What is reputation management?
Reputation management is the discipline of attempting to shape public opinion of a person or organization by influencing online information about that entity. The first step is monitoring references to the business. This is primarily done through social media monitoring and carefully crafted search queries.
Public relations campaigns may help by increasing the visibility of positive opinions or to decrease the visibility of negative opinions. A common practice involves creating positive reviews and articles about a business to counter any negative content. A reputation manager might post positive reviews in a sufficient quantity to make the negative reviews display less prominently in search results. This is also a helpful approach for social media sites. Another practice is to join existing conversations. By responding to tweets complaining about a company with comments that they had only good experiences can improve the company’s reputation.
Widely accepted as a valuable intangible asset, reputation management is a fast-growing discipline. It can be one of the most important sources of gaining an edge in a competitive market. Companies are often under the microscope from the business community, regulators and corporate governance officers. Employing good reputation management practices can help companies cope with this scrutiny.