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Review Generation – Are Bad Reviews Hurting Your Business?

By Local Search, Online Advertising, Online Marketing, Online Reviews, Reputation Management
“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently” – Warren Buffet

This famous quote was delivered many years ago. Businesses that didn’t heed the warning probably aren’t around to do things differently. In today’s fast-paced, high technology world, businesses not embracing Mr. Buffet’s sage advice won’t need to wait 20 years to establish a sound reputation. Businesses today can develop a 5-star reputation in as little as a year AND lose a stellar reputation in much less time. In fact, Mr. Buffet’s advice of ruining a reputation in five minutes may actually be an eternity in today’s online world.

Why some businesses dislike reviews

The main driver for what the community thinks about a business is reviews. Reviews are great if a business rightly deserves positive reviews. In a market based economy, the market (customer) has the final vote on the success or failure of a business. Fair or not, this is reality, and business owners need to understand this quickly. Businesses that monitor and react to online reviews will be in a far better position to succeed in the future.

Business owners cite many reasons for disliking reviews, here’s a sample: review generation

  •           Inaccurate information
  •           Unfair, little recourse to rectify
  •           Not real, competitor driven
  •           Anonymous or unverified

Reviews are here to stay, therefore, it is incumbent upon business owners to understand their roles in protecting their online reputation. Business owners aren’t powerless (even though it may feel that way), many tools exist to help shape or re-shape an online review business profile.

What is Review Generation?

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Tackle Online Reviews without Getting Dirty!

By Online Advertising, Online Reviews, Reputation Management

online reviews

There are numerous websites (e.g., Yelp, Google, and Hometown) online that focus on gathering reviews for products, services and businesses, not to mention lots of communities where people talk about their experiences online (e.g., Facebook, Twitter). Your business will receive both positive and negative reviews, so it’s very important to make sure that you find a way to deal with all reviews quickly.

How to deal with positive reviews?

If users are leaving positive reviews for your business, thank them for their support and showcase some ideas that you have for future product/service updates. It’s crucial to continue the dialog with your customers, as this will encourage a return visit or purchase. Hopefully, they will share their experience with others, generating more sales for you. Another benefit, consider this quote – “There is no advertisement as powerful as a positive reputation traveling fast” (Brian Kozlow). Share all positive reviews on social media! Read More

Your Customers Are Talking About You – Online Reputation Management

By Online Reviews

yelp review logo - local online marketingWhether you like it or not, your customers may be talking about you in unflattering ways.  Remember the old adage: a happy customer tells one person; an angry customer tells ten. In today’s fast paced online world, this unhappy person can tell hundreds, if not thousands of people in one well-placed rant.

If your business isn’t engaged with these unhappy customers or you are turning a blind eye to these reviews, your business will eventually feel the wrath of this relatively new phenomenon.  Read More