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Online reputation is extremely important in the modern world where everything has been digitalized. The World Wide Web can be both a place to grow your following and end your business if you don’t do the right things. Here’s a guide to online reputation management with some tips you might want to follow:
Search Engines
According to Net Market Share, Google’s share of the desktop and mobile markets account for 70% and 90% respectively. This means that the majority of online searches are done through this particular search engine and the reputation of your company will depend on how high your site ranks in search results.
On the other hand, you also need to take into account other popular search engines such as Bing. Optimizing your website for search engines, also known as SEO, is an integral part of building a good online reputation for your business. Remember that improving your website and, in turn, your online reputation is a continuous process.
Once you figure out what kind of image you want to have and which keywords you want to rank for, you will need to work towards these goals. Content creation and building a link profile will help you a lot in this.
Social Media Platforms
At the same time, you shouldn’t forget about social media platforms as they might be just as important as your website’s rankings. Every business must have at least one or two social media accounts in order to be able to maintain a certain image and manage their online reputation.
Think of what makes your company what it is. If you work visuals a lot such as web design or illustration, you might want to opt for social media platforms that focus on visual content such as Instagram and Pinterest. If you want to appear more professional because you work in the accounting industry, you will need to go with Facebook and Linked In.
Once you do choose your platforms, make sure to create full profiles that will look like your company is serious about what it does. Take extra care, just as you would with your business site, and make the most out of your accounts.
Negative Reviews
You won’t always see just the positive feedback but also the negative reviews. This is how the Internet works and you can’t escape getting bad publicity from time to time. However, there is no need to panic if you find yourself in such a situation, because there are ways you could deal with it.
Firstly, if this is a negative customer review, make sure to get in touch with them and try to find out how you could help that particular customer and improve their experience. If this is more of a general problem with your business, work towards improving this aspect of your production, delivery, or whatever else is on the low.
Your company might also get reviewed in popular online media outlets. It is crucial to get good reviews in such online magazines because that will make or break your business in the long run, so keep an eye on such things. Also, research as much as you can about the best online reputation management techniques, since they will definitely come in handy in case of an online crisis.
International Online Reputation
When we talk about online reputation management, there is no way you would ignore the international aspect of it. Offline, you might be a local business known only in your city, but the World Wide Web gives you an opportunity to grow your business into a nationwide one or even go global and reach foreign markets.
Of course, this change requires a lot of investment from your side as a business owner or entrepreneur. You will need to start producing content in other languages to find people online who would come from other countries and eventually become your customers.
An alternative would be to simply translate your content from English to the languages of the regions you want to target. You could do this with the help of a localization and translation service like The Word Point, but we don’t recommend using auto translators, because they lead to gibberish rather than proper translations.
Online Reputation Assets
So, what does your online reputation consist of and depend on? Here are some assets that you will need to take care of and constantly try to improve in order not to get stuck at one point of your business development:
Digital Marketing Strategy
In order to build and manage your online reputation wisely, you will need to create a digital marketing strategy. Try to incorporate as many aspects as possible including content marketing, social media marketing, and ads campaigns.
You will notice that online marketing has a high ROI but is also requires dedication and patience in order to yield good results. In any case, don’t give up even when it feels like you’ve done everything you could.
Final Thoughts
All in all, having a good reputation online is just as important as having a good reputation offline. This means that you need to pay extra attention to what you do or say on the Internet. Follow the advice in this article to build your image wisely.
Author Bio:
Cynthia Young loves taking every opportunity to share her knowledge with others. Along with digital marketing, Cynthia is also passionate about personal growth and wellness. When she isn’t writing, she can be found hiking with her dog, cooking Thai cuisine, and enjoying hi-tech thrillers. She also frequently writes articles on the company The Word Point translation service.
