Reputation means everything for startups and established businesses. It defines whether a business’s service and their products are subpar or excellent. A great reputation gives your company an extremely competitive edge too.
It’s no secret that customers avidly hunt down a business’s reputation through word of mouth and social proof online to gather whether or not a particular company is an excellent choice for making a transaction with.
It takes twenty years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it – Warren Buffett.
But you’re here because you’re in doubt whether your business reputation is doing your business justice. And so, take note of the red flags below, which alert your business reputation needs saving – fast! And some tips on how to do it.
Legal Action
A notice from a law firm acting on behalf of a client or company who feels that for example, they have been mistreated, or mis-sold to. Potentially indicates the reputation of your business, (if it hasn’t already) could risk a mighty fall, and a loss of customers, if the legal issue problem isn’t rectified quickly.
It’s essential in this situation not to delay. Action professional Indemnity insurance claims quickly, to cover the legal costs of defending your establishment and clearing the company’s name. This is often a costly process, but essential, if you want the business to continue making a profit.
Reviews
Review sites are a quick and convenient way for new and existing customers to analyze a product or service you’re offering.
Interestingly, the public trusts people’s reviews on the internet more than a business’s marketing. Because of this, it’s vital to utilize review sites to your advantage where possible.
For instance, if you own and manage a chain of hotels, your business may be on TripAdvisor. Here you can discover what people are saying about your company.
If the majority of the reviews are bad, your reputation is in desperate need of saving. The more new individuals see the reviews listed, the more you are likely to experience a loss in business. Moreover, uncertainty around your company’s reputation shall increase.
It’s crucial to dedicate time to respond to unhappy reviews politely and diplomatically. This shows other viewers you are sorry for their experience with your company and are eager to provide a solution, such as giving them an opportunity to trial a new product, a refund, or another gesture of goodwill.
On the other hand, if the reviews mention names or slander, you have a legal right to contest these reviews to the site which hosts them. By alerting the review site of individuals or businesses attempts to defame your company name, you will hopefully succeed in having the reviews removed.
Managing a reputation on and offline takes time to do so. You can often appoint this task to the PR and marketing team if you don’t have the time to spend on this area of your company. Whoever takes care of your company’s reputation, it’s paramount to remember, in most cases, it’s best to adopt the ‘customer is always right’ saying. Otherwise, you can sometimes exacerbate issues with customers, and cause them to make a bigger deal out of what was originally a small issue.
