Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
One of the biggest challenges businesses face is protecting themselves online reputation. Now that almost everyone can access the Internet from the comfort of their mobile device, many CUSTOMERS use online reviews to share their experiences or inform their purchasing decisions. As such, many businesses are looking for new methods of online reputation management to build a positive online reputation.
A strategic narrative is one of the most important tools a brand needs to survive its online reputation challenges. A strategic narrative defines the brand's identity, values and purpose, which should guide every interaction the brand has with its customers. If a business's online presence and interactions with its customers don't match this narrative, it can damage the company's online reputation.
How online reviews affect your brand reputation
Reviews are extremely powerful for a brand's online image in both directions. Positive reviews create word of mouth recommendations that can attract new ones CLIENTS. On the other hand, bad online reviews can scare off customers – and even those who aren't scared off can view your brand negatively.
However, while negative reviews are just as critical as positive content for a business, they are illegal negative comments it can be used in an attempt to destroy the positives of a business the reputation. These fake reviews, whether created by bots or by a party who violates the review platform's terms of service (for example, a former employee or a competitor), can have a disproportionately negative impact on a brand's reputation if left uncontrolled.
Connected: Your online reputation is powerful — Use these methods to improve and protect it.
How to remove fake reviews online to build a good reputation
Thankfully, most online review sites understand the unfair negative consequences of these fake reviews and allow businesses to report and remove illegal reviews. As a business owner, platforms like Google and Trustpilot allow you to log into your admin panel and report the review as a violation of the platform's terms of service.
In general, these platforms all work similarly and are good at removing illegal reviews. For Google, it may take several reports as different moderators may come to different conclusions about the legitimacy of the review. Trustpilot has premium support – sometimes even going so far as to track the IP address associated with the review to see if it's a competitor's registered address. Employee review services like Glassdoor are an exception, where it can be much more difficult to remove reviews due to the nature of these sites.
While these steps are practical for managing illegitimate reviews, they are not advisable for legitimate reviews. Even if you manage to successfully remove a legitimate review from a site, it will leave the customer even more angry and likely to take action against your reputation, as you will not be seen as trustworthy. Instead, when faced with legitimate negative feedback, respond to it in an ethical and thoughtful manner.
How to address legitimate negative online reviews to manage your reputation
When dealing with legitimate negative reviews, all reputation management firms will tell you the same thing: have a crisis management strategy in place is essential. Although online content may not seem like a big crisis, it can get out of control if you don't know how to handle it. If you don't respond properly, you can escalate and worsen the situation, ruining your brand image online.
Remember, with negative feedback, you're dealing with someone who is already unhappy with your company, so it's essential to respond quickly to remedy the situation. Ideally, you can help the customer reach a resolution that encourages them to delete or at least adjust their rating upwards. The first step in dealing with a legitimate negative review is to identify the root cause of the issue. If the reviewer left their name or contact information on their profile or in their review, find their order or account with you and identify what went wrong.
Sometimes, the feedback you receive will be anonymous, in which case your best bet is to respond with a contact point to contact so they can provide more details. It's a good idea to apologize for feeling negative but not admit fault – you're not sure of the details yet.
Once you have identified the party that left the negative review, try to correct the solution. Generally, this means giving them a chance to improve their experience. For service-based companies, an ideal solution might be a free month of your service or reassigning the customer to a different team, depending on the problem they experienced. For restaurants, the best course of action is probably to invite them back for another meal at home.
How to proactively approach online reputation management
The best way to deal with negative comments is to prevent them proactively. Of course, you won't be able to get away from everyone CUSTOMER satisfied, but not every unhappy customer will leave a bad review. Strategy like transparent communication and authenticity across platforms can help prevent disgruntled customers from becoming so disgruntled as to write negative reviews.
Additionally, you should conduct online reputation monitoring for any brand mentions. There is specialized software that business leaders can use to monitor mentions of their company's name online. However, the “DIY” method of social listening – using search engines and setting up Google or social media alerts with the name as a keyword to flag relevant search results – is also an effective way to be notified when a customer said something about business. These alerts can allow you to respond to negative comments about your company in a timely manner.
While it's not always possible to remove negative online reviews, there are other tried and true methods for repairing and restoring your business's online reputation through effective crisis management. By actively engaging with your audience, implementing constructive feedback and demonstrating your commitment to customer satisfaction, you can gradually rebuild trust and improve your digital footprint. Remember, every challenge is an opportunity to demonstrate your commitment to excellence and turn a negative situation into a positive outcome for your brand.
Connected: 9 steps to building a reputation management plan that wins customers and puts you ahead