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Social Proofing Your Online Reputation | Michael Noudelman
In business, your reputation is everything. Most of us want to do business with people we know, like and trust. It’s important to have a solid reputation in your niche, industry, city and area that speaks volumes for you… in a positive way. These days, in order to build a solid reputation for your brand or business, you must manage your on-line reputation. Afterall, who doesn’t use the Internet these days?
If you’re in business and you’re not managing your on-line reputation, you’re missing the boat. One of the best ways to manage your on-line reputation is to make sure you have social proof a.k.a people proof, meaning folks who back up whatever your brand promise is as well as the thing you claim your company delivers to the marketplace.
Social proof is people proof and it means that you have a group of people who are saying great things about you, your brand, your company etc. How can social proof help your on-line brand and in business overall? Glad you asked!
Below I’ve listed, 3 ways that social proof can assist you in building an effective on-line reputation.
1. Social proof provides credibility.
Being credible means that people trust you. And when your prospects and clients trust you, not only do they want to do business with you, but they tell all of their friends about you as well.
2. Social proof builds your fan base.
When you have great testimonials on your website or social media pages, it helps others who don’t know you or your business to become convinced that they should try your products and services because you have so many other happy customers.
3. Social proof boost sales.
Word of mouth is still the most powerful form of marketing. When you go to a restaurant and rave about the meal, ambiance and service to your friends, if they have never been to that restaurant, they become eager to try it just because you gave it a positive review. When that friend goes to that restaurant simply because you suggested, the restaurant reaped the benefits of new sales because of a social connection. It’s the same way when people post positive comments about your business on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or any social media platform. People who have never heard of your business may see the post and be intrigued about your products and services simply because someone else is expressing a positive statement about you. If that person in turn buys from your company because of the great testimonials, your sales just went up on the strength of social proof.
Your reputation on-line whether it is good, bad or ugly can either do a lot of good for your business or a lot of bad. Of course, if you’re ahead of the curve, you’re already managing your on-line reputation by asking for your customers to go on-line and rate you. There are sites that simply exist to rate businesses across a variety of industries such as: Yelp, Google, Angie’s List and Trip Advisor. In addition there are sites which allow you/your company to have a profile and manage the information you distribute such as: Manta.com and ZoomInfo.com and of course, LinkedIn.
The bottom line is that you always want to manage your reputation and be aware of what is being said about you on-line. Be aware of what populates when someone searches for you or your company on the Internet.
(c) Michael Noudelman, Pennsylvania
