What are you doing about your online reputation management?
Your current and prospective clients are talking and reading about your firm online, and the information out there about you is critical for the future of your business. Google, in it’s ongoing effort to enhance the user experience, has optimized search by placing Featured Snippets at the top of the search results page. There is no doubt that online reputation matters – even though you have been providing exemplary service and products for decades.
Why Online Reputation Matters: Prospective Clients
The 2017 Local Consumer Survey published by BrightLocal, a firm specializing in SEO tools and online monitoring for small businesses, found that 97% of consumers read online reviews for businesses every day. Drilling down further, 12% of those consumers report reading online reviews every day. The same report found that 73% of consumers say they are more likely to trust a business when they’ve read a positive review for it.
Making a decision of what to buy or whom to do business with is a deeply personal experience for many individuals and corporations, so data on consumer utilization of online reviews is even more profound. Here is what a Deloitte Study found out about what we as business people do about our online reputations: “58% of executives believe that reputation management should be addressed, but only 15% actually do anything about it.“
The following statistics illustrate that companies that are taking care of their online reputation management have a greater trust level with their prospects and clients, resulting in more business:
- 78% of consumers trust peer recommendations, while only 14% trust advertisements. (Pew Statistics) Social Media has become the new word of mouth.
- 31% of employed Internet users have searched online for information about co-workers, professional colleagues, or business competitors. (Pew Statistics) What have they found out about you?
- 4 out of 5 people state that they have received advice via social media about the product or service to purchase. (Pew Statistics) You only lose out if your social media is lacking.
- 53% of B2B buyers follow social discussions about vendors they are considering. (Top Rank) That’s 1 out of every 2 people considering doing business with you.
Clients who have had negative experiences are more likely to air their opinions on the Internet. To ensure the content online about you is comprised of more approvals than grievances, you’ll need to make an effort to promote positive experiences so clients take the time to write positive reviews.
Call us at 888-448-2932. for the experts in Online Reputation Management.