Reputation crisis - Online reputational crisis

By: Ruben Gálvez

Are you going through an online reputation crisis? If so, you should address it as soon as possible. And if not, avoid it at all costs.

But what exactly is a reputation crisis? We’ll explain it to you shortly, along with the different types of reputation crises that exist and how to handle them.

What is an online reputation crisis?

An online reputation crisis refers to a situation where a company or brand’s credibility is immediately impacted by one or more unforeseen events, putting its image at risk, disrupting its structure, creating uncertainty, and producing consequences in social media and the press.

Today, your business, like any other, is more exposed than ever to experiencing an online reputation crisis. Why? Simple: thanks to the rise of the internet, people have more control over businesses through harmful opinions on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Amazon, Google My Business, and others regarding products, services, customer service, etc., leading to a loss of trust.

As you can see, all the information online created by third parties can drastically affect your online reputation, as users are often guided by the comments they see on the internet.

What are the symptoms of a reputation crisis?

To help you identify when your business is going through a reputation crisis, here are the most common symptoms:

• Numerous negative mentions in blogs, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn, and other social media.

• Reduction in stock value.

• Requests for explanations from shareholders and investors.

• Decrease in sales.

• Loss of focus from the work team.

• Attacks on the company from activists, clients, media, etc.

• Increase in negative critiques in the news.

What are the types of online reputation crises?

The invention of technologies and the presence of more participative and critical users in the digital world has brought new risks to businesses, and therefore, different types of online reputation crises.

The most well-known types are:

HOT Crisis

HOT stands for the following English terms:

• High velocity
  This means that the reputation crisis spreads rapidly, almost always due to mobile use.

• Over information
  This refers to content, specifically fake news or out-of-context information.

• Trick context
  This refers to the multiplication of comments in critical groups that lead to more online pressure.

Although experiencing a HOT reputation crisis can have considerable media impact, its effects are usually short-lived.

COLD Crisis

Like the previous type of online reputation crisis, COLD stands for the following English terms:

• Calm development
  The crisis develops slowly, due to issues within the organization or a recurring incident over time.

• Old issue
  These crises are usually associated with old risks that have not been properly controlled.

• Low digital initial spread
  Initially, the ability of the crisis to spread digitally is low, but it can rise over time.

• Damage
  When the crisis erupts, it can have a large impact on the company, seriously damaging its reputation.

Unlike HOT reputation crises, COLD crises are characterized by having peaks with large and lasting effects on corporate reputation.

What to do in the face of an online reputation crisis?

If you have the right tools (action plan and trained team), you can prevent your business from getting involved in a reputation crisis.

Likewise, if it happens, it can be solved and the risks minimized by following, in general, these steps:

1. Collect the information
   First, gather as much information as possible. The more you collect, the more effective the strategy will be.

2. Act quickly
   Doing nothing will not solve the online reputation crisis; it could make it worse. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the situation and address it quickly.

3. Tell the truth
   Not telling the truth or omitting certain facts will have even more complex consequences for your online reputation.

4. Avoid censorship
   If users' opinions are involved in the crisis, try not to delete or block users unless their comments do not meet the platform's policies where they left their reviews.

5. Take action
   Yes, you should apologize to your target audience, customers, and anyone related to your business. However, over-apologizing won’t be enough.
   The ideal solution is to address the problem by applying measures suggested by digital reputation professionals.

6. Reflect
   After losing the trust of your audience, it's natural that you need to regain it, along with learning the lessons from the mistakes made and showing with concrete actions that improvements will be made within the company.

What happens after a reputation crisis?

After resolving the reputation crisis, it’s likely that you will still feel the impact of it. Therefore, it’s crucial to work on your brand or business’s image and start noticing changes like the following:

• Restoration of sales indices.

• Increased productivity.

• Receiving new job applications.

• Decline of negative mentions about your business in social media and the press.

• Reestablishment of relationships with stakeholders.

Why is it important to prevent an online reputation crisis?

The main reason is that a reputation crisis can damage, in a short time, all the effort, work, and money you invested over years to build your brand or business.

That’s why it’s essential to have a prevention and management strategy for a reputation crisis.

Now you know, don’t wait to see the symptoms of an online reputation crisis. Be cautious and seek experts in the field!