If your brand has a poor reputation on the Web, there is not really any simplistic, one-step formula to rectify the situation in quick time. In fact, a slow and steady relationship building exercise to engage the prospects – both offline and online – is the most effective means of gaining and sustaining the reputation you want. Be aware of the fact that to build credibility for your brand, what you need is patience, persistence and passion. It cannot be achieved overnight. Undue haste is not going to help your cause.

Enhancing your brand image

Online visibility obviously helps in ensuring the success of your brand. Conversely, adverse publicity can impact the business image over time. This is why small business owners need to pay attention to professional reputation management. Of course, doing this on your own is not always feasible, considering the nuances and intricacies of the task. It involves several steps, such as:

• Constantly tracking your brand’s online presence
• Watching out for the user feedback
• Grasping the customer sentiment
• Addressing their apprehensions, if any
• Tackling other relevant issues to remove the lingering concerns
• Engaging with the target audience by creating dynamic content

Keys to effective communication

Remember the fact that in today’s highly connected Web world, word of mouth is obviously a very vital mode of marketing and popularizing your brand. You cannot afford to lag behind your immediate competitors in this regard or else they will surge ahead of you, making it difficult for you to catch up with them. Keep the following things in mind:

1. The key for small sized companies especially, is to identify ‘influencers’ so that they can be targeted in a systematic manner. This will help a great deal in expanding the business reach and increasing the sales.
2. The social media should serve as an effective channel for your prospects to know you, the nature of your business, and products/services that you offer. It is necessary to strike a chord with your potential customers, present in large numbers on today’s highly popular social networking sites.
3. It won’t suffice creating a Twitter account or a Facebook page to post routine business and industry related updates on them. You must use these outlets to actively engage your customers, and let them express themselves.
4. Messages you post should be interesting. The nature of your communication should be interactive. It should not be merely aimed at pitching your business. Instead, encourage users to have a say and come up with ideas/ suggestions/ feedback for enhancing your products and services.

Sadly, most small businesses still continue to grapple with social media marketing, largely owing to lack of expertise and lack of preparation to unearth new opportunities in customer engagement. Ideally, leave the job to experts with proven skills.