1. Google Yourself

Assessing your current online reputation is one of the most important steps in building a better one. Know what others are saying about you and your business by performing a quick and easy Google search. Be sure to perform a few searches: your full name, your business name, and then a search with both your first name and business name. By taking 10 minutes out of your day to do this, you will know where to focus your reputation management efforts.

2. Sign Up for Reputation Management Tools

This small step is often overlooked by small business owners but can save both time and your online reputation. Here are my top tools for reputation management:

• Trackur: Rather than taking time out of your day on a daily basis to scrounge the internet for mention of your business, sign up for Trackur and have this invaluable tool do it for you. Trackur instantly notifies you when your brand is mentioned which allows you to monitor conversations and promptly reply.
• Social Mention: This tool takes brand identity one step further. While it tracks your mentions as the name would suggest, it also provides valuable insight on the effects of your mentions. Social Mention will tell you the reach of your influence, the ratio of positive to negative reviews, and your brand strength.
• Review Push: Why waste time visiting every review site yourself, when Review Push will create a report for you! This tool monitors both social media and customer review sites to create monthly reports.

3. Respond to New Reviews

One of the smallest but most effective things you can do right now for your online reputation is to take some time and reply to new reviews. Follow-up is a foundation of relationship marketing. In showing your clients that their feedback matters to you and thanking them for taking the time to leave it, you are forging a relationship and building brand equity.

4. Post an Endorsement from a Recent Customer

While you’re replying to new reviews, be sure to screen grab or copy the text from a particularly glowing endorsement. Post the review on a few of your social channels and thank your clients for taking the time to leave feedback. Not only are you showing appreciation for reviews left, but it’s both a subtle brag about the good job you’re doing and an encouragement for others to write their own review.

5. Create Some Content

Start a conversation and build your presence online! You might have enough time to write a new blog post or only a few moments to share a tweet, but find time every day to create content to share with your audience. 

Sarah Pearce is a speaker, coach and mentor, and specialist in reputation management.