Reputation Management – Jacob Media Holding

How is Jacob Media Holding different from other ORM agencies?

While some online reputation management (ORM) practitioners have high ethical standards, many work in a way that is inconsistent with the PRSA’s Code of Ethics — and ultimately risky for their clients’ reputations as well. Similar to black-hat SEO firms, they offer a “quick fix” rather than doing the harder work of getting to the root of a reputation problem.

Some examples of these questionable practices include:

Creating fake reviews to try to push down negative reviews and increase a client’s star rating on review sites;

Buying backlinks in violation of Google’s policies to artificially improve the search position of positive content;

Buying mentions with under-the-table payments in articles on popular publications and blogs;

Creating Wikipedia pages for clients, when this is against Wikipedia’s guidelines;

Posting knowingly false information, such as claiming a client has given to charities or won awards that it hasn’t.

Jacob Media Holding brings a different mindset to online reputation. We take the longer view. The right way to improve a reputation includes:

Consulting with the client to get at the core of their reputational issues;

Identifying opportunities to integrate social purpose into the client's brand story;

Developing a plan to communicate actual changes in the business to address reputational issues;

Responding to unhappy customers on social media and review sites and making amends;

Identifying happy customers through Net Promoter Score (NPS) surveys and encouraging them to leave authentic positive reviews;

Earning positive media coverage to tell your side of the story and to show you have overcome your reputational issues.

Taking this more strategic view doesn’t mean you can’t address issues quickly. For example, let's take a look a reputation management challenge our agency took on recently:

We had a client—a global midmarket company—that had a long history of a positive reputation, but that had been acquired two years earlier, leading to many changes in leadership, organizational structure and product strategy in a short time. This led to dozens of negative Glassdoor reviews and a three-star rating — a big turnoff not only to prospective employees, but also potential clients.

Even with swift changes to improve employee morale and an active internal NPS program, it can take months to improve a poor Glassdoor rating. The client understandably wanted the public to know about the changes it had made, and the happy employees it had earned, sooner than that.

So we recommended that they set up authentic profiles, with authentic reviews, on alternative employer review sites. These sites are not as well known as Glassdoor, but by establishing a presence on them, the client could draw those reviews to the first page of the client’s branded search results. This would provide a more well-rounded view of the company.

Reputation management has undergone some big changes over the last century — and in all likelihood, those changes will continue. Should you choose an agency to help you navigate this evolving landscape, be sure to choose one that adheres to ethical standards of conduct, such as PRSA’s Code of Ethics. It’s the right thing to do, and will achieve more lasting results over time.

Can my brand really become a victim of cancel culture or a conspiracy theory?

Absolutely. Businesses of all sizes today can find themselves in the social media crosshairs for past mistakes, offhand remarks, political statements and more.

Conspiracy theories, in particular, are more frequent, spread more widely, and stamped out less easily than ever before – posing a serious threat not only to individual businesses, but to our democratic society as a whole. Those who successfully spread conspiracy theories earn the “social currency” of status and popularity on social media, while rarely being held to account for their damaging claims legally or financially.

The rise of online shaming and conspiracies means that brands must be proactive in both preparing for and responding to these kinds of crises.

My company is B2B. Isn't social purpose only relevant to B2C brands?

Many B2B brands have thought that since their buyers make purchasing decisions based on value, it’s unnecessary to have a social purpose, and safer to stay clear of social issues. Each year, and especially after the events of 2020, this idea is proving to be outdated and even harmful to brands’ growth. B2B purchasers expect the companies they partner with to not only provide excellent products and customer service but also want those companies to behave as responsible “corporate citizens” and take action to make the world a better place.

In the past several years, many well-known tech companies have come under fire for being disconnected from or indifferent to social concerns. One example of a company that has mostly avoided the soulless tech giant stigma is Salesforce, which has been forward-looking in getting involved with social causes. While the company has not entirely escaped criticism, under the direction of CEO Marc Benioff, Salesforce has taken strong positions on many social issues, and the company has donated millions of dollars in an attempt to alleviate homelessness in its home city of San Francisco. Further showing that corporate social responsibility (CSR) is not only something they do for the public but is intrinsic to their internal operations, the company spent $8.7 million redressing the gender pay gap they found within their own workforce.

