Presented by Karen PorterUM School of Business Administration& ImpactOnlineMarketing.com

Online Public Relations and Reputation ManagementPresented by Karen Porter

Department of Marketing

School of Business Administration

The University of Montana

News Releases – What Are They?

A news release is an official statement issued to media that provides information on a particular matter with the intention of attracting media coverage.

Tips for Writing a Great Release

Grab attention with a good headline.

Get right to the point in the first paragraph. Supporting information follows.

Write factually: this is not a promotional piece – it’s a news article.

Make it grammatically flawless. Make it grammatically flawless.

Writing a Great Release (cont.)

Include quotes whenever possible – it’s one way to work in “promotional elements.”

Include your contact information.

One page is best – and two is the maximum.

Provide access to more information.

See sample release templates on the website.

Karen’s “Go To” Online Release Sites

Free-Press-Release.com Best free distribution service Registration and payment of $1 earns premier status

PressReleaseSpider.com $8.95 submission Excellent resource for an inexpensive service

WebWire.com Best service outside of far more expensive services $29.95, $95.00 options Best of these options; most expensive, too

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Reviews – Why They are Important

Traffic to top 10 review sites grew 158% during 2012 (compete.com)

92% of consumers trust online reviews over what a salesperson says (Wall Street Journal)

75% don’t believe companies tell the truth in advertising

70% consult reviews before purchasing

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Dealing with Negative Comments

Fact: You WILL get negative comments Fact: Negative comments will NOT kill your business IF you respond / react

correctly

You can’t control what people say about your company. But you CAN exercise some control over the larger conversational context that they say it in.

Proactive ORM is all about making sure you’re adding enough to the conversation to ensure that the ratio of positive to negative is in your favor.

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What is Online Reputation Mgmt?

ORM is …

The process of proactively using tools, processes, and systems to be aware of and influence how you are perceived online and the conversation that is occurring online about you and your business.

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What is at Stake?

74% of U.S. consumers choose to do business in whole or in part based on online feedback.

Source: Society for Communications Research

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Keys to Effective ORM

Be proactive and reactive Ideally 90% proactive Immediacy in reactiveness is important

Combine marketing, SEO, public relations, branding, sales, social media, customer service and everything you do online

Cut across ALL core business functions (it is not “only” marketing)

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5 Core Principles of ORM

1. Listen to what your customers are saying

2. Contribute to the conversation

3. Delight customers by exceeding expectations

4. Collect feedback, referrals, & testimonials

5. Plan how you will respond before needed

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Listening – Set Up Google Alerts

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Get email updates on the latest relevant Google results on your name, company or industry keywords

Listening – Monitor Social Media

Tools of the trade: TweetDeck Hoot Suite Social Mention

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Contribute – Why There is a Need

You can’t control what people say about your company BUT …

You can make sure you’re adding enough to the conversation to ensure that the ratio of positive to negative is in your favor!

THIS IS IMPORTANT!

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Contribute – Set Up Social Profiles

Set up profiles in your key networks, directories and social profiles Google+ Local – important if you’re bricks & mortar Yelp Trip Advisor Urban Spoon LinkedIn Facebook Twitter

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Contribute – Start Blogging

Establishes you are a credible “expert” Add social media sharing buttons Post on subjects that will help your clients/prospects Use posts to populate a monthly newsletter Great for SEO Add Google Authorship to your blog

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Contribute – Everywhere!

Whitepapers Podcasts Reports Webinars Online teaching (Udemy and similar) Guest blogging Social media shares

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Contribute – Everywhere!

Whitepapers Podcasts Reports Webinars Online teaching (Udemy and similar) Guest blogging Social media shares

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Contribute – w/ Consistency & Care

Share a steady supply of online material Maintain a consistent professional brand

Develop your own voice / persona and use it consistentlyBe careful of what your share personally onlineRemember that the online world is a giant glass house -- you’re easy to find!Remember that what you say will be “out there” forever! (no online eraser!)

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Delight Your Customers

Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon

“If you do build a great experience, customers tell each other about that. Word of mouth is very powerful.”

BUT….there’s more to the story…Expected experienceGreat experienceUnsatisfactory experience

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Plan – How You Will Respond

Develop a process for responding to negative comments (before you need to!) Decide whether to:ListenDecide whether to engageApologizeAffirmTake it offline Move on Act to appease customerAct to prevent future occurrence

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Plan – How to “Fight Back”

Claim your Google + Local listing Respond to reviews Have a system to collect reviews Encourage customers to submit reviews to review sites (note: NEVER pay

for good reviews) Continue to monitor your reputation Stay in touch with customers

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Plan – System to Collect Reviews

Ask questions that encourage a positive responseLeading questions that put the customer in a frame of mind to leave a good review

What do you like BEST about …… What is something you would tell a friend?

Always state that responses may be used in promotional material Optional – offer a reward for completion Note: NEVER collect online reviews on premises of brick and mortar locations!

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Plan – System to Collect Reviews - 2

Encourage customers to submit reviews – good/bad Add a review plugin to your site

Example: WP Customer Reviews Add a link on your site for customers to place reviews

If they do, ask them if they would be willing to leave a review for you elsewhere online – provide them with alternatives

Review your customers/vendors and ask them to do the same for you

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Reputation is More Than Reviews

Reviews Social media

Facebook – LikesLinkedIn – endorsementsTwitter – retweets

Connecting with customers & prospects Overall visibility online Online “authority” and credibility

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Establish Authority Online

Develop and expert status by sharing online

Focus on your area of expertiseIf more than one topic, try to keep them relatedIf totally unrelated, consider using a pen name

Get published on major sites to you can display “authority” credentials

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