In today's digital age, your business reputation is visible to anyone. As a result, the importance of negative feedback has grown exponentially.
For a good example of this, look no further than Wells Fargo. In 2017, a series of scandals led to them being seen as the least ethical company in America. Since then, they've done everything they could to turn it around.
Even if you're not Wells Fargo, the importance of improving your business reputation is obvious. Here are four methods that will help you do that.
You build your public face across a variety of channels. To make the most of your reputation, those channels need to be sending a harmonious picture.
How do you do that? Simple: make sure everyone in your brand is working toward a single, quantifiable goal. Envisioning an ideal reputation is an easy step to overlook, but it's the key to reputation management.
For instance, let's say your business is dealing with a crisis. If your social media channels respond to it with different messages, the public will notice. And once the seed of doubt is in their minds, they'll find it hard to trust you.
A leader's actions are often conflated with the actions of their companies. That's why it's important to know how to act in the spotlight.
One big thing you can do to improve business ratings is to be open with the public. If you discover issues in your company, present those findings early. If it seems like you're covering anything up, your reputation will suffer.
The bottom line: it's all about empathy. If the public sees a leader who seems too remote, they won't believe their company is responsible. Use social media to demonstrate the transparency your customers expect.
Saying the right things is simple enough. If you want the public to believe those things, though, you'll need to prove you're serious about them.
See, today's culture is, in large part, a culture of suspicion. People know that companies commit to positive actions because it makes them look good. They know that, in most cases, they don't mean it.
How do you get ahead in this kind of culture? Assume that the inner workings of your company will become public. That will lead you to take care of your internal processes, which is what really sets your reputation.
As an old saying goes, every company is unique. Still, that doesn't mean you can't look at the others' efforts when building a reputation plan.
The truth is that most well-liked companies today share some key traits. They care for their clients, display their ethics, and prioritize quality control. These are the traits your business should focus on as well.
For instance, how do you prove you care about your clients? One way to do that is to get better reviews for my business. Click here to learn more about how do I get Google reviews for my business.
As proven by Wells Fargo, repairing a bad business reputation takes a while. The better solution is to never let things get to that point. These tips will help you take a proactive approach and improve your business reputation.
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