| Reputation management for businesses is the process | | | | across hundreds of different directories and preserved |
| of monitoring and responding to what people are | | | | indefinitely. |
| saying about you online. It's also the process of making | | | | If your business gets too much negative reviews or |
| you look better on the Internet. | | | | consistent low star ratings, it can deter potential |
| Your reputation is comprised primarily of two sources: | | | | customers from using your goods/services. |
| directory reviews and blog reviews. | | | | Customers will turn to businesses that have higher |
| Every day, millions of people use the Internet and its | | | | ratings and better reviews. |
| various online directories-such as Google Local, Yahoo | | | | Reputation Managers monitor all of this feedback and |
| Local, Yellowpages.com, and Citysearch-to find local | | | | reply to any bad press. They also seek out ways to |
| businesses, services, and professionals. These potential | | | | get positive feedback to counterbalance any negative |
| buyers make a decision of who to go to based off of: | | | | press and raise a business' listing within directories. |
| - Who appears first in the search results | | | | Reputation management also involves monitoring blogs |
| - Who has the highest star ratings | | | | and what people are saying about you and then |
| - Who has the best customer reviews With these | | | | seeking to employ search engine marketing strategies |
| online directories, anyone can go online and leave | | | | in order to decrease the prominence of those blogs. |
| feedback (even your competitors). Customers that | | | | Reputation management can also include taking legal |
| have a negative experience are more likely to write | | | | action against defamation or slander in extreme cases. |
| things about you than customers who have a positive | | | | In most cases, if the content is truly false or |
| experience. | | | | slanderous, you can contact the host and ask for it to |
| All of these ratings and reviews are then copied | | | | be removed. |