In today’s competitive business landscape, “move fast and break things" is a mantra that many business owners would subscribe to. The idea behind this philosophy is, don't wait until a product or service is perfect; launch now and fix it later. This works for many aspects of the business; tweaks are made, glitches are fixed, and issues get resolved eventually. However, this "fix it later" approach isn’t exactly an ideal practice to uphold your business's online reputation.

A tarnished brand image hurts more than the quarterly low-profit margins or losses. In fact, it has broken the spine of many iconic brands at their prime. It is heartbreaking for a business owner to see his labour of love earning brickbats instead of bouquets. That’s why a spotless online reputation is very dear to the business owners. On that note, let us ponder over the following pointers.

1# Decide how you want your brand to be perceived

The sooner you decide how you want your brand to be perceived, the earlier you can start working on your online reputation. In this case, you need to decide the qualities you want to highlight in your brand’s reputation. Interact with other members of your organisation to decipher what they think. Prepare a detailed list of qualities that you want to focus on as part of your brand’s reputation.

Once you get a clear picture of how you want your brand to come across, it will be easier to decide on the tactics that will reshape your efforts.

Source: Pixabay

2# Focus on meaningful content for a stellar reputation

If you want to be identified as a pioneer in your industry, then you need to focus on the content that highlights the features of your brand.

The first step in the process of content creation is to maintain your own blog. This allows the consumers to feast on a wide variety of content and provides insights on the kind of brand you own. The topics you write about can bolster your brand’s reputation as a thought leader.

While a blog is essential in terms of cementing your online reputation, other types of content can help as well. You might consider the following options-

• Case studies
• Videos
• Info-graphics
• Podcasts
• Ebooks

Each of these different formats of content come with a specific objective, i.e., highlighting what your brand represents.

3# Tap into the magical world of social media

Your organisation must have accounts on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ (at the very least). If you belong to a highly competitive market, you may have to be active on other prominent social platforms. Choose from a list of dozens of platforms, and select the ones specific to your industry.

For many B2B, high-tech businesses, having executives and employees with a prominent presence on LinkedIn may turn out to be valuable. You can also leverage visual platforms like Pinterest, Instagram, Flickr and the likes. Also, most businesses will benefit from videos shared through sites like Vimeo and YouTube.

It is important to implement a successful marketing plan. The social profiles of your brand should be updated regularly with the latest news, business information, and content. You need to pay attention to the negative comments and address them promptly.

Keeping up with social media is a full-time job. If you want to reap the rewards, you can consider hiring a professional.

Source: Pixabay

4# Garner favorable response through influencer marketing

Influencers have immense potential in generating public opinion. You can harness its power to experience the positive impact it will have on your brand’s reputation.

Find the right influencer and you don’t have to resort to gimmicks. In fact, you should avoid indulging in a blatant promotion. Instead, gently remind the consumers about your association with the influencer.

A great way to use this principle of marketing is to co-create content with an influencer. Seeing your brand’s name beside the influencer's can have a positive impact on your brand’s image.

If an influencer is genuinely enthusiastic about your service or product, you might rope him/her in to initiate a social media campaign to promote the launch of a product.

Since you have made it this far into the post, here’s another bonus tip for you

5# Unleash the power of link building

Ranking on Google is possibly the most impactful way to elevate your brand’s reputation in the eyes of your consumers. Link building is one brilliant way to rank in Google. This practice allows you to get high authority websites to link back to your own site. It could be review sites like Yelp, Google Reviews, TopAssignmentReviews, EssayCritics or news media sites. Google also considers positive reviews. So, harping on the positive reviews can be a boon to your SEO ranking.

Ranking your content higher on Google pushes the negative reviews further down the page, where they are less likely to affect the potential consumers. This little trick allows you to emphasise on your positive qualities. This way, even if people see negative comments further down, the positive content makes it look like an afterthought.

In conclusion

The first step towards a sound reputation is deciphering how you want your brand to be seen. Building your brand’s online reputation means consistently influencing the impression that your business leaves on the consumers. Also, you need to devise content and social media strategy to uphold your brand and provide value to your consumers.