Your Introduction to Reputation Management As an SEO Service
If you check out the list of SEO services offered by a top agency, you’ll find reputation management as one of them. And if you’re not very acquainted with how today’s digital world works, you’re probably left a bit befuddled, trying to know what it is, exactly.
It’s easy to Google what it means. In a nutshell, reputation management is about influencing or enhancing a company’s public digital perception.
Now, even knowing that many of you reading this are probably still scratching their heads and looking for answers. If you’re one of them, this article should address those questions.
Who Decides One’s Online Reputation?
To understand what reputation management is all about, it pays to answer this very important question: is there any group or entity that is in control of a brand’s online reputation? Furthermore, who decides one’s online reputation?
Think of it as an actual person’s reputation in real life. All of it stems from how other people feel about their presence, which means most of it is controlled by respective biases.
The difference in this scenario is that a brand’s online reputation can take a hold of how it progresses or regresses. But the good thing is that with the right, ethical strategies, company owners can control that in their favor.
Is Reputation Management An Ethical Practice?
Short answer: yes. Business owners in this day and age of technology are fortunate enough to have that kind of control over their reputation. Case in point: making sure that a Wikipedia article is free of erroneous information or highlighting positive Yelp reviews.
Now, there are abusive reputation management practices where companies become overly manipulative about how they’re perceived. Some good examples are spreading misinformation through “news articles” or simply twisting the truth.
But ultimately, it’s how you play your cards and the set of ethics and morals you live by. A lack thereof could hurt your trust rating.
What Is Proper Reputation Management?
Since we’re on the topic of ethical reputation management, this is what it looks like. Below are just some of the best practices that trusted companies employ.
Transparency
Nowadays, people are more adept at spotting disingenuous practices. As the popular saying goes, “everyone can see through the BS.”
Never try to fool your audience into thinking that you’re someone you’re not. Be as transparent as possible. Your company’s About page says a lot, and make sure it is an accurate assessment of what you’re all about.
Finding ways to constantly improve
Negative reviews are inevitable, and not everyone will like your product or service. But instead of concealing them and only highlighting positive comments, find a way to work on your flaws.
Digital marketing is a never-ending learning process, given how rapidly these trends move. Make it your goal to constantly improve and keep up.
Create valuable content
You can never go wrong with content that adds value to people’s lives. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but you will be respected for putting the effort in. And despite any negative comments, these will all be overshadowed by your reputation as an authoritative figure because of how valuable your content is.
