For business success, reputation is critical. A strong, positive brand reputation can increase sales, foster consumer loyalty, and even improve employee retention. By contrast, a negative brand reputation can lead to the opposite.
Learn the factors impacting brand reputation so you can build and protect your business.
What is brand reputation?
Brand reputation is how the public perceives your brand or company, including the emotions, information, and ideas people associate with your company name. It is developed with brand reputation strategy that relies on marketing via advertising, a social media presence, and public relations. It also includes the shopping experience, your product quality, customer service, and interactions your company and employees have with the public.
A favorable brand reputation is important in gaining and keeping loyal customers, encouraging consumers to select your business or product over others, and building investor confidence.
Factors that impact brand reputation
Many things can contribute to a good brand reputation. Here are some of the most significant ones:
Quality
One of the most important factors that establishes a strong brand reputation is the quality of your company’s products or services. It’s like a first impression: Make a good one, and you’ll be on your way toward closing a sale; make a bad one and you’ll have a difficult time winning over potential customers. Companies making good products have a better chance at getting a good first impression—a key element in developing a good reputation.
Customer service
Intangible customer experiences big and small shape how people feel about your brand. Whether it’s smiling customer service representatives, friendly follow-up emails, or seamless return policies—they all contribute to a positive impression of your business and make repeat purchases more likely.
Social media presence
Every interaction with the public is an opportunity to build brand reputation. Social media platforms are important not just for creating positive interactions but also for amplifying positive user-generated content and reinforcing your branding efforts.
Company values
Your company’s ethics and brand values can be a key factor in your company’s reputation, because customers prefer to shop from companies that share their values. Treating employees well, tapping brand ambassadors with similar values, implementing corporate social responsibility initiatives, and setting sustainability goals can all help build your company’s image.
💡Learn more: Ecommerce Sustainability: How To Embrace Responsible Retail
Marketing and advertising
A clever marketing campaign can help reach your target audience and introduce your brand in a positive light. To shape public opinion and give your brand a competitive edge, create ads that stand apart from the rest while clearly reflecting your brand values. In today’s world, a targeted ad that resonates with your audience can go a long way in bolstering your brand image.
Benefits of positive brand reputation
Positive perceptions of your brand often lead to the following:
Increased sales
A positive brand image will lead to more members of your target audience thinking of your company when they need the type of product or service you supply. That means more people coming to your store and more purchases.
Employee retention
Happy customers keep employees happy, and vice versa. A good brand reputationmatters to the people who work there. If your employees think positively about your company, they are more likely to stick around.
Customer loyalty
If customers perceive that they received good value from their purchase—whether it was due to a pleasant purchasing experience or satisfaction with the product—they are more likely to come back.
Positive online reviews
Your online reputation is tied to your overall reputation, and positive reviews create a virtuous cycle. Satisfied customers share their experiences. New customers see this positive customer feedback, which leads to more sales and satisfied customers who post more good reviews, and so on.
💡Learn more: Beyond Star Ratings: Get Ecommerce Reviews From Customers
How to build and maintain a strong brand reputation
- Emphasize the positive
- Be responsive
- Engage with reviewers
- Be consistent
- Protect your reputation
- Fix any damage
Here are some ways to help shape your business’s image and safeguard your brand reputation:
1. Emphasize the positive
To build a strong reputation, it’s important to let people know you provide high-quality products or services. Emphasize your reputation for quality by sharing social proof on social media and incorporating positive reviews into your advertising efforts.
Showcase other qualities that make your business unique. Are your shipping boxes made with recycled paper? Do you practice corporate sustainability? Does your company support local school initiatives or donate to charities? There are many actions that can help build a positive reputation for your business, but no one will know about them if you don’t spread the word.
2. Be responsive
Reputations are built one interaction at a time. Treat your customers with careful attention. Being responsive on social media and having a strong online presence will also help amplify positive messaging that can reinforce customer loyalty.
3. Engage with reviewers
There are lots of review sites out there—from Google and Amazon to the Better Business Bureau and Angi. Most sites let business owners engage directly with the public, giving you the opportunity to practice reputation management.
Use your business profile on social media sites, search engines, and third-party vendors to respond to online reviews, comments, questions, and complaints in an effective and transparent manner.
💡Learn more: The Trust Checklist: How Trustworthy Is Your Online Store?
4. Be consistent
A strong brand reputation is reinforced by consistent branding. Customers who aren’t sure which products you provide or what your company’s personality is will have a less definitive idea of your particular brand. By adhering to best practices and brand guidelines, you can maintain a strong brand identity to help safeguard your reputation.
5. Protect your reputation
As legendary investor Warren Buffett once said, “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.” This is why preventing damage to your reputation is just as important as building it.
To prevent a damaged brand reputation, make sure your employees have excellent customer service training, your products and services live up to advertising, and effective quality control is in place. Ensuring a positive working environment is another intangible way to safeguard your reputation. A toxic workplace or disgruntled employees can be detrimental to your brand’s reputation.
6. Fix any damage
If something does go wrong, get out in front of it. That might mean hiring a crisis management team or simply dedicating time to acknowledging the mistake, taking steps to correct it, and telling the public about your plan to prevent a recurrence.
Brand reputation FAQ
How do you know if your brand has a good reputation?
Reviews are the clearest reflection of a brand’s reputation and one of the first things potential customers check. Sentiment analysis, or categorizing comments or reviews as “good,” “neutral,” or “negative,” can help you assess your brand’s public perception. Social media mentions also offer insight.
What is the impact of brand reputation?
A positive brand reputation is an intangible asset, guiding potential customers to your brand and increasing repeat purchase from existing customers. Customers are also more willing to pay a premium price to a brand they trust or admire. A bad reputation does the opposite.
What should you do if your brand has a negative brand reputation?
Being transparent and responsive is the key to regaining control of the narrative and repairing a poor brand reputation. If a specific harmful incident occurred, correct any erroneous information, apologize, and describe the steps you’re taking to prevent a repeat. If the issue is systemic rather than a one-off event, make internal changes to address shortcomings.
