to assist with online monitoring, including Sematext, Datadog, and Pingdom, to name a few.
Developing a Content Creation Strategy – Social media posts, blogs, and website copy contribute to your brand identity. Creating engaging and valuable content is a sure-fire way to improve your online reputation. It’s also essential for your content to rank high in search engine results. The higher your content ranks, the more visible it becomes, making it easier for people to find. Learn more about the SEO (search engine optimization) strategies we use at Such n Such Media and how they can benefit your business!
Engaging With Your Online Audience – It’s not enough to create fantastic content, celebrate when you receive a 5-star review, and leave it at that. Building a brand with a positive online presence requires reciprocal interaction and prompt responses to reviews, social media mentions, and the like.
Please don’t let this overwhelm you! You’re an expert in your industry, and our Such n Such team members are experts in the digital marketing space. We’re happy to provide marketing services to make your life easier.
Do’s and Don’ts of Responding to Online Reviews
Review the following list of do’s and don’ts to understand how to interact with your customers and prospective clients in a way that shines a light on the best aspects of your company and its products and services.
When Responding to Online Reviews, You Should:
- Respond in a timely manner.
- Personalize your response and use the reviewer’s name if possible.
- Say, “Thank you” for the feedback, even if it’s negative.
- Be empathetic and offer a sincere apology for issues or a bad experience.
- Keep it professional, and refrain from getting defensive.
- Respond to specific points described in the review to show you read it carefully.
- Offer solutions for negative feedback and offer to speak with the reviewer directly.
- Reiterate the positive feedback from great reviews to highlight company strengths.
- Give a next step, such as an invitation to follow your company on social media.
- Keep responses short and sweet.
When Responding to Online Reviews, You Should Not:
- Ignore reviews (positive or negative, but especially negative).
- Argue with a customer online. Be respectful and encourage a 1-on-1 conversation if emotions are high.
- Use a template response. Acknowledge the person who took the time to give you feedback.
- Use slang or complicated industry terminology.
- Post fake reviews, regardless if they’re positive or negative.
- Violate a customer’s privacy by revealing personal information.
- Consider a negative review a personal attack.
- Reject constructive criticism.
- Respond to only positive reviews or only negative reviews.
- Forget to use every interaction as an opportunity to learn.
Need Help Managing Your Online Reviews?
If you’ve read this and are thinking, ok, that’s all well and good, but I literally do not have the time or energy to hang out online all day, you’re in luck! Our Such n Such team LOVES hanging out online! Seriously, it’s what we do best. Taking the load off our clients when it comes to reputation management and responding to reviews brings us a great deal of satisfaction. Learn more about our team and how we can deliver outstanding results for your business!
How Such n Such Media Can Help
- Add reviews to your website with our web design and development services
- Create and monitor business listings – GBP (Google Business Profile), Yelp, BBB, etc.
- Request reviews from your customers
- Respond to customer reviews
- Social Media Management
- Content Creation
- And more!
Whether you’re ready to schedule a free consultation to discuss our reputation management services or you plan to handle your online reviews on your own, we hope you feel equipped to do so confidently. Feel free to contact us with any questions!
