YOUR REPUTATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA MATTERS…

Recent news about infamous tweets of famous companies have proved that

“You cannot BUY good reputation; you must EARN it.”

It was the last week of December 2021. I had just returned from a well-deserved vacation and was unpacking my bags when my phone rang. It was an unknown number so I picked it up but with reluctance. The call was from an acquaintance.

Knowing him, his huge network of connects and the industry he belongs to, I was surprised to know that he has changed his mobile number. He further told me that few of his own posts (which despised his followers) on social media compelled him to take this decision of changing mobile numbers and becoming inactive on social media platforms.

On one hand social media has created numerous opportunities of marketing as well as connecting with people. But we should not forget that social media is not just algorithms. Social Media is also about people who create, connect and react.  

Thanks to pandemic that internet usage and activities on social media have exponentially gone up during last 2 years. However, at the same time, it has become cause of worry due to effects on mental and physical wellbeing of all of us.

For Individuals: Our online image viz. our political, non-political opinions expressed through social media posts, comments, shares have lot to do with our overall reputation.

For Organisations: In recent times, we all have seen that many leading brands have lost on their reputation, revenue and stock prices due to wrong messages on Twitter.

Let’s elaborate on the factors responsible for your Online Reputation:

1. Who you are: The way we present ourselves on social media handles; right from our name, profile picture to our “Bio”. All of this creates a perception. Please remember that, your personal reputation is associated with reputation of your business.
2. The company you keep: Your network is your net-worth. The people in your network, the groups that you follow on social media mirror your values, interests and credibility.
3. How you behave & communicate online: Your posts as well as your comments on posts of others, the way we react, communicate has lot more impact on the readers and followers. How you respond to difficult questions and trolls, sets tone of your communication with the virtual and real world.
4. The values your personal and business brand is associated with: Do your posts, comments reflect the values that are close to you? Does your customer identify and respect the same values? If you believe in quality and authenticity, does your communication on social media represent that?

Follow these simple tips for creating and managing your online reputation

Identify objective of your presence on social media. It can be any one or all of the following- connecting with people, marketing, creating impact, adding value.

Be aware-your name gets searched on google as well as on social media platforms. Ensure that your identity, introductions and Bio match with your genuine personality.

Only having a Twitter, Facebook and Google+ account/page for your business is not enough. You need to develop your audience on them, too. Build your social media accounts in order to interact with customers and to increase your influence and engagement scores. Pages and profiles on social media are an extension of your brand to create additional avenues for people to interact. 

If you want to influence your audience with your thoughts, start a blog/series of articles.

• When you respond to online complaints or bad reviews, think about some weaknesses in your process that need to be addressed It’s important to welcome all honest feedback and look upon it as an opportunity to improve where you may have fallen short.
• It’s very easy to get trapped in trolls but this will have negative impact and sound as petty, harsh or unprofessional.
• To understand online reputation trends, monitor Google and social media regularly and audit reviews of business.

• Develop and monitor your strategy of public relations that you establish through social media.
• Check these parameters before you or your team posts anything on social media a. will your post make your audience feel better/feel valued/respected?
  • b. is this post positive?

• c. is this post helpful in anyway?
  • d. What impact will this post have on your or your organisation’s image?
•  For a positive online reputation, keep a tab on your overall offline reputation as well. Treat your employees and customers with respect. Encourage your happy customers to share their positive reviews.
• Do not forget to monitor what your competitors are posting and how they are influencing their audience.

Social Media is one of the most potent tools of change in the hands of citizens. May we use it responsibly to shape the world we live in. -Sadhguru

I wish you a splendid reputation with influence, sophistication and confidence in business and in social life.

Neha Ratnakar
Personal Image & Business Reputation Consultant
neha@splendidconsultant.in