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The world is more connected than it has ever been before. This is, of course, hugely advantageous in so many ways, but for businesses it does have a surprising downside when it comes to their reputation. Once, a company’s reputation could be relatively easily controlled as a bad reputation couldn’t spread very quickly. Now, however, the opposite is true, thanks to hyperconnectivity – so reputation has become more important than ever to businesses. 

Below, we have highlighted the four main things that can harm your company’s reputation, and which have to be attended to in order to thrive in the newly-connected business world.

1) Negative online reviews 

As touched on above, customers can now share bad experiences with a much wider audience than ever before. Even though much has been said about the number of online reviews that are fake, people still check them and will trust what they read. While there is often very little that you can do about a negative review in and of itself (unless it breaks the policies of a third party site and you can ask for it to be removed), you do have a right of reply, so use it. Apologise and provide contact details that will allow the customer to discuss the matter privately. Potential customers that see your response will feel reassured that you take criticism seriously and always respond.

2) The actions of third parties 

One of the most difficult things for a business owner to deal with is developing a bad reputation due to issues that are not actually their fault – instead, they are problems caused by third parties. There are two particularly concerning ways this can happen.  If sellers are offering your products at an unreasonable price, then other vendors will be aggrieved, which could negatively affect your overall reputation in the business community; your company isn’t responsible for the actions of other sellers directly, but it will still impact you. It’s therefore important to monitor all sale prices with the likes of Track Street, and if you identity a seller who is in violation, act on it. In addition, issues with suppliers can also be problematic, especially if you cannot fulfil orders. In such a scenario, keep customers informed of all developments, issue apologies, and potentially seek a new supplier in order to avoid a similar situation in the future.

3) Employee dissatisfaction

It’s not just customers who can leave online reviews; dissatisfied employees are also able to their experience working with a company, either on specific job-focused sites such as Glass Door or their own social media. Such comments can make recruitment difficult, as new candidates will naturally run online searches about your company prior to submitting an application – and if they see troublesome comments, they may simply decide to apply elsewhere. To prevent this, it’s helpful to try to ensure that – as far as possible – all employees have an amicable exit, and that you deal with any negative reviews that are posted in the same way as described above (apologise; ask them to get in touch by other means). 

In conclusion

Monitor, improve, and address any concerns related to the areas above and you should be able to protect your business’s reputation for the future.