The following is a post from Meghan Veroneau, TIG Global Marketing Coordinator.
The good thing about the internet is that people can say what they want, how they want, when they want to say it. The bad thing is that people can say what they want, how they want, when they want to say it. You cannot control what or why people say the things they do about your brand on the internet. However, you can control your reputa
tion and responses.
The ways in which you handle situations affects how people respond to you, and view your brand in the future. Take the recent prime example of Netflix (well about 2 months ago recent). We all know they rolled out a new pricing system, they decided to split their services, and after much public uproar, decided they had made one, big, giant mistake and joined them back together. But, that’s not what they did wrong. The problem lies in how they handled the situation. They didn’t respond to angry consumers on social media, or anywhere for that matter. People had questions, comments, and concerns and they weren’t being addressed, causing Netflix to lose subscribers and loyal customers/fans.
Case in point, it is equally as important to respond to positive and negative comments on social media, or where ever else they might pop up. Your brand followers want to see you are responding to everything, or a good majority of things that are important to them. This makes them feel like they are being heard and actually are taken seriously.
Responding to comments and concerns will show people how well equipped you are to handle certain situations. Do you break under pressure? Do you do nothing? Do you try to explain too much? How do you respond? In general, the negative comments stand out more than the positive ones, especially if there is no acknowledgement from the brand at all. This leaves consumers to their own devices, as opposed to you steering your own brand image.
Answering to the Chatter
Responding through different social media channels poses various challenges and calls for a variety of approaches. For instance, responding on Twitter is different than responding on Facebook, or a blog, or somewhere else. The character limit presents a minor issue; it can hinder how much you are able to say back in a response. However, you should still respond publicly, so other users can see – then if necessary, take it upon yourself to direct message or get the users email address to resolve the issue at hand. You may also want to post a link that directs concerned customers to a landing page on your site that gives you a little more leg room to get your whole message across.
Remember, thank you goes a long way. Not to mention, it’s going to encourage users to keep commenting positively.
Think people are only commenting about your brand on social media sites? Fat chance. As I mentioned earlier, the Internet is the consumers playground and they can and will post anywhere they feel their voice will be heard. Chances are you don’t know what people are saying about you in every online channel. That is why it is good practice to regularly monitor your brand name online.
Why should you be monitoring your name online? Plain and simple, to find out what people are saying about you and where they are saying this about you. You could find out they aren’t talking about you as you expected, or where you expected them to. That’s ok. Monitoring your name can help you determine what you really want people to be saying about you, helping you to strategize, reach out to consumers and steer the conversation in your favor. Not to mention, this type of response results in happy consumers who are willing to spread your message within their own personal networks.
Should you use a program to monitor your reputation online? Ultimately, it is up to you as the individual brand or property to decide whether you feel it is necessary or not. Personally, when it comes to the monitoring, you can really never have too many eyes.
If you want to learn more about monitoring your brand online, contact TIG Global or check out our partner, Revinate. Looking for a more in depth view of what Revinate can do for you? Join them as they team up with HotelMarketing.com for an exclusive two-part webinar series taking place today and November 17th. Please note, these events are for brand and hotel employees only, so sign up today!
Interested in ramping up your online strategy? Check out the full suite of TIG Global interactive marketing tools, send us an email, or give us a call +1 301.841.4700(US) | +44 (0)20 3004 9468(UK).
