“I would not recommend this business.” One star.

The dreaded review no one wants to receive.

But what do you do when these complaints appear on your page? Defend yourself? Apologize? Delete the review? Just ignore it?

Business reputation management is tricky to master. It’s hard to control how other people perceive your business, and even harder when you’re separated by a screen. But no matter how great your business is, you’re likely to catch a nasty review from a disgruntled customer at some point.

So, how do you ensure your rap sheet stays squeaky clean?

Consider this your crash course in online reputation management.

What is online reputation management?

Online reputation management is the process of assessing and regulating how consumers perceive your business online. By preventing and counteracting negative representation through this strategy, you ensure your business is presented in the most positive light.

Common business reputation management techniques include:

• Responding to reviews
• Posting regularly on social media
• Interacting with social media users
• Reviewing brand mentions
• Creating helpful content
• Combating misinformation
• Developing a PR strategy

In short, reputation management is all about putting your best foot forward and includes any tactic meant to cultivate a positive image for your business.

Where should you manage your online reputation?

Obviously, online reputation management takes place, well, online. But the internet is a big place. So, where do you start? What corners of the web should you be monitoring?

Here are the main areas your business reputation management should cover:

• Social media: Consumers notice how companies behave on social media. Plus, these platforms offer a space where they can interact with your business directly.
• Google My Business: This is a prime place where customers look for star ratings and reviews, which have a strong impact on how they perceive your business.
• Local directories and review sites: These include sites like Yelp, Merchant Circle, and Yellow Pages.
• Paid media channels: Make sure your paid ads on Google and social media contain messaging that positions your business in a positive light.
• Third-party coverage: Keep an eye out for content about your business written by outside sources, such as competitors, news outlets, or industry publications.
• Owned channels: The way you present your business on your website and email communications matters when it comes to your image.

Why is online reputation management important?

Managing your online reputation can land you with some major benefits for your business:

• Maintain a positive image: First and foremost, reputation management ensures that your business upholds a positive image within your community.
• Boost customer trust: The better your business is portrayed, the more customers will view it as trustworthy and dependable.
• Foster customer loyalty: Reputation management doesn’t just make you look good — it also keeps customers happy. And greater satisfaction leads to better customer retention and loyalty.
• Attract new customers: Customer endorsement is a powerful tool — because consumers trust each other more than they trust companies. So, if customers are raving about your business, you can expect them to bring in more buyers.
• Increase sales: 89% of consumers look for online reviews before making a purchase. By cultivating positive reviews and amending negative ones, you can influence more sales.
• Prevent reputational damage: Comments, reviews, and content that paint an unfavorable picture of your business can do major damage to your image. Practicing online reputation management prevents the pitfalls that come with negative attention.
• Gain valuable feedback: Business reputation management allows you to keep your finger on the pulse of your target audience by learning what consumers think of your business, then use this feedback to make improvements.
• Gain a competitive advantage: Businesses that practice online reputation management have a leg up on their competitors.

How to manage your business’s online reputation

There’s a lot that goes into managing your online reputation, but the payoff is well worth the effort. Here are the 5 main things you can do to take charge of your business’s image.

1. Determine your reputational standing

First order of business: Determine what customers currently think of your business. Do they already have a positive opinion? Are there aspects they dislike? Is the reception lukewarm at best? Finding the answers to these questions is a great starting point. Once you understand how your audience perceives you, you can use this feedback to determine where you need to improve and create a plan of action.

You can get a feel for what customers think of you by:

• Checking your Google My Business reviews
• Searching your business name and assessing third-party sources
• Evaluating social media reviews
• Visiting review sites

Take note of what customers like about your business, as well as any complaints they have. Then, use this information to make improvements wherever necessary.

2. Monitor and respond to reviews

Negative reviews can damage your business’s image, which is why you need to be on top of checking your online reviews and responding accordingly.

If you receive a negative review, it’s important not to brush it under the rug and hope no one notices. Make sure you respond as quickly as possible to minimize the review’s impact. Here’s how to write an appropriate response:

1. Maintain a pleasant tone: It can be easy to feel defensive of your business — especially in instances when the customer isn’t always right. But it’s important to respond to negative reviews in a cordial manner to avoid making unhappy customers even more agitated.
2. Thank the reviewer: Start your response by thanking the reviewer for their feedback.
3. Apologize sincerely: Be sure to apologize regardless of whether or not the mistake was your fault. This shows customers you’re willing to take accountability.
4. Acknowledge the customer’s experience: People want to feel seen and heard. They want to know that you understand what you’re apologizing for.
5. Offer a resolution: It’s time to make things right. Amend the situation however you can, whether by detailing how you plan to implement their feedback or by offering a refund or discount.

It’s safe to say there’s a lot that goes into crafting a review response that doesn’t ruffle any feathers. Instead of agonizing over every word, consider leveraging generative AI to write your responses for you.

And don’t forget about positive reviews! Always thank reviewers for their kind words and support. Expressing your gratitude shows customers you care, which fosters repeat business!

3. Manage your social media

Social media plays a huge role in business reputation management. These channels give companies an opportunity to interact with their target audience directly while showing a little more personality.

While social platforms offer another space for consumers to leave reviews, they also encourage interactions in the form of comments, shares, and direct messages. And more avenues for engagement call for a strong reputation management strategy.

Here are a few tips for managing your social media:

• Post regularly: To make an impression, you have to be active on social media. Be sure to post regularly to put yourself on consumers’ radars.
• Show your personality: You can make a good impression by showing your personality through your social posts. Share fun company photos, highlight company wins, show some humor, and voice your values to cultivate a positive image.
• Respond to comments: Show your followers you care about them by responding to comments on your posts.
• Monitor brand mentions: Check your notifications to see if anyone mentions your business in their posts, then react accordingly.

4. Create an SEO strategy

Optimizing your content for search might not seem like a reputation management best practice, but it impacts your image more than you’d think.

First off, you should create content that’s valuable to your audience, such as educational blogs, guides, and other helpful resources. Sharing nonpromotional content is a great way to boost brand awareness and gain consumer trust.

Now, for SEO. Good SEO practices help your pages rank better on search engines, which positions your business as an authority. Optimized content should include the following elements:

• Keywords: Select keywords that are easy to rank for but also have high search volume. Then, evenly implement them into the body copy of your content.
• Metadata: Be sure to include your keywords in your content’s metadata, such as title tags, alt text, URLs, and meta descriptions.
• Readability: Google pays attention to readability when ranking content. Make sure your information is organized logically, incorporate plenty of white space, and keep paragraphs under 88 words.

5. Invest in business reputation management services

If you’ve gotten this far, you’ve probably realized managing your reputation is no small feat. That’s why many businesses invest in reputation management services to leave the heavy lifting to the professionals.

You can turn over all of the following tasks to your dedicated reputation management team:

• Monitoring online channels: Experts will track consumer activity on channels ranging from Google to Twitter to LinkedIn.
• Engaging with customers: Ensure timely responses to all comments, mentions, and reviews.
• Gaining crucial insights: Your dedicated team will gather valuable data to gauge how customers feel about your business and identify areas of improvement.

Get reputation management services

Protect your local business’s image with reputation management services from BrandMuscle. We’ve served over 1.5 million local businesses across industries ranging from manufacturing to insurance to healthcare.

Book a demo to see our services in action.