What is Reputation Management?

Taylor Swift said it best: “Big reputations. Big reputations. You and me, we got big reputations… and you heard about me.” 

Reputation management won’t get you mentioned in a Taylor Swift song, but it will help you build a big reputation for your brand. Whether online or offline, customers care deeply about your reputation and seek out brands that provide the best products and experiences. 

In this post, I’ll explain everything you should know about reputation management. We’ll review what it is, how it works, and how to build a positive reputation for your business. Let’s get started. 

What is Reputation Management? 

Reputation management is the process of building (and maintaining) a positive reputation for your brand. It involves marketing your business, responding to customer feedback, and monitoring review sites like Google and Yelp. 

Good reputation management requires proactive communication and reliable reporting tools that tell you what customers say online. This software helps you craft effective marketing campaigns and swiftly respond to people who are upset with your business. You can even send requests for reviews automatically after someone completes a purchase. With the right tools and the right techniques, you can significantly improve your business reputation. 

But why is this important? What’s the point of having a good reputation? Shouldn’t your products and services speak for themselves? 

Why is reputation management important?

Reputation management is important because it helps you attract and retain customers. Let’s start with the latter. If you develop a good reputation, that means you’re providing delightful customer experiences. People will come back and buy again because they trust your brand. 

On the other hand, a strong reputation will also help you attract new customers. It makes your brand easier to find online (more on this later), but it’s also great for word-of-mouth marketing. Customers talk about their great experiences with your business, leading to others wanting to try your products and services. This endorsement from a trusted peer is much more effective than your company’s advertisements. 

Nowadays, you don’t just develop your business reputation while on the job – the Internet plays a major role in how customers discover and perceive your business. Let’s take a closer look at online reputation management and why it matters to small businesses.

Reputation Management Channels

Online reputation management means building a positive image for your brand online. When people Google your business, it should be easy to find, have good reviews, and show that you’re a trusted brand in your industry. That means your website, social media, and online listings need to be active and updated frequently. These channels are some of the main ways that people discover and learn about your business.

Let’s break down each of these channels in more detail: 

• Online Listings: Online listings are business profiles on sites like Google, Yelp, and Angi. They provide quick details about your business and direct people to your website or social media pages. They also allow customers to leave reviews so you can reply to them. 
• Social Media: Social media is built for customer engagement. It’s a great place for people to discover your business and interact with your brand. Here’s where you can show some personality and speak directly to your customers.
• Website: Your website is like the digital address for your business. It’s how people find you through search engines, and it outlines all of your products and services. Everything people should know about your brand should live on your website. 

Reputation Management & Search Engines

Your brand’s reputation doesn’t just help you attract and retain customers; it also helps new people discover your company. 

While word-of-mouth and customer referrals are highly effective marketing strategies, most people don’t discover new businesses through their peers. 91% of customers use local reviews to inform buying decisions, and 88% prefer businesses that reply to all their online reviews. In other words, most people use sites like Google to find your business, which is why it’s so important to stay active online.

If your business has a good online reputation, search engines like Google and Yelp will show your company first in search results. For example, when I Google “best pizza places near me,” notice how all the companies shown have good reviews (note: Leone’s is 🔥): 

That’s just one benefit of having a good business reputation. If we consider social media, there are even more advantages there. Your business can build a following, giving you a group of people to interact with over time. The better your social content is, the more followers you’ll get – which will improve your overall reputation. 

Okay, so you have a big following; now, where do you send them? Your website! People who discover your brand through listings and social media can visit your website to learn more. Your website is where you can leverage your reputation to convert interested followers into customers for your business.

Tip: Check out this video for tips on attracting customers through your website. 

Your brand will also contribute to your business reputation. It will affect who will be interested in your marketing campaigns and how the public will perceive your products and services. Let’s explain this in more detail.

For example, in 2019, Gillette repositioned its brand to align with a younger male audience. Its original slogan, “the best a man can get” was replaced with “the best a man can be.” It also released commercials like these that reinforced the new branding:

This campaign improved Gillette’s reputation on social media and led to a boost in sales. While initial feedback was negative, over time, social media users warmed up to the new brand, and sales increased 4%. This campaign is a great example of a company repositioning its messaging to create a positive reputation for the business. 

