How are you protecting your on-line reputation?

Our last post was all about creating a social media strategy; now you have it,  you have to protect it!

This post is all about how to protect your reputation with the advent of untempered, anytime, anywhere access that your clients have to social media -  the same social media outlets that you use.

Let’s look at some of the main guidelines for posting to protect your reputation:

Many business owners have both professional and personal pages and most know the difference between what is acceptable on a personal page but is perhaps a touch inappropriate for a business one. The problem may come when your potential client does a search for your business and your personal page comes up. This tip is post ONLY what you wouldn’t mind your Mum and Dad seeing.

It is best to be actively involved in only a few sites so that you don’t end up neglecting them. This can lead to people thinking you are no longer in business. You have to consider what you are posting and how often you are posting. Ask yourself  the following questions:

1.   Is it useful information?

2.   Are my connections interested in this topic?

3.   Am I constantly and consistently selling my product?

If these questions are not asked when you are posting on your social media accounts, it can damage your reputation because people will soon disregard you if you are spamming them through social media, or you cannot show them that you are knowledgeable in your area.

Negative comments that can have a damaging effect on your reputation only come about due to dissatisfaction. It is important to realise that no matter how wonderful and customer focused you are and how great your product is, it is likely that at some point  you have been or will be unable to resolve a complaint to the exact satisfaction of the complainant, especially if it is an unjustified one. With the very occasional bad review posted by an unhappy patron, it’s imperative that you:

1.   Do not remove it.

2.   Respond in a positive way. Thank them for bringing the issue to your attention.

3.   Do not play the blame game.

4.   Involve them in a conversation about their concerns, if it’s appropriate explain how you have changed things so the same thing doesn’t happen again.

Remember data protection law also applies to social media sites, a lapse here could not only damage your reputation, but could land you in trouble with the law.

At Blue Box  we have the expertise to help you manage your online presence within good practice guidelines.

As always, we would love to hear from you - feel free to give us a call on 084 3289 3288 or drop us an email at enquiries@blueboxconsultancy.com 

Learn more about us, the things we do and the people that we do it for at www.blueboxconsultancy.com  

Until the next time.......