How to Recover After a Reputation Crisis

This is the foundation of any strategies you will need to rebuild your image:

• Identify the Impact – track changes to your reputation and perceptions, identify sales performance and/or stock prices
• Monitor Sentiment – you will find any negativity surrounding your brand predominantly takes place online. Use this to identify what people are saying about your business online
• Identify Parties – identify who is unhappy with your business, which will help you identify why and what they are unhappy about

Acknowledge and Communicate

Once you have identified the extend of the damage caused, you can now directly communicate with the unhappy customer directly. This can help minimise the damage, reducing the risk of it escalating any further. Proactive communication helps retain trust and credibility.

When replying to unhappy reviews that threaten your online reputation, you need to remember that not only will the unhappy customer see your response, so will all your potential customers in the future. Therefore, you want to be timely, honest, and concise. Tailor the message to tackle points of concern, while remaining transparent, showing your commitment to taking action and improvement.

Create a Communication Strategy

The aim of the communications strategy is to shape the public’s perception of your business. With effective communication you can mitigate the risk, restoring your reputation. While your approach will differ based on the crisis. Effective communication is important for damage control, tailored to restore trust and reduce any further damage down the line.

When Your Business is Responsible for the Crisis Experienced

If your business is responsible for the iris, it's important to take responsibility for any mistakes that were made. Do not deny any wrongdoing, as this can damage your credibility and further damage your reputation. Rather make a sincere apology, acknowledging the situation, while taking actions to address the problem, avoiding the same problems in the future.

When Your Business is Not Responsible for the Crisis

There are going to be times where you are not responsible for the crisis. At this point, it may be due to misinformation or false allegations. This involves taking steps that ensures that your business is seen in a positive light, clarifying the facts and ensuring the record is set straight. This must be done with the utmost care to ensure you don't negatively impact your business, while ensuring any potential customers perceive your business positively.

Remain Transparent

If you are dealing with a public crisis, where your reputation is being damaged online, transparency is key. Rebuilding a damaged reputation is about fighting any negativity surrounding your brand online. You can remove or revise content, while publishing positive content. Remain transparent throughout the process, fulfilling any promises, while delivering any messages, keeping your reputation in mind.

Conclusion

A damaged reputation can cost your business dearly. With the right approach, you can recover after a reputation crisis, rebuilding trust and reinforcing your values, improving your public image. Genie Crawl is here to help guide you through any reputation crisis you may experience online, rebuilding your reputation. Get in touch with us today for more information.