Online Reputation Management

In today’s world, online reputation management is essential. The Internet, and more specifically what people say about you online, is perhaps the single biggest influence on the success of you, your business and brand. This is true for businesses and brands of all sizes and sectors around the world. 

When people Google you, everything they see in the search results influences their perception of you – their perception is your online reputation.

Let’s face it – if you search for something and all the online chatter about it is positive you’re going to want to get in on the act. If it’s a sea of negative chatter, you’ll go elsewhere for what you’re looking for.

Online reputation management works to counter, weaken or eliminate negative material online and generate and promote the positive, so that when people search for you online they see you in the best possible light.

Why does it matter?

Online search and reputation facts and stats

Online search:

• Google controls as much as 74% of all search engine traffic. Net Market Share 2018
• The first page of a Google search for your company’s name attracts 95% of traffic from an average search. Chitika
• 90% of people (whole world) only look at the first page of search engine results to form their impression. ProtoFuse 2014
• 64% of people trust online search engines the most when conducting research on a business. 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer

When people search for you or your business online, you want people to get a positive first impression at a glance on page 1. If the results are positive – website, profiles, positive press articles, good star ratings and reviews, etc – they’ll want to do business with you – or at least take a step towards it. If you have bad press, negative reviews or even nothing of note at all they’re less likely to believe that you’re right for them and look elsewhere.

So, what’s the real influence and impact of different search results online?

The impact of online reviews is huge:

• 93% of people say online reviews impact their buying decisions. Learn Podium
• 90% read online reviews before visiting a business. 2017 BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey
• 85% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. 2017 BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey
• Positive reviews make 73% of consumers trust a local business more. 2017 BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey
• 68% of consumers are willing to pay up to 15% more for the same product or service if they are assured they will have a better experience. Learn Podium

It’s also interesting to note that:

• 49% of consumers need at least a 4* rating before they choose to use a business. 2017 BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey
• Consumers read an average of 7 reviews before trusting a business. 2017 BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey
• Nearly 3 out of 4 consumers trust a company more if the reviews are positive. 2017 BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey
• Every 1* increase in Yelp rating means a 5 to 9% increase in revenue. Harvard Business School

Negative press, content, reviews and trolls can really harm businesses:

• Businesses risk losing 22% of business when potential customers find 1 negative article on the first page of their search results and 70% of potential customers with 4 or more negatives. YouMoz
• 51% of businesses say their company has been negatively affected by unsubstantiated online reviews or targeted by trolls. Igniyte and OnePoll The Business of Reviews Report 2015
• 70% of consumers will avoid buying a product if they don’t like the company behind it. Weber Shandwick report
• 1 in 5 companies surveyed by Igniyte are unhappy with the way they’re portrayed on their Google page 1. Igniyte Reputation Report 2014
• 1 in 3 businesses (31%) say negative content has damaged their business. Igniyte Reputation Report 2018
• 1 in 3 businesses worry about the impact of negative content on their business and its value in future. Igniyte Reputation Report 2018
• 46% of companies have been damaged or are worried about negative press coverage, (up 29% since 2014). Igniyte Reputation Report 2018
• 1 in 3 (31%) businesses say negative social media posts pose the greatest reputation threat. Igniyte Reputation Report 2018
• Damaging content has cost 1 in 20 UK companies more than £500,000, 5% have lost £100,000-£500,000, 1 in 7 have lost up to £50,000. Igniyte Reputation Report 2018
• 70% of consumers state that they would avoid buying a product if they don’t like the company behind it. Weber Shandwick report

Negative results are a huge worry for businesses as well as individuals.

But highly visible positive search results on page 1, really influence perception, reputation, consumer behaviour and business and individual success, which is why it pays to look after your online reputation:

• 97% of consumers search online for local businesses, 12% do it daily. 2017 BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey
• 87% of customers comparison shop for every purchase McKinsey 2017
• 75% of businesses say online reviews, comments and forum posts are important to the financial and reputational status of their business. Igniyte and OnePoll The Business of Reviews Report, 2015
• Executives say that, on average, 49% of the reputation of their company is attributable to their CEO’s reputation. Igniyte Protecting Company & Executive Reputation 2016
• 45% of consumers will post about a positive interaction if a brand responds well to a complaint on social media and 37% will share their story with their friends online. Sprout Social

How individuals appear in search results also has a big impact on their appeal to recruiters:

• Social recruiting is fast growing and virtually all companies are employing social recruiting in one form or another.
• 93%of recruiters state that LinkedIn is the most popular in-house digital recruitment platform. Jobsvite survey
• 73% of recruiters successfully place people identified via social media platforms. Jobsvite survey
• 70% of employers use social media to screen candidates.
• 57% of employers are less likely to interview a candidate they can’t find online. CareerBuilder Study 2017
• 54% decide not to hire a candidate based on their social media profiles. CareerBuilder Study 2017

And on how candidates perceive companies:

• 69% of job seekers are likely to reject a job offer from a company with a bad reputation. Study by Corporate Responsibility Magazine

The benefits of Online Reputation Management

• Credibility – positive links, comments and high visibility online makes you credible in the eyes of customers, stakeholders, employees, influencers and peers
• Trust – people trust a company, brand or person with a good reputation
• Profit – companies with higher star-ratings, reviews and positive content and PR get more business
• Talent – brands with a positive reputation earn better employees

Search engines, such as Google, Bing and others, don’t care about your reputation. They don’t filter results based on what’s negative and positive, but rather on relevance and popularity. This is why online reputation management is especially relevant.

Taking control of your online presence enables you to present the best possible image of your business, brand or senior figures to the online community. As an individual you’ll also control what people see when they search for you, and for businesses, you’ll help prospective customers notice you before your competitors and convert them into sales. It also protects your brand from any unwanted negative content online. How? The positive profiles and content make it harder for negatives to rank in the first few pages of Google.

Because our approach to online reputation management is organic and bespoke, rather than automated, our clients’ reputation strategies last as Google’s algorithms change over time.

Why online reputation management matters for businesses and brands

The more search engine results you ‘own’ on the first two pages of an online search the better. Why? Because it enables you to control what people see and influence their decision-making process. As well as your website, you want them to see positive reviews (which are very important for trust and credibility), social media, profiles and PR.

A study conducted by Chitika reveals that the first page of a Google search for your firm’s name attracts 91.5% of traffic from an average search.

Credibility, trust, profit and attracting talent are all linked to your search results.

Why online reputation management matters for individuals

People search people, whether they’re looking for a potential new hire, or want to know more about you before choosing to do business with you. They’ll check out your social media and professional profiles and notice if you’ve been in the news. What people see in the first 2 pages of an online search is what shapes their opinion of you. Google yourself, do you like what you see? It is true and fair?

How online reputation management works

Our graphics show how the process works for businesses and individuals.