How can brands successfully manage their online reputation?

Social media, as of today, has become a channel or medium through which customers can engage in conversation with a brand immediately as and when they want. What customers expect is to have instant gratification to a problem quoted or query posted or feedback given or even simple appreciation. So a couple of years earlier when social media was still nascent, brands never had a dedicated resource to focus on social media since they did not assign any importance to the same.

Now, we see brands employing dedicated personnel to engage social media communities. Twitter is a brilliant example of a platform that is being used extensively by brands to reach out to customers and offer solutions. Customers on the other hand use their twitter handles to get instant responses and give instant feedback/appreciation. If the brand is not careful about how the manage the social media community, they are at a disadavantage since the concept of word-of-mouth is predominant in social media communities. The tweets posted are for all of the twitter community to see which can be reshared on other social media forums as well.

So as a brand, you must remember to be present in all relevant online platforms - websites, industry specific blogs and forums, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Vimeo, Snapchat, Pinterest, Local business directories, Google itself among a few others. You must also actively engage with your audience and listen to what they are talking about you - offer solutions to problems presented; build a relationship with them; thank them and encourage them for feedback. Never be agressive with your customer online - remember, your conversation is being viewed by millions. Keeping all of this in mind will be the first steps to successfully establish your brand reputation online.

Whenever there is some negative complaints etc there are 2 things that a brand can do..either look into the complain ASAP & resolve it, post the satisfying comment in line to the complain.

2ndly you can get paid adword & make the comment appear in 2nd or 3rd page so that an immediate negative impact is not created

With regards to social media, as it becomes more important in the interaction between the brand and its customers, it is vital that companies know how to manage complaints and misinformation. The first step in managing a complaint is to acknowledge it; let the customer know that you heard them and apologize for any inconvenience. Then, the company should request further details if not already stated in the complaint, by providing an email address or phone number for the customer to reach them. After the complaint has been fully heard, the company then takes a step to rectify the mistake. For some product-based companies, the simple solution is to either provide the customer with another product or a gift voucher. 

Monitoring complaints is as important as responding to them. Negative information tends to travel faster than positive information, and by monitoring comments through social media tools, companies can determine which ones are negative and immediately take the necessary steps to avoid it from spreading further. 

Brands need to engage in social media platforms with dedicated personell. This will ensure a quick response rate to smears and bad publicity. On the social media platforms , brands need to showcase testimonials from satisfied customers so as to instil trust to would be customers.

Whenever a brand engages in CSR activities this should be showcased in different social media sites as people want to engage with companies that show humanity to others and this may act to strengthen the brand equity.

It is also important for the brand to be truthful of its shortcomings but ensure that the message sent out to the public reasssures the audience of the ability of the brand to rise above any challenges that may come its way.

The essence of Branding, simply put, is to register presence, whenever a product or corporate advert is flashed across your screen..like when you see a SONY ad, what comes across your mind is: yeah that`s a one outstanding name in Electronics related products.. Basically, the Reputation Management becomes a reality when there is more Aftersales / service fete..occasional online survey requests, practical warranties not paper hoop types, or like SAMSUNG does in my country, tech centres to repair faulty products two years after purchase free..you would agree that they are maintaining a reputation already established, around a Brand Name, so at the start of any smear campaign, they already have a solid Customer Relationship mechanism, which is automatic... not to speak lots of grammar, Reputation Management implies playing out what you say you are about, on the Commercial Turf..

I have personally witnessed growth of Digital marketing Globally and have been providing leadership to start ups and Business process outsourcing Industry on how strategically an organisation can innovate,bring in online reputation management practices in ethical business practices globally.I have working knowledge about an organisation in Business process outsourcing in India where i was recruited to use content management system,SEO,Google analytics and a team of writers to successfully brand the failing organisation.

Social media has given a huge boost to marketing.

In today's world all the brands, big or small are using social media to look good.

Previously, it used to be T.V. and hoardings but now its all Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Wherein, you post awesome sauce pictures and your product sells itself and your brand speaks for itself.

Hence, post a lot of pictures and blogs, which give an insight as to what makes your brand stand out. 

If the brand becomes a well-known name, your maximum work is succesfully done.