Managing corporate social media accounts has become serious business, for any brand that understands today’s marketing landscape. Very few, however, fully grasp how social media marketing is inextricably linked with internet reputation management.
Below is a rundown of the role social media plays in enhancing an organization’s online reputation.
Conveying the personal voice of the brand. Social media accounts serve as the personification of a brand. Where the website presents the official introduction to company as well as its products and services, the social media presents the more personal side of the organization, and should offer the experience of having talked to “someone from the inside.” It’s supposed to be more accessible and less formal, but not any less official. This personal voice is supposed to add to the brand’s online image, which is the basis of internet reputation.
In addition, social media is a great way to release materials that may be too tedious to publish via the website. For example, photos for a company event are so much faster and easier to upload via Facebook, and it makes the post-event promotional efforts social as well – other people can share it and post their comments, and even add their own photos.
Solidifying online corporate identity. Related to the first point, social media should serve to strengthen the company’s existing corporate identity. An organization’s accounts on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and the like should present the same corporate identity materials – from the company logo to descriptions and taglines. The idea is that someone who visits both the website and these accounts will know for sure that they are being introduced to the same brand.
The key is to be consistent with the tone, and refer to the same buzzwords and links across all social media platforms.
Handling customer complaints and negative reviews. In the age of smartphones, many people are no longer too keen on getting in touch with company representatives to communicate their grievances the usual way. Moreover, the traditional customer service has its limitations: People have to be hired to answer the phone or man the booths, and having the operations run beyond office hours means additional expense for the business. Instead, today’s consumers tend to broadcast their negative experience of the brand on social media, even tagging their friends to warn them. Corporate social media accounts then become the natural extension of the customer services department, the kind that is on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Responses can be delivered in the real-time, immediately preventing the negative review from reaching more people without the company having aired its side of the story.
To truly harness the power of social media in building and strengthening your company’s online reputation, talk to our team here at GreyBox Creative. We are a New York-based design and digital marketing company that has mastered the art of conceptualizing internet reputation management campaigns and building social media communities, with the ultimate goal of helping our clients grow their online presence and strengthen their corporate marketing efforts.