While some B2B brands are starting to view purpose as important to their growth, many companies are unsure how to embed their stated purpose into all aspects of the business operations. To build brand trust, both with customers and with employees, your brand purpose must be relevant to your company and customer base.

As an example, in 2018, the Dropbox founders and the company launched Dropbox Foundation, which focuses on partnering with nonprofits to promote human rights. As a file-sharing service that makes it possible for millions of users to easily share information and accomplish work from anywhere with a Wi-Fi connection, supporting organizations that use information to defend human rights fits their brand and product.

In our connected world, B2B brands cannot afford to remain silent on social issues; the time for fence-sitting is over. While many of your purpose-driven B2B marketing efforts will look a bit different from B2C campaigns, the core principles are the same. Embracing purpose helps to unify your employees, customers and the communities you serve, giving your brand an edge over those who appear to only care about short-term profits.

How can having a social purpose help my B2B brand's bottom line?

Embracing purpose and working to benefit the world can give B2B brands a competitive edge. For B2B companies, the advantages of having a social purpose include:

Differentiating your brand based on values. The tech market is booming. 2020 saw 480 tech IPOs, with more companies doubling in value soon after their initial public offering than any time since 1999. In a crowded marketplace, having a clearly stated purpose, and taking actions to support it, can help to differentiate your brand from competitors by appealing to buyers’ emotions and values.

Aligning with your buyer’s vendor selection criteria. B2B buyers are increasingly responsible for upholding their own companies’ social responsibility initiatives. That has made choosing vendors that are aligned on social purpose an important differentiator for brands; in some cases, it is even a requirement.

Making the purchase decision easier. Unlike most B2C purchasing decisions, the B2B buying process can take months, even years, and involve stakeholders at various levels of the organization. These sales cycles can be reduced, however, by building strong brand identification and trust. Take Microsoft, for example. For companies choosing which workstation OS to go with, or looking for a cloud services provider, Microsoft makes a strong case with their corporate social responsibility programs. For instance, they have committed to being carbon negative by fiscal year 2030.

Attracting purpose-driven candidates to the company. A large portion of today’s workforce wants to feel connected with the purpose and mission of the companies they work for. Employees want to know that they are making a contribution to the world in some way. Companies with social purpose built into their structure and operations are more likely to attract and retain an engaged workforce.

What is the difference between reputation management and crisis communications?

Think of reputation management as PR playing defense, such as when:

Your customers are posting one-star Google reviews;

Your employees are trashing you on Glassdoor;

A lawsuit against your company appears high in your branded search results;

A negative news story accuses you of incompetent management or various misdeeds; or

You or one of your employees gets “canceled” on Twitter for a bad decision or poor choice of words.

In a world where anyone can find out a wealth of information about your brand with a single Google search, managing your reputation is more critical than ever. That controversial Facebook post they dug up from when your newly hired CEO was in college? That dodgy character that invested in your company? That media misquote that took on a life of its own? Careers and businesses have been ruined over less.

When reputation issues flare from a low smoulder to a five-alarm fire, that’s a form of reputation management known as crisis communications. We have worked crises ranging from workplace shootings to sex scandals and more, and the stakes are never higher when it comes to a brand preserving trust.

How do your reputation management and third-party validation solutions work together?

They are two sides of the same coin. To illustrate by way of example:

Our third-party validation solution identifies the most important review sites for your brand and helps you attract more positive reviews. Our reputation management solution focuses on anticipating and responding to negative reviews and social media criticism.

Our third-party validation solution focuses on securing positive media coverage for your company and products. Our reputation management solution focuses on responding to and blunting the impact of negative media attention in the event of a crisis.

For many of our clients, our third-party validation solution is the core of their PR program —but they are comforted that we can step in and help with reputation issues if and when they come along.

What are some tips for managing my brand's reputation in 2021?

Jacob Media Holding recently compiled a list of 38 tips for reputation management in today's post-truth, cancel-culture world that dives into specific strategies and tactics. At a high level, it's important to understand that the reputation management playing field has increasingly become a minefield, and requires not only 24/7 monitoring and response, but a proactive communications strategy that reduces the risk of reputation challenges ever occurring.

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