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Improving Your Online Reputation This 2016: 4 Steps You Can Take

Many entrepreneurs focus on marketing their business yet don’t really take the time to know what their customers think of them. If you own a small or medium-sized venture, don’t make the same mistake. To achieve long-term success, you need to manage your online reputation effectively and be aware of how your target audience sees you. This way, you can steer your company away from negative publicity and ultimately build a brand that people trust and even become fond of.

 

Don’t know where to begin? You can start by taking the following steps:

 

Solidify your brand voice

Before doing anything else, you should first determine what your business’s tone should be. Doing this is important so you can be consistent throughout your communication channels and build a brand voice that people can easily identify. If you sell surfboards and surfing apparel, for instance, it makes sense to have a cool, laid-back vibe that your target audience can easily relate to. If you offer enterprise software or any other type of B2B products, it’s important to have a formal and professional approach that will help you gain the respect of your clients.

 

Once you identify your brand voice, use it consistently. You don’t want to post relaxed, carefree Facebook status updates and end up sounding stiff and uptight when replying to tweets on Twitter.

 

Be active in online review sites

Aside from an updated social media management, one of the best ways to enhance your online reputation is to know where people usually air out their opinions and complaints. By doing this, you’ll immediately find out if someone has been dissatisfied with your products or services, and you can fix the issue ASAP and prevent it from blowing up into a major problem.

 

There are lots of online review sites, but you can narrow them down to those that your target audience frequently visits. If you own a travel or hospitality business, for instance, you can monitor TripAdvisor and Google My Business. If you sell clothes (both online and in brick-and-mortar shops), keep an eye on Amazon and Yelp.

 

Respond promptly and carefully

It’s important to reply to your customers within the soonest possible time, but don’t hit the Enter button without reviewing what you’ve written. Remember: one of the best ways to ruin your online reputation is to come across as rude or condescending when replying to tweets, posts, and reviews.

 

It’s understandable to be angry or frustrated when people say negative things about your business, but don’t let your emotions run the show. Instead, take a step back and take a deep breath before typing on your keyword. Once you have your feelings under control, state your reply in a courteous way that lets you get your message across without hurting anybody. Don’t forget to offer compensation (when appropriate) to those who had bad experiences with your company.

 

Use customer feedback to improve your business

Of course, don’t just let the reviews, comments, and suggestions go to waste. Instead, use them to spot the weak areas in your marketing agency Cheshire or any other company and turn them into strengths. You can’t expect to create a perfect business, but you can at least do something to boost the products and services you offer and show everyone that you’re committed to improving your venture.

 

Take these steps now to enhance your online reputation in 2016!