With so many reputation management companies to choose from, how can you be sure that you are putting your business in the right hands? As a reputable online reputation management company, here at Online Presence Manager, we have put together a list of seven red flags that you should watch out for when you’re shopping around.
Reputation Management Companies: 7 Red Flags to Watch Out For!
1. “We Guarantee First Page Ranking…”
There are many factors that go into obtaining search engine rankings and while reputable online reputation management companies can do everything in their power to get your business on the first page of a search engine, they can’t guarantee it for a specific search engine term or phrase. Here at OPM, we target multiple keywords and phrases for all of our clients and we work hard to obtain first page rankings for all of them, but we don’t guarantee it because it’s just not something that anyone can guarantee.
2. “We Will Get You Reviews!”
Online reviews of your business are an important influencing factor on your online reputation, but some reputation management companies try to boost the reputation of your business by cheating. For example, some companies will pay people to leave positive reviews for your business. This isn’t just unethical, but it can also throw up red flags that get your website and your business noticed by search engines and review sites for all the wrong reasons. Here at OPM, we only use white hat techniques to build and improve your reputation online because we know that one misstep and your business reputation could be destroyed forever.
3. Junk Content and Spun Articles
Online reputation management companies that promise to provide you with unique or quality content but who wind up providing junk content or spun articles end up damaging your business more than you could ever know. Junk content, for example, having nonsense content written with keywords peppered throughout it, and spun articles, for example, having articles regenerated using software that spins an existing article to make it appear unique, is NOT the same as providing unique or valuable content. Not only does it get your business penalized by search engines, but it makes your business look unprofessional to clients and potential customers. Here at Online Presence Manager, we always write unique and quality content for our clients because we know how important it is to your business’s online reputation. Plus, we only have reputable native-English speakers on staff in our writing department so you never have to worry about looking unprofessional.
4. “We Can Get Your Negative Reviews Deleted!”
Online reputation management companies that promise to get negative reviews of your business deleted and removed for good are companies that you should watch out for. In an ideal world, negative reviews could be easily removed, but this just isn’t the case. While it is possible to have fake or false reviews removed from various review sites, when honest feedback is left for your business online (even if it’s not what you want to hear), that feedback simply cannot be removed. So, what can a reputable reputation management company do for your business if they can’t promise to get negative feedback removed? Here at OPM, we work hard to remove false negative reviews for your business, but we also work to address honest negative reviews of your business in a professional manner. We all have faults and we all have bad days once in a while, but a skilled OPM can take control of even a negative situation and ensure that your business comes out looking honest and professional.
5. Instant Results
Many reputation management companies out there claim that they can get you instant results with one service or another and while it is possible to get fast results with certain aspects of your online reputation, a complete overhaul of your business reputation overnight is just not possible. It takes time to build links, build trust, and build a reputation and any company that promises you an outcome without that time is a) lying or b) using black hat techniques that will soon get your business flagged by search engines and destroy your business reputation.
6. $50 a Month!
Management of a company’s online reputation takes skill, and takes effort and to do it properly, an ORM needs to devote time to the project. That time costs money. Any online reputation manager who promises to “get the job done” for you for an incredibly low price is not going to get the results that you are seeking and if they do, they’re going to go about it in a way that (once again) gets your business flagged.
Many companies do get low-cost ORM services done by relying on automated services for ORM. These services are cheap, but they also result in your business being blocked from business directories and they do not do a thorough job of building and maintaining your online business reputation.
7. They Encourage You to Ignore Bad Reviews, Feedback, or Comments
A quality online reputation management company will never tell you to ignore bad reviews, comments, or feedback. Ignoring negative online comments about your business does not make them go away. These types of reviews can stick around for a very long time whether you want them to or not and a real professional will help you to manage those negative comments by taking control of the situation. By responding to these types of comments professionally, your ORM will portray your company as a company that cares and that is willing to make things right rather than a company who ignores the bad and hopes it will go away.
Tired Of Searching For Reputation Management Companies?
Are you tired of scouring through reputation management companies trying to find one that you can trust with your company’s reputation? Then let Online Presence Manager come to your company’s aid and bolster your online reputation.
