You might be asking why Online Reputation Management (ORM) matters. ORM is a very crucial part of social media marketing that can help improve relations with customers or it can prevent you from gaining customers. ORM is the practice of promoting a positive brand image online by increasing visibility of positive information and managing negative information. Knowing how important ORM is to your brand’s image it is useful to know these six steps to help manage negative content.
- Answer quickly – but not too quick. Answering too quickly may lead to customers thinking they are talking to a computer. Taking some time to respond shows that you thought out your response before you answer.
- Appreciate the input. When you do this, it shows that you as a company actually values their response.
- Admit wrongdoing. Admitting wrongdoing is one of the most important out of all of these steps. Admitting your company messed up will build trust and reputation that your company is transparent.
- Don’t be defensive. Being defensive will lead to consequences that include negative customer perception and damage to your company’s reputation.
- Offer customer to “make it right”. “Making it right” will continue to build trust and credibility.
- Take the conversation offline – email/customer support. Taking it offline can provide privacy and stop the “bleeding” of the original review and give the customer more personalized attention.
Now that you know the correct way to handle negative online reviews, you are building a positive reputation and brand image for your company.
