Why online reputation matters?
Posted by: uchechi in New Media, tags: digg, Social networks, technorati, ten tactics for saving online reputation, YouTube
Most organisations now make use of social networks as avenues to reach and connect with their various publics in the online environment. The consumer market is highly competitive in nature and to stay ahead of competition it is necessary for organisations to maintain and sustain good reputation online.
Why does online reputation matter? It boosts confidence among customers who enjoy associating with organisations that have untainted image and reputation. It increases sales of products and services offered by an organisation resulting from patronage of loyal customers. The profits of an organisation rises when sales increases, this in turn makes the organisation stand out among competitors. One good thing about online reputation is that it effect changes on products and services through customer feedbacks channels employed by an organisation.
Organisations manage their online reputation to know what is being said about their products, services, performance, achievements and shortcomings using monitoring tools such as:
· Trackur
· Technorati which is a search engine site to know what is being said on the blogosphere about your organisation.
· Digg to know who has dugg up submitted stories that match your organisation’s name.
· Google blog search to know who is blogging about your organisation.
· Del.icio.us
· Google video which has switched to index videos from online hosting sites such as YouTube and Metacafe. It helps to keep track of negative videos that include your organisation’s name and products.
According to Dale Neef in his book Managing Corporate Reputation And Risks (2003, p.25), “From the Brazilian rain forests to Nigeria, and from the diamond mines of South Africa to the oil fields in Alaska, company activities are mercilessly monitored by an increasingly powerful and effective cadre of activities who quickly relay information worldwide, into collaborative activist networks, to lobbyists, to government agencies, and the press.” This means that it is imperative for organisations to monitor their online environment closely, they should be credible and ethical in their operations, watch out for pranksters that start and spread negative rumours because the slightest mistake on the web can escalate and destroy and organisation’s reputation built over the years.
Good online reputation guarantees long term sustainability for the organisation while on the other hand, reputation can be destroyed when negative stories arise. Here are Andy Beal’s ten tactics for saving online reputation.
Entries (RSS)
March 29th, 2009 at 12:10 am
Rapid advancements in technology, has led to the inevitable empowerment of consumers. Now they are no longer passive and apathetic. They actively shape the perceptions of products and services.
In the vast internet landscape, consumers to throw on their invisibility cloaks while providing them with an injection of self-assurance. This often results in consumers unleashing their judgements resulting in the ability to gather clouds and cause raging online storms concerning any company that may have stepped out of line.
For this reason, indeed, online reputations are increasingly important and social media savvy companies have taken note of this.
March 29th, 2009 at 1:22 pm
I totally agree with you and think that for organisations managing their online reputation is crucial. Given the increased power of social media and customer interaction on the Internet organisations should consider how to meet customer demands best possible. Hence, by monitoring their online reputation organisations have the ability to manage positive and negative rumours. In addition, online interaction provides them with the opportunity to engage with their customers and when they get it right that will create customer advocacy as well as competitive advantage.
April 6th, 2009 at 3:28 am
yea obviously online reputation create a company positive image, that ultimately increase the turn over, once the firm become succesful in creating positive image it helps the company to compete in todays competitive market.
April 8th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
This day and age many people spend a lot of time online. When someone wants to learn more about an organization, the first place they will go is likely to be online. It is imperative for any organization to maintain it’s image especially through online avenues.
April 9th, 2009 at 2:22 pm
Online reputation has actually become crucial for organizations these days…i totally agree with.It not only helps a company to improve its image but organizations have a platform where they can understand the customer and their needs.