Digital Communications Conference

Managing your reputation onlineMario Dolcezza, Managing Director, Diciamo

This Session - What we’re looking at

• How consumers influence our reputation

• How this translates into online content

• How to best deal with this online content

• Where the corporate world is going

Understanding Reputation

• What is reputation?

– Expression of underlying opinions that create a

sense of a company’s worth and values

• Who impacts on your organisation’s

reputation?

• Google defines an ‘opinion’ as:

– a personal belief or judgment that is not founded

on proof or certainty.

Understanding Opinions

• More often formed of personal experience

– Highly emotive and specific to the individual

• Are a perception of experience

– May have only a passing bearing on reality

• If your customers perceive it as a bad experience then it was

a bad experience

• Are an accumulation of experiences, interactions and other opinions

– Negative opinions often occur after a series of frustrations

How are opinions expressed?

• Through feedback

– Complaints

– Forums/Rating sites

– Social media

• Word of mouth (person to person)

• Media

• Hearsay

• Taking action (voting with your feet)

Online

My take on managing feedback

• Here’s a novel idea, if we want to know what people

think about us let’s ask them!

• Why do we need to trawl social media?

• Effective customer engagement and feedback channels do

the job.

Opinions/Feedback Online Channels

• Two Broad Channels for Feedback– Invited and Uninvited

• Invited– Closed system

• Accessible only by the company sponsoring feedback

• Uninvited– Open Public system

• Forums

• Rating Sites

• Social Media– Facebook

– Twitter

So, Addressing Feedback Online

• Create a platform for feedback

– Openly invite comment

• Designated website

• Twitter account

• Facebook Page

• Consider the exercise of managing feedback

– 1st as an exercise in looking after the customer

– 2nd an online PR exercise

So, Addressing Feedback Online

• Actively trawl open channels

– Use established tools to review

• Twitter

• Facebook

• Forums

• Rating Sites

Methodology for managing feedback

• React as soon as possible

– Prompt responses = conscientious company

• Acknowledge problem

– Don’t defend, don’t argue

– It’s about managing perceptions

• Take ownership

– Attach a name, give contact details

– Specify a date and time for next contact

• Keep to it!

Incorporating Metrics

• Corporations are converging on Net Promoter Score (NPS™)

– “On a scale of 1 to 10, where 10 is definitely, how

likely are you to recommend our company to your

friends, family and colleagues?”

• Three broad category responses

– 0 to 6 = Detractors

– 7 & 8 = Passive/Neutral

– 9 & 10 = Promoters

– % of Promoters less % of Detractors

Analysis of NPS

• Proven Financial Impact as Established by LSEFor every business they analysed...

– 1 point increase in NPS = £9m increased sales.

– Increase of 7 points NPS = 1% increase in growth.

– Reducing negative NPS by 1% increased revenues by as much as £24.8m.

– 2% reduction in Negative NPS = 1% increase in growth.

• The LSE discovered that businesses that had relatively high positive NPS scores combined with a low level of negative NPS scores grew 4 times as fast as their contemporaries.

Summary

• Reputation is ultimately a reflection of your customer approach

• Businesses must fundamentally have a customer service culture

• Online content is merely one avenue of expression

• Be proactive in seeking feedback and opinions

• Address customer concerns, change hearts and minds

• Prevention is far better than cure

Digital Communications Conference

28 September, 2011