A reputation manager is a specialist who helps to control and improve the perception of your company or personal brand in the eyes of the public. Here are a few reasons why you might need such a professional.
It is generally believed that there is no reputation institution in Kazakhstan. But even if we agree with this stereotype, it is completely impossible to ignore the importance of maintaining a good reputation in the age of digital technology. Research shows that business reputation can account for almost 80% of the market value of companies. It is reputation that determines the success of a business and defines its future.
A reputation manager is a specialist who helps to control and improve the perception of your company or personal brand in the eyes of the public. Here are a few reasons why you might need such a professional.
1. Crisis Management
Crisis situations can arise unexpectedly and cause serious damage to your reputation. Reputation manager is ready to respond promptly to any negative developments by developing and implementing anti-crisis strategies. Reputation manager provides fast and effective communication with the public and the media, minimizing possible losses.
2. Increasing trust
The trust of clients, partners and investors is a key element of a successful business. Reputation manager is engaged in the formation of a positive image of your company using various tools: PR campaigns, social networks, cooperation with the media and much more. This helps to build trust and loyalty to your brand.
3. Competitive advantage
In a highly competitive environment, reputation can be your unique advantage. Reputation manager develops strategies that make it possible to stand out from the competition. This may include holding events, participating in social projects, as well as actively interacting with clients through various communication channels.
4. Online Reputation Management
In the digital age, the Internet plays a key role in shaping opinion about a company. Reputation manager monitors mentions of you online, analyzes feedback and comments, and actively works to improve your online image. This includes managing social media, working with bloggers and influencers, as well as SEO-optimization.
5. Attracting and retaining clients
A positive reputation helps to attract new clients and retain current ones. People tend to choose companies that inspire their trust and positive emotions. Reputation manager helps to create such conditions by forming strong relationships with clients and strengthening their loyalty.
6. Support of internal culture
Reputation is important not only externally, but also internally. Reputation manager contributes to the formation of a positive corporate culture, which affects employee motivation and satisfaction. Satisfied employees, in turn, become brand ambassadors and help strengthen its reputation.
How does online reputation management work?
Monitoring and analysis. Experts keep track of what is being said about you or your business on the Internet. It is also important to understand which aspects of your business cause negative feedbacks and which cause positive ones. Based on a qualitative audit, marketers build a further brand promotion strategy, and the most advanced ones prescribe an anti-crisis plan in case of "fires" in advance.
Response: Feedback and comments should be answered. It is important to thank for positive feedback and respond instantly to negative ones by offering solutions to problems.
Creating positive content: publishing articles, news, social media posts and other materials that will help to improve your reputation and draw attention to your business or person.
Dealing with negativity: it is important to be able to deal with negative feedback. You do not need to ignore or delete them — it is better to use them as an opportunity to improve and demonstrate your responsibility to clients.
Is it possible to practice ORM on your own?
It is possible if you are not interested in the rapid growth of your brand's popularity and you are guaranteed to be protected from crises, which is almost impossible. Only at first glance it seems that a good SMM is enough to be on the same wavelength as the wishes of clients. However, a reputational crisis always occurs unexpectedly. Therefore, you need to be prepared for it, especially if the professionalism of your PR service is far from ideal.
During a crisis, professionals begin their work by searching the source of negativity, analyzing its background, motives and goals. The search for adjacent or additional newsbreaks to "blur" the focus of the audience's attention, the creation of favorable soil, a correct non–aggressive manner of communication, the search for suitable influencers and media platforms to place the necessary information - all this can be done only by well-trained specialists. The risk of worsening the situation during the anti-crisis campaign is extremely high. Therefore, it is important to have an experienced and reliable professional at the helm and all work is being carried out as environmentally friendly as possible, almost imperceptibly.
Special attention should be paid to post-crisis reputation management, which will consolidate the positive effect of the work done and create a stable foundation for preventing repeated crises.