Troubleshooter: How can we safeguard our brand from criticism online?
The exponential growth of social networking means that almost anyone, anywhere, can publicise positive or damaging comments about a business. How can the employer brand be protected?
Date:
08 July 2010
Source:
Guide to recruitment marketing
Page:
26
THE PROBLEM
I work in the retail sector. We are proud of our brand and reputation and depend on it to ensure customers continue to come through our door but also so that we attract talent and are seen as an employer of choice. However, managing our reputation is becoming increasingly difficult. It is not just about what we say or do but reputation is now dictated by other people and what our employees and suppliers say and do, particularly with the prevalence of social networking sites.
It has recently been brought to my attention that a group of employees, both former and existing, have set up a page on a social networking site and are making negative comments about us as an employer. This is unacceptable and I am confident in terms of how I will deal with this situation and group of individuals from both a legal and organisational perspective. However, since this incident I have done a little more online research and found a number of other negative comments posted on various blogs about our recruitment process and the lack of information offered to candidates. This worries me.
More information is available online than ever before and I’m concerned about how I can manage this as more and more people seek opinions, recommendations and advice via the internet. As an organisation so reliant on its brand, we cannot afford to have staff/potential staff making such negative comments, but I simply don’t have the time to check what is being said on every social networking site or blog. How can I manage negative comments?
THE ADVICE
Karen Archer, legal and operations director, Law Express
Managing any negative feedback in a business is a difficult task, particularly when it’s managed on a “public” networking site. Yet given that such sites are here to stay, it’s right that you want to take action to resolve this situation.
Initially, take a step back to consider and review the information you currently make available to prospective candidates. What does it say about your organisation? Does it inform potential recruits about what it’s like to work within the business?
You have been presented with a huge opportunity to review your recruitment information in the light of this feedback. Seize the opportunity to identify any common themes and devise an approach to address them. Revamping this information – perhaps with an online launch – has the potential to strengthen your employer brand and demonstrate to your potential and existing employees that you’re prepared to listen to their feedback and take appropriate action. It would also be valuable to consider how you can make the most of social networking sites as a resource to enhance and promote your company message and corporate brand. It’s probably not possible or productive to respond to every negative comment you read. But you can make sure that any relevant blogs or news releases on your corporate website have a presence on or link to the most active social networking sites. Constant reinforcement of your key corporate messages – with case studies or positive employee feedback – may be another alternative to consider.
Social networking sites have the potential to be a valuable resource for organisations and I think it’s important to acknowledge that all comments – both positive and negative, assuming they’re not malicious – are valid and should be dealt with in the same way as any feedback received through more traditional channels.
Chris Buckley, social brand consultant, Five by Five People
This is an issue that employers need to face if they are not fully engaging with their staff. Using any concerns held by your employees to brainstorm and develop ideas around new products, processes or even corporate behaviours can turn a negative into a positive.
Social networking is massive and monitoring it every day is incredibly time consuming. It’s possible to do this at a basic level using free online tools, but if you want to delve deeper, you can use a third party.
Internally, show your staff how important they are to you. Talk to them about their social media usage and put together a policy. It doesn’t have to be stern or restrictive, but it should identify ways in which they can use social media, while giving some guidance on what’s fine to say and what could cause potential issues. Good employers get to be great in social media – so be engaging and involving. There is no other environment to share value and cultures in such an authentic way. Employers whose employer value propositions aren’t real and true will always be exposed – and good thing too!
Trevor Merriden, workplace director, Communications Management
You are right to be worried. The internet allows your denigrators to accelerate the power of word-of-mouth to damage or challenge your brand’s reputation. Therefore your online presence in turn needs to have a well-thought-out defensive campaign running alongside your positive “business-as-usual” corporate face.
The defensive tactics that you employ could include some obvious, but frequently overlooked, steps such as the automatic monitoring of news sites, chat rooms and blogs. You say that you simply don’t have the time to check what is being said on every social networking site or blog. Sorry, but you simply must. Our research consistently shows that word-of-mouth reputation is the runaway number one driver of trust between you and your customers. Fortunately, online monitoring has never been easier to set up and maintain – a small investment of your time.
It is not enough, however, merely to watch what others are saying about you. You must be ready to intervene if detractors’ obvious distaste spills over into factual falsehoods. Any response you make needs to be consistent with the aims, objectives and values of your organisation.
Whatever you do, don’t just hope this will go away. Never forget that your reputation is like fine china – easily broken and never well mended. Lose it and you could lose your business.
Key points
- Your brand and good name are precious, so make time to monitor what is being said online.
- Consider whether any detractor’s criticism is valid and, if it is, take appropriate action to remedy it.
- Let your employees know that their feedback is welcomed and will be acted on.
- Establish a policy on social media usage to guide employees.
- Be prepared to intervