As global life is slowly but surely moving online, the internet is buzzing with life. With so many people spending hours on end online shopping, searching for information, or interacting with their friends on social media, all businesses should be proactive about their online reputation — especially startups.
Gone are the days when you needed to fight hard to find out any information about a business or entrepreneur. The latest evolution of technology has made it so easy for anyone from your customers to your employees, to find everything about you or your company, with just the click of a button.
In our day and age, the online image of a company is basically all that matters since customers are mostly using the Internet’s avenues to search and build opinions about a business. Today we have social media platforms, forums, and even review websites where people can express their experience.
And speaking about your business’s online image, are you aware of the current reputation your company has online? Do you know what your customers have to say about your services?
Maybe you should!
And if you don’t believe us, just ask the opinion of online reputation experts.
Your startups’ online reputation can definitely make or break what customers think about your business, and weather or not as a new company, you have the potential to evolve from being just a startup, into becoming successfully established in your market niche.
The web is full of opinions and criticisms, and sites like Google or Yelp can be cutthroat for any company. But when used wisely, the internet can go a long way in helping any startup expand and build a strong customer base.
In order to facilitate growth and build a loyal base of customers, startups need to focus on developing and strengthening their reputation. They don’t have years of reliability to guarantee for them, and as we all know, good business reputation and credibility are the keys to winning your customer’s trust.
By following the four steps illustrated below, your startup can become successful in developing a strong online reputation and becoming a market leader.
1. Turn Unfavorable Mentions Into Your Favor
Keep an eye on everything that is being discussed on the internet about you or your business, and try to keep being open, accessible and responsive to what people have to say. Although bad reviews and comments might feel like a punch in the gut, try not take them to heart. By respectfully responding to questions, comments or tweets, you can actually turn anything bad into your favor. Keep in mind that response time matters too. Responding immediately to customers is crucial and can turn negative issues around.
All businesses receive bad reviews from time to time, but this doesn’t make them any less trustworthy. And since both sides of the story matter, try to talk with your customers and make them understand that you care about their opinion, and that you are determined to turn any negative experience they might have had into a positive one.
2. Focus On Branding
If you have a promising business that you want to grow into being successful, creating meaningful online branding is essential for making a long lasting impression on your customers. With the right brand management services, your customers can quickly identify your business’s name on the market and choose your products or services over the ones of your competitors.
3. Become Proactive about Your Online Reputation
Even if all the reviews about your business are great and you feel there’s no place for improvement, never let your reputation monitoring go to sleep. Google your organization’s name regularly and promote positive content all the time both on your startup’s online page and your social media pages. Respond quickly to negative customer feedback and use SEO practices to help your company’s name appear on top of your competitors’ in Google search.
And since these constant monitoring might be tiring with time, you might consider using online reputation management services. These professionals are essential to helping any startup build a positive online image or reverse its damaged reputation.
4. Promote Your Startup Across Every Digital Channel
If you’re looking to make your name known and market your products, you should work on using as many online marketing channels as possible. Some of the most effective ones include video, email and content marketing, social media platforms (organic and paid), or display ads.