Now, let’s dive into the good stuff. How can you actually improve your reputation? First, you’ll need a reputation manager.

What is a Reputation Manager? 

A reputation manager can be two things. It can be a person who manages your business’s reputation. They help with your social media, respond to customer reviews, and ensure you have a positive reputation online and offline. 

I do this for Thryv. I ensure we respond to feedback online and create positive customer experiences.

Most small businesses don’t need to hire a full-time reputation manager. Instead, they use reputation management tools to do it themselves. It’s efficient, and you don’t have to hire another employee. These tools manage your social media, online listings, and customer reviews in one place.

Here’s an example of what they look like: 

But, having the right tools is just one piece of the puzzle. I’ll explain how to use them to build a positive reputation for your business. 

How to Build a Reputation Management Strategy

Here are five ways to improve your business reputation. 

1. Game plan for unhappy customers. 

It’s impossible to prepare for every customer service scenario. However, you should have a plan for handling negative reviews, complaints, and refund requests. These are opportunities to enhance customer experiences, and they can make or break your brand’s reputation.

Create a simple flowchart for your business. If a customer is unhappy, what will your company do? Where will you have these conversations? When will you provide a refund, and when will you not? 

Outline the steps your company will take and standardize these processes. That will make you more prepared and help you respond faster to customer complaints. 

2. Respond to customer reviews.

Remember, almost 90% of people who use online reviews want to work with companies that respond to customers. It shows that your business cares about customer experiences and is open to feedback. When you don’t respond to reviews, customers think you don’t care, and it signals to search engines that you aren’t active online. 

There are plenty of tools that help you respond to customer reviews. They’ll notify you when a review is left and let you respond to all of them from one place. Some tools even have AI assistants that read reviews and help you reply to them. 

Here’s an example of what that looks like: 

Responding to online reviews will improve customer relationships. Sometimes, a thoughtful response turns a negative experience into a positive one. Customers might misinterpret situations or policies, and your comment provides context that reconciles the situation. At the least, other customers will see your efforts to resolve the situation and know you care about customer experiences. 

3. Monitor communication channels closely. 

When you manage a small business, you don’t have time to be on your phone all day. You can’t constantly check Facebook for comments or spend all day responding to reviews. That’s why it’s easy to overlook customer feedback; there are so many places people can leave it.

Here’s where reputation management software helps. These services connect your online accounts together, so comments from social media and review sites are all funneled into one place. You don’t have to jump between apps to stay updated. Instead, you can read and reply to customer reviews through a single app. It’s faster and makes it easy to review feedback no matter where it’s left.

4. Ask for customer feedback. 

Small businesses don’t always get hundreds of reviews online. Instead, you need to solicit customer feedback to grow your brand’s reputation. 

This Google Review Link generator is a great example. It sends customers a link to your Google Business Profile so they can leave a review. Pair this with some email automation tools, and you can ask customers for online reviews every time they complete a purchase. The software automatically sends them this link, so you don’t have to.

Asking for feedback does two things. First, it helps you understand your customers and where they think you can improve your business. That information is incredibly valuable for small businesses that are just getting started. 

The other benefit is that it will help you rank higher on search engines. The more good reviews you have, the more likely you’ll appear in searches like “best business near me.” While you shouldn’t demand good reviews, you can grow your reputation by encouraging customers to share honest feedback online. After that, it’s up to you to create a positive experience that leads to good reviews. 

5. Measure your performance with reporting tools. 

Most reputation management tools have reporting features that track your brand’s reputation. They show you how many reviews were left for your business and how positive the feedback was. These tools are important in your reputation management strategy because they help fine-tune your approach and improve brand experiences. Use this information to inform your strategy and maximize your customer feedback.

Tip: Here’s a free online presence scanner that compares you to your competition. Use it to see how you compare to other businesses and what customers are saying about your brand.

Managing Your Small Business Reputation

Building a good reputation should be the “end game” for your business (that was the last T-Swift reference, I swear). To do it, you need the right tools and a strategy for responding to customer feedback. Once you standardize this process and collect more reviews, you’ll build and manage a positive reputation for your business and attract more customers over time.