All entities have a digital footprint...brands, people, companies. etc. Online reputation, which is created by these digital footprints, is becoming increasingly relevant in today’s digital landscape and can just as easily help or hurt a brand. Thus, it is important to avoid certain pitfalls and understand how to manage your online reputation. Here Digimind debunks some commonly misheld beliefs about online reputation:
Today any online user can take the floor and exert influence. As soon as someone is connected and benefits from a small audience (Facebook friends, Twitter followers, subscribers, etc.), his or her visibility on these social networks can have a strong impact.
There are still no real rules when it comes to online communication, which is still very much in its infancy. It’s hard to predict what will come next. But you can count on the capacity of internet users to rapidly diffuse information (good or bad, true or false) with more and more mobility.
Most companies think it suffices to monitor what is said about them by people outside of their organization. But in fact, internal stakeholders can just as easily diffuse sensitive and potentially harmful information via social networks. So we must monitor everyone.
Before the advent of social media, it was possible for the law to intervene to censor or reestablish the reputation of a brand. Today, once something has been posted to a social network, it’s too late for the law to regulate any damage done.
Online strategy must be in line with the communication strategy, social responsibility, labor, governance ... (all reputation drivers). Otherwise, a shift will affect the company’s online reputation, especially in medium and large organizations. Online reputation must be seen as a key driver of the overall reputation of the company.
The social media landscape is constantly changing. While it may have used to be enough to simply monitor Twitter and Facebook, companies must now take into account the many social media platforms on which people are active and exerting influence.
To hit home the previous point, as the number of social media platforms is ever increasing, you must constantly evolve your monitoring strategy and add new sources.
Netizens don’t communicate the same way across social networks. There are differences in how people communicate on Facebook vs. LinkedIn vs. Twitter. Know your social networks and know your audience.
No one is universally influential across the web. Influencers exist across all sectors and you must seek out the opinion leaders in your field.
The good news is, bad buzz doesn’t have to destroy a company’s reputation. Companies have a lot to gain from implementing crisis management strategies to deal with negative sentiment for their products and services on the web. A good social media monitoring strategy will help you rebound and restore your brand in moments of crisis.