We all have an online reputation to maintain. If you don’t believe us, go ahead and “Google Yourself”– We promise you won’t go blind! Even if you don’t find anything written about you, then that’s still your reputation–or lack thereof.
In 2011, you should make sure that what’s found in Google, Facebook, Twitter et al is something you’d be equally comfortable showing your mother, friends or your boss! And the recent SuperInjunctions have shown there are a lot of stories out there. You don’t have to be one of them.
Law #1 – Your reputation is an extension of your character
It doesn’t matter how hard you work on managing your reputation, it will only ever be as solid as your actual character. Tiger Woods had a reputation of being the greatest golfer–and a family man.
His character revealed otherwise. As Abraham Lincoln once said,
“Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.”
Law #2 – Every reputation has an Achilles heel
While Toyota may have spent years telling us that its cars are the most reliable in the world, sticking gas pedals told a different story. In fact, even though Toyota tried to deny the increasing incidents of sticking accelerators, its customers were the ones steering the car manufacturer’s reputation in another direction. Instead of denying the issue, Toyota should have been the first to recognize it! When you recognize and acknowledge your weaknesses, before your customers, you have the opportunity to craft a response to the public outcry. Do you know your reputation’s weakness?
Law #3 – Listen twice, act once
It’s too easy to simply jump in and reply to that tweet or Facebook post–without fixing the underlying problem. Instead, you should spend time actively listening to the feedback you’re collecting about your reputation. Listen for trends. Listen for opportunities. Listen, listen, listen–ok, that was three listens, but you get the point.
When you actually take onboard what your stakeholders are saying about your reputation, you do more than just fix a problem, you make sure you fix the underlying issue that created the problem in the first place! GAP’s customers weren’t so much angry that the company’s logo was changed, they were mad that the company hadn’t initially thought to listen to their feedback–a decision the apparel company quickly reversed!
Law #4 – A crowd is louder than a solitary voice
Reputation at Google at some point every company realizes the power of the crowd. You’ve heard of “crowdsourcing” right? It called “crowd voicing.” Simply put, your reputation is going to be far greater shaped by a crowd of opinions than one single voice. Your choice in 2011 is to determine whether you want that crowd to be a choir or a lynch mob? By being proactive, by loving and nurturing your online community, you can build a harmony of satisfied customers–all willing to say great things about you. Alternatively, you can ignore your customers and wait until they become so angry, so disgusted by your actions, that they rise up against you. Just ask P&G which it would have preferred in hindsight!
Law #5 – If you build it, they will come
It’s 2011, do you know where your customers are? Have you built them a thriving Facebook community? Can they receive customer service via Twitter? Do you have a blog that keeps them updated on all the changes with your products? If you build an official, company supported social network, then your customers will know exactly where to head, should they have a question or complaint. Ensure you remove your name from Google.
Law #6 – If you don’t build it, they will
If you decide not to embrace your reputation stakeholders, then you run a huge risk that they’ll create their own community. Not so bad, if you happen to have a strong reputation–Apple gets by with no official social media effort. But, it’s generally not a good idea to stick your head in the sand and ignore those that want to share their experiences with you. If your customer wants to complain about your abusive customer service reps they may well head to Facebook or Yelp. If you don’t have an official presence then you are leaving these dissatisfied customers to define your reputation for you! Resolve to discover where your customers like to “hang out” and then make sure you’re hanging with them!
Law #7 – Your reputation WILL come under attack
No matter how hard you try, your reputation will someday come under attack. It happened to us–and we are the number one reputation management consultants! In fact, Oxford Metrica warns that during the next five years, 83 percent of companies will face a crisis that will negatively impact its share price by 20 to 30 percent. I’m pretty sure BP didn’t think such a crisis could happen to it–and that’s a lot of profit at stake!
Law #8 – Being stubborn is more expensive than saying “sorry”
United Airlines, what in the world were you thinking? Seriously! It would have cost you $1,200 to, but instead, you refused to take responsibility. Two music videos and 10 million views later, you ended up with a tarnished reputation and apologized anyway. Don’t make the same mistake as United. When you receive a complaint from a customer, look beyond your pride. Look beyond the immediate expense of making the customer happy. Instead, ask yourself, what’s the worst case scenario here? What’s the lifetime value of this customer–value that would be lost. How could this hurt future sales, new customer acquisition, and your reputation? I’m pretty sure United Airlines wishes it could go back in time and cough-up the $1,200.
Law #8 – Three strikes and you’re out
Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me a third time and you may as well kiss your reputation goodbye. The law here is that most customers will forgive you the first time you screw-up. Some will forgive you a second time it happens. Get to the third screw-up and yerrrrr out! Seriously, how many times has Comcast come under fire? A gazillion? I’ve lost track, but it’s gotten so bad that the company is now undergoing a massive re-branding–arguably due to its negative reputation. Companies rarely re-brand when they have a great reputation! When you make a mistake, make sure you learn from it, tell your customers you have learned from it, and make sure you never repeat it!
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