In this fast paced digital world we find ourselves, the importance of online reputation cannot be emphasized enough. The internet is an effective and efficient tool for any brand. This effective tool also has the potential of becoming a destructive factor if not managed properly. A brand’s online presence makes it easily accessible to it’s target group, especially when this presence is heavy on social media.
Social media has been tagged the new big wave in online marketing and it’s no surprise that every relevant brand known to us has a level of social media presence. With the long list of social media pages available to us today, the issue of deciding which platform to be on is almost as crucial as how to manage the e-reputation of the brand.
It is important for every brand, no matter how big or small to be on top of its online reputation on social media. Brands cannot completely control what is said about them but they can act on what’s said to influence what will be said later. Brands need to constantly follow what people are saying about them and use that information to fine tune their activities. In a world where recommendation and word of mouth carry as much or even more power than paid forms of marketing, what people say about you on social media can make or break your brand. What’s more fascinating; that can happen in a matter of minutes.
A good name has been known to have a huge effect on the success of brands. The reputation any brand has affects the level of trust that they are able to ignite in their customers. In managing social media platforms of brands, it is important to bear in mind the need for transparency and consistency. These two have an immense effect on trust levels. Your target audience knowing they can get as much trustworthy information from you online and in addition get that information as often as possible; is an awesome plus for any brand in the eyes of a customer. Timely response to client concerns is another quality that will raise any brand ahead of its competition. And even if it doesn’t give you an edge over your competitors it still stops your brand from plummeting.
Trust is important to everyone. A good online reputation on social media means that your target audience get to grow their trust for you where they spend most of their time. The amazing follow up effect is that, when they trust you online where they spend most of their time, it flows right into offline trust as well and offline is where you mostly need them to engage with your brand and act. Unless of course you are a full scale online brand.
In this fast paced digital world, your online reputation management is as key as any other brand management activity because if it goes right, the benefits are ever flowing. When it goes wrong, it goes wrong hard and fast.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Kobby A. Koomson A.K.A KJR is creative, a nerd without the glasses and aloofness. Believes you need to question everything. Loves Marketing, Branding and Social media. When he’s not at Wild Fusion Ghana creating digital marketing magic, he’s on twitter or caught up in a tv series.
