As a local business, you don’t have the luxury of a big-name brand behind you. And that means to ensure a potential customer feels comfortable choosing your business to give their money to, your online reputation needs to be rock solid.
Key Takeaways
- Your online reputation plays a major role in building trust with potential customers and helping your local business stand out from competitors.
- Hibu Reputation Management lets you monitor and respond to customer reviews from multiple sites in one convenient dashboard.
- Automated review requests help you consistently collect fresh customer feedback, while showcasing positive reviews on your website and social media helps build credibility.
- Additional features like social posting, competitive analysis, duplicate suppression, and monthly reporting make managing your online reputation easier.
- As part of the Hibu One platform, Reputation Management works alongside your website, business listings, and customer communications to help attract and retain customers.
- With Hibu’s technology and expert support, you can strengthen your online reputation without taking valuable time away from running your business.
Even when your loyal customers refer their friends and family to you by word-of-mouth, those people are still going to look you up online to make sure that you’re legit. Studies showed that 49% of consumers trust reviews as much as they would a direct recommendation from their friends or family.
The problem is that there are lots of places that exist online where a customer can leave feedback about your products and services. Your Google Business Profile, third-party review sites (like Yelp, BBB, and Trustpilot), Reddit, and social media all need to be managed.
But where do you find the time to monitor all those platforms and respond to all your reviews when you’re busy running your business?
Hibu’s Reputation Management solution does it for you. We’ll help you build trust with prospects and turn positive reviews into new business while also saving you time.
[Related: Hibu featured as a top-rated Reviews and Reputation Management Solution]
Why does your online reputation matter?
Your online reputation is how customers determine your business is the right one for them. It’s what sets you apart from a competitor in your area that offers the same products or services that you do.
Research shows that 94% of consumers have avoided a business due to negative online information. That means you need a steady stream of positive reviews and good ratings to build credibility and trust with potential customers. We also know that 31% of consumers will only use a business rated 4.5 stars or higher. They really can make or break your local business.
On the flip side, responding to the feedback you do get also plays a role in your reputation and how you’re perceived online. According to 60% of consumers, the way a brand responds to reviews strongly influences whether they will use the business.
Encouraging new reviews and then keeping up with those reviews by responding to them supports your overall online presence.
[Related: Introducing Hibu Reputation]
How does Hibu Reputation Management help your local business?
When you partner with us, Reputation Management is a part of the Hibu One platform. Let’s break down exactly how it helps your local business build trust and win customers:
Monitor all your online reviews in one place
Remember how we mentioned your reviews are spread across the internet on multiple different sites? Well, Hibu Reputation offers you a single platform that pulls in your customer reviews, business owner replies, and user comments from 20+ sites.
No more wasting time scraping the web for all that information yourself—we’ll handle it for you.
Everything comes right to your Hibu One Performance Dashboard, where you can then sort, filter, and search through the feedback.
Plus, you’ll be instantly notified via email and text when a new review is posted and when someone comments on or replies to an existing review.
Respond to customer feedback
You should be responding to all your reviews (both positive and negative) as a best practice to maintain your reputation. In fact, 85% of consumers are more likely to choose a business that responds regularly to reviews.
Responding allows you to show appreciation for positive feedback and address negative experiences professionally. This helps you build stronger relationships and demonstrates your commitment to customer satisfaction, which both have a real impact when it comes to whether or not you get chosen over a competitor.
With Hibu Reputation, you can respond to customer feedback from Facebook, Google, and your Hibu Reviews right within the Dashboard. No need to log into multiple platforms.
Encourage more customer reviews
The “shelf life” of a review is short. 73% of consumers only trust reviews written within the last month. So that means you need to keep encouraging reviews from your customers so that you have plenty of recent reviews for potential customers to see.
With Hibu Reputation, you can send automated review requests after purchases or services have been completed. No more relying on your employees or service techs to remember to ask for them.
You’ll build a stronger collection of customer feedback over time that helps potential customers feel more confident choosing your business.
Showcase your positive reviews
Another key component of Hibu Reputation is the ability to put your positive feedback on your website and social sites.
Why is that important? Showcasing your positive customer experiences builds your credibility and helps prospective customers see why others trust your business. Research found that displaying verified reviews on your website can increase conversion rates by up to 270%.
Hibu Reputation turns positive feedback into an asset that supports your overall marketing efforts.
Social posting
Your online reputation goes beyond just customer reviews. Staying active on social media also helps you connect with customers and keep your business top of mind.
With Hibu Reputation, you can post content directly to your connected Google Business Profile (GBP) and Facebook Page right from your Reputation Dashboard. No need to switch between platforms to keep your customers updated and engaged.
Competitive analysis
To make sure that your reputation is doing the work of putting you ahead of your competition, you need to be able to see how you match up to that competition.
Hibu Reputation gives you Facebook and Google ratings for up to five of your competitors. You’ll also be able to see the industry average for your business based on geography and category. Plus, how your business compares to both individual and industry averages.
Duplicate suppression
Having multiple listings for your business on the same site can confuse potential customers and make it harder for them to find the right information about you. And they may leave reviews on these duplicate listings that you don’t even know about.
We’ll identify those duplicate listings for you. Then, you can request to have them removed right from your Dashboard. This saves you the time of having to track those duplicate listings yourself. Just keep in mind that the final decision to remove a listing is up to the publisher.
Monthly summary emails
Additionally, with Hibu Reputation, you’ll never have to wonder how your marketing efforts are performing.
Not only can you log into your Hibu One Performance Dashboard 24/7, but we’ll also send you a monthly email that shows all the reviews and ratings that were captured over the previous 30 days.
We know how important transparency is to our clients. You want to be sure your marketing dollars are being put to good use.
[Related: Free Guide: Taking Control of Your Online Reputation]
How does Hibu Reputation Management work with Hibu One?
Your online reputation is obviously important, but it’s just one piece of your digital marketing strategy. When it works alongside your other marketing efforts, it can have an even bigger impact on your local business.
Which is why we created Hibu One as a full-service, all-in-one marketing platform. It connects Reputation Management with your website, business listings, customer communications, and online reviews to help you attract new customers and build stronger relationships with your existing ones.
For example, your business listings help customers find you online, your reviews give them confidence to choose you, and then your website makes it easy for them to take the next step—requesting a quote, booking an appointment, or purchasing.
The best part is you don’t have to juggle multiple marketing providers or platforms to make it all happen. With Hibu One, you get connected digital marketing solutions backed by a team of experts who handle the heavy lifting for you.
[Related: 5 Ways Hibu One Saves Your Local Business Time]
Build a better online reputation with Hibu
Research shows that the average local marketer spends 17% of their time during the working week on online reputation management. And you’re not just a marketer… you’re a local business owner who has a lot more on your plate.
Hibu Reputation, included as part of the Hibu One platform, helps you build trust and strengthen your online presence without costing you more time out of your already-busy day. When you partner with us, you get access to our advanced technology along with our expert support to take your online reputation to the next level.
Ready to learn more about Hibu Reputation or about Hibu One as a fully-managed digital marketing platform? Take a self-guided platform tour now or contact us for a free, no-obligation consultation with a digital marketing expert.
