Negative content is a quiet killer to your company’s online reputation. It might be a negative customer review that gets shared in the comments of an article you wrote for your blog; an unflattering mention of your brand on a podcast; or a belligerent Facebook post, published by a customer, that may or may not be based in truth. This content, though, can wreak havoc on trust, loyalty, and, eventually, your business’s bottom line if not properly managed.
This guide will cover everything you need to know about managing negative content and actionable strategies for monitoring, responding to, and preventing harmful content as you work to create a positive online presence.
Demonize the Bad News Sources
Figure 1: Understanding the Origins of Negative Content
Before approaching negative content, it is important to know where it usually comes from.
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The First Online Publication
March/29/2020The first online publication. 2011. Vegetables and fruit. We tend to snack on the low-sodium Jurassic World toys and drink them without a second thought.
Customer Reviews and Feedback
Unsatisfied customers frequently bitch about their experiences on sites like Yelp, Trustpilot, or Google Reviews. And their criticism, however brutal it might seem, is something they could very well learn to benefit from.
Social Media Complaints
These social platforms, whether they are on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram, are amplifiers. Negative feedback is viral here and can spread rapidly, damaging your brand.
Misinformation or Fake News
Some of the time, that unwanted content comes in the form of misinformation or rumors surrounding your business. These can also spread rather rapidly, and can be hard to get under control.
Competitor Sabotage
Unscrupulous competitors may also run smear tactics to ruin your name. It’s not often, but this evil business can have very serious consequences if left untreated.
Employee or Insider Reviews
The horror stories left by current or former employees on platforms such as Glassdoor can undermine your hiring process and create a lack of trust in your industry.
Knowing the world of unpleasantness better prepares you to fight it and shelter yourself from the harm.
Checking Yourself Out Online
To control the message about your business, you need to know where people are talking about it — and how.
# Proactive pro-active à la DC monitoring is the crux of negative content control.**
Must-Haves for Monitoring Mentions and Reviews
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Google Alerts: Set up alerts about your company name, products, and key folks so you can follow online mentions.
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Reputation Management Tools:
You can monitor mentions in real time on Brands24 and Meltwater.
To follow the conversation on social media, use Sprout Social’s platform.
Monitor Backlinks detects mentions you don’t want from low-quality sites. -
Review Sites’ Dashboards:
Service review platforms such as Yelp and TripAdvisor have components for monitoring customer feedback in a live manner.
Techniques to Stay Alert
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Perform Regular Searches:
“Find your business name on search engines and watch the first three pages for mentions and reviews. -
Analyze Sentiment:
AI tools such as Lexalytics and MonkeyLearn can analyze text to offer sentiment insights and let you know what to prioritize and which issues to pivot on.
The first line of defense in protecting yourself against reputation leakage from negative content is to have a robust monitoring system in place.
Dealing With Criticism
The way you respond when bad content arises can be immensely effective. The following are best practices to help ensure your responses are professional and empathetic, and, most importantly, you aren’t missing the mark:
Be Prompt
Responding to the complaints quickly shows that your organization cares about feedback and is serious about getting the concerns addressed. How you respond can also exacerbate things.
Stay Professional and Calm
No matter how unfair or harsh the review, respond relatively. Do not accuse or fight with the person.
Personalize the Response
And stock answers can sound forced. Refer to your loved one’s concerns back to their face to demonstrate that you’ve heard and that you understand.
Take the Conversation Offline
For more complicated or sensitive matters, invite the individual to discuss privately (in writing / on the phone) to address the issue with greater focus.
Offer a Solution
For so long as there is this problem, we shall admit its existence and propose what we believe to be its cure. Refunds, replacements, or discounts can turn bad experiences into good stories.
Example Response
“Hi [Customer Name], thanks a lot for your feedback. Your experience sucks, and we want to fix that. Please email us at [Support Email] so we can take care of your issue in a more specific manner. – We appreciate your business and the chance to make this right.”
How businesses choose to respond to negative content is perhaps indicative of some of the marketplaces they represent. Get this right, and critics could become devoted fans.
Reputation Management as a Business Procedure
Beginning with the Proactive
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. If you proactively develop your brand’s internet reputation, bad reviews will have less of an impact.
Publish Positive Content
Write really good stuff on your blog and social media consistently. This contributes to solidifying your brand’s reputation as a thought leader in the industry and pushes down negative results in search rankings.
Encourage Positive Reviews
Satisfied customers will help others find you, but just how do they do that? If you’ve just completed a purchase or service transaction with them, follow up with a nice email and ask for their feedback.
Leverage Influencers
Work with industry leaders who embody the same values as your brand. Their recommendation can offset any bad vibes floating around the Internet.
Enhance Transparency
Be transparent about your company’s vision, beliefs, and quest for bettering yourself. Transparency is key, and this hinders the release of negative content.
Invest in CSR
This is the time to take the risk and invest in corporate social responsibility.
When your brand is a part of vital social issues, you will not only gain advocacy points but you will also improve your public image. Promote these initiatives across your channels.
Reinforce Your Brand With These Takeaways
It’s not that you won’t encounter negative material; it’s how your business deals with that negative material that sets apart the successful companies from the not-so-successful companies.
Here are the key building blocks of negative content control:
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Proactively monitor to detect problems earlier.
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React in the right way with understanding and the right professional response.
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Establish a solid base to overwhelm negativity with positivity.
A rock-solid negative content management plan is the right approach to protect and improve your online reputation. Seize control of your story, and use criticism as an opportunity to highlight your values and dedication to customers.
