Do You Know What People Are Saying About You?

This blog article has been written by Brian Doyle, product manager for RepairCenter Reputation Manager.

As the internet continues to evolve, so has the way information and opinions are shared. Social media has gone from a buzzword to a widespread form of influential communication.  As consumers pay more and more attention to what others are saying online, opportunities are created for businesses to market their brand, but new risks also appear. Social media and online communities are new channels which businesses need to monitor closely and frequently to protect their brand. This begs the question: are businesses going online to create false buzz or reviews to either bolster their reputation or deflate the competition’s?

In a recent blog article in Harvard Business Review, the interesting dynamic of online reputation management is addressed. The two experts interviewed for this article were Michael Luca, Professor at Harvard Business School, and Georgios Zervas, Assistant Professor of Marketing at Boston University of School of Management. Together, their findings show that businesses are likely to post fake reviews when they are new in their business cycle, face intense competition, or have had a recent surge of bad reviews.

So why would auto body shops even care about online reviews? Previous research in this field has revealed that an increase of just a single star on a review site can lead to more than a 5% increase in sales. This is a huge economic incentive for independent businesses to actively manage their online reputation, or at the very least, monitor it for any negative reviews or comments.

Here at Mitchell, we are continuously evolving our products to provide our clients with new ways to keep track of what people are saying about their business online. For example, we recently released Reputation Manager, which is a suite of products that provides users the tools to manage their online brand, gain business insight from customer survey data and keep customers informed during a repair.

Social media monitoring is important for every kind of business out there, including auto body repair shops, and the tools to help you monitor are out there. Make sure you do your research to see what works best for you, and what can help you increase your business potential.