Credibility is a company’s currency and leverage. When your business has a positive reputation, your organization has more influence over the market, new products have a better chance of being successful, and you may be able to have an impact on the direction of new trends in your niche. You can have a stellar offline reputation, but your website, blog and company social media presence may hurt your online business credibility and your company’s overall reputation.
Unprofessional or Outdated Website
Your website is your organization’s connection with its market online. When people come to your website, their first impression will be your last chance to gain them as a customer. Just as personal appearance matters, so does the appearance of your website.
If there are broken links, the organization is unclear or the design isn’t professional, visitors will believe your company isn’t professional. Not only will those visitors leave, but they will also tell others of their unsatisfactory experience with your site. Your company will receive a bad reputation before you even have a chance to let prospects know about your organization or its offerings.
A website needs regular review and maintenance, an organized sitemap to help people find what they are looking for and a professional design to help consumers feel comfortable doing business with you.
Sporadic Blog Maintenance
A blog is a great way to interact with prospects and provide customers with useful information in your niche. However, if you want people to feel you are an open company looking to have a dialogue with your market, you need to create frequent posts on your blog. If you publish sporadic posts, don’t respond to comments or go months without posting at all, people will see your blog as a marketing tactic and not an honest attempt at transparency.
Don’t start a company blog unless your organization is committed to maintaining it properly. Create an editorial calendar with topics for your posts set up in advance so your staff knows when to publish posts and what topics they need to discuss. Monitor the comments section of each post and respond when people make comments on your blog. Communication is a two-way street and connecting with prospects through your blog takes time, effort and planning.
Company Social Media Presence
In addition to a blog, social media is a great way to communicate with potential customers. It allows consumers to see the human side of the business and that you truly care about your customers. If you don’t have a profile on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest, you are missing important conversations people are having about your business.
Social media is often where people go when they are researching a new company they want to do business with. If your company doesn’t have a presence on social media, you don’t get the chance to show people what your company is about. In addition, if someone speaks negatively about your business on a social site, you don’t have the opportunity to defend your organization and present different information.
If you do have company profiles on social media sites, you need to be careful what you post, tweet and pin on behalf of your organization. Improper conduct on social media sites will damage your company’s reputation, and you may never be able to regain the trust of your market. Even your personal social media accounts can influence your company’s reputation. Think about the consequences before you post anything online in order to maintain credibility and the respect of your market.
Internet marketing is an important part of a company’s reputation, and if your current staff doesn’t have the skills to maintain a website, blog or social media presence, then you can turn to a staffing agency to help you.
Contact us with your Internet marketing needs, and we can help you find quality and reliable candidates for your organization in the greater Denver, CO area. They will help you create a positive reputation that will strengthen current customer relationships and bring in new customers to help your company grow.