From microphone to megaphone

Before the invention of social media, the average person might have only regularly communicated with 10-20 people. Back then, if you owned a plumbing company and you really messed up someone's toilet, the worst case scenario was that your customer would rant and rave about you to their extended family and maybe their neighbors. No service business owner wants anyone hearing negative things about their company or their service, but all in all, having a bitter customer speak poorly about you to their inner circle just isn't that bad - certainly not enough to run you out of business.

Today, things are different. We live in a world where almost everyone is on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and LinkedIn. Even quiet types frequently have 100+ friends or connections and each of their friends is connected to 100+ other people! A single "tweet" can go viral and be spread to millions of people in the blink of an eye.

If the average person had a microphone in the past, today they have a megaphone and well-connected people have a megaphone hard-wired into a million watt amp with speakers to match... and the volume is up full-blast!! Insult someone like this or provide them with service that didn't live up to their expectations and you could be in big, big trouble.

The best defense is a good offense

Of course, the best way to protect your reputation is to do great work and do the right thing when you make a mistake. But sometimes this isn't enough. Every now and then, you come across a customer where you can't win and, as a result, the (former) customer makes it their personal mission to let the world know their feelings about you!

If you own a home services businesses, the question isn't "if" this will happen to you, it's "when" will it happen to you. And if you're a business owner used to getting compliments, it can be disorienting when you get hit with a barrage of bad news or online complaints. Sometimes it happens out of the blue without any provocation.

When you get caught between a rock and a hard spot, we can help!

Maximize the good; crowd out the bad

When someone is talking badly about you online, rarely are there easy or guaranteed solutions. The best thing you can do is monitor what's being said about your company and your brand online and maximize the visibility of the good things being said about you which can effectively crowd out anything not-so-good being said about you.

Learn more about Blue Corona reputation tracking as well as SEO reputation management.

Drop us a line today to learn more!