To win credibility and trust among customers, the reputation of a company or its brand plays a leading role. Find out here which measures you can undertake to strengthen the reputation of your company.
Why the reputation of a company is becoming more important
There were times when the price or the status associated with a brand was the most important argument for a purchasing decision. But the relevance of these criteria is not as high today. The reason: online retail is making a higher impact in the B2B area too. But because direct customer contact is lacking in this respect, the build-up of credibility and trust has become more difficult. The corona crisis has reinforced this effect, as it has led to more transactions than ever before taking place on the Internet. Therefore, the name of the game is to positively influence the reputation of a brand over the long term, with marketing measures adapted accordingly and a comprehensive reputation management.
Improve your reputation through reviews
Online reputation marketing reinforces and spreads positive brand content across digital marketing channels. Essential for this are customer reviews on review portals and in social networks. User reviews are digital word-of-mouth and so important for many online customers that they use them to help make purchasing decisions. According to a survey from Capterra (German), customers trust online reviews over recommendations from friends and acquaintances.
But reviews alone do not automatically ensure a good reputation. On the one hand, the reviews can also be negative, or good but not good enough compared to the competition. On the other hand, companies should not rest on the laurels when it comes to very positive reviews, but ensure these are communicated. But for this type of reputation management, there is still a huge amount of potential waiting to be tapped into, as the survey from Capterra revealed. After all, 38 per cent of customers questioned have never received a reaction to their review.
Other measures for improving your reputation
Customer reviews are therefore important, but long not the only measure for the reputation of a company. Additional measures for improving your image include:
- Employee reviews also contribute to the reputation of a company. Customers who go to portals such as Kununu (German) and read how a company pays their employees poorly or expects overtime punish such companies for this practice. In contrast, satisfied employees support the building of trust for the brand among customers. Good publicity from management, in particular, has a huge influence on the awareness and review of a company. According to a survey, the reputation of a CEO contributes to the company’s reputation by up to 70 per cent in certain cases.
- Without any sustainability goals and corporate social responsibility (CSR), a company can hardly assert itself on the market. Whereas just a few years ago, environmentally conscious and friendly actions, along with self-initiated social standards, automatically led to a positive reputation – today, this has changed. If you do not make a voluntary contribution to a sustainable development, you are harming your reputation.
- Goods or service tests can also make a massive contribution to your brand’s reputation. If you do well in comparison tests from independent providers, such as the German Stiftung Warentest or Ökotest, or even come out in first place, you will not only enjoy increasing sales numbers, you will also be a prestigious winner. At the same time, the grade “unsatisfactory” can ruin your company’s image.
Reputation marketing: example of success
One of the most well-known examples is the car manufacturer Tesla. It completely avoids the typical industry TV ads. The cars are also only sparingly seen on posters or in ads. But they are sold nonetheless – and first and foremost due to Tesla’s excellent reputation. The brand has developed a reputation of being enormously advanced and has been able to convince consumers again and again through innovations. At the same time, unlike any other company in the industry, Tesla has the mission of speeding up the transition to sustainable energy. CEO Elon Musk is nearly just as famous as his brand and continually active in social networks. Here is where many Tesla fans come together in forums and communities and spread their enthusiasm.
