Your online reputation will win your customers before you ever interact with them because 61% of customers read online reviews before making a purchasing decision. A considerable number of customers will have already made a purchasing decision prior to speaking to you directly. But what you have to remember is that your product is your voice. It’s one of the main sources of your online reputation.
So what can you do when your product is ruining your online reputation? This guide is going to show you how.
Targeting the Wrong Audience
Sometimes a product can work perfectly, but it’s not what the market wants. The startup AdKeeper failed hard. The product worked because it allows you to save your favorite ads, but the problem was the audience never wanted anything like this. Why would anyone want to save their favorite advertisements for later anyway?
In this case, they had a damaged reputation for producing something pointless and they never bounced back from this reputational catastrophe. And that should serve as a warning. You should know that the product is what your target market wants before releasing it.
Nothing shows more that you don’t understand your customers than a product they don’t want.
It Doesn’t Work
The next step in the process of building your business is to actually create the product. You are sure that there’s a demand for the product, but when you eventually release your creation you receive a slew of bad reviews. This is an unforgivable mistake by new business owners that do damage to online reputation because you have nobody to blame but yourself.
Your product should be 99% perfect before it ever hits the market. In an increasingly competitive world, you have only one shot at pleasing your customers before you tarnish your brand forever. You won’t get another chance.
So what are the main reasons a business owner would release a product that doesn’t work?
Incompetence – Some people were simply not supposed to run a business. Incompetent business owners are everywhere and they are responsible for the trash that manages to make it into the public eye.
Meeting a Deadline – Companies have been known to knowingly release an inferior quality product simply because they had to meet a deadline. The idea is that they will release an updated version soon afterwards.
No Testing – It’s surprising how many businesses have no comprehensive testing policy in place for new releases. How are you supposed to catch those lingering bugs without one?
The solution to this is simple. Prioritize a great product. You will never release a perfect product and there will always be something to change, but at the very least it should do what it’s supposed to. Be willing to postpone the release date and be willing to fund your business ideas through comprehensive testing.
You may annoy your target market by forcing them to wait longer for a new release, but anything is better than releasing a bad product.
Over Promising and Under Delivering
The number one way to improve your digital marketing strategy is to be careful when it comes to what you promise. In the event that you attempt to promise something your product can’t deliver, you are setting your company up for a major fall.
The reason for this is that all customer relationships are built on trust. Corporations can guarantee a huge amount of income with every new release because they can count on the loyal customers who trust them to produce something that meets their high standards.
You will never build up a following of loyal customers if you continually over promise and under deliver. Aim to do the exact opposite and it will have a huge effect on your online reputation. People will believe that you are going the extra mile, even if you are only doing your job.
Rather than focusing your efforts on hyping your new release up, redirect some of that energy towards creating a high-quality product.
You are Not Improving
Most startups will not hit upon a great product at the first attempt. Instead, you must improve with every release. Customers will give you a chance as long as they know that you care. Reach out to them and listen to what they have to say. And after you do this you should show them that you have taken their advice into account.
A lot of your target audience will give you more chances as long as you demonstrate your commitment. It’s why companies like Apple can release a bad iOS and still retain their loyal following.
How will you defend your online reputation today?
Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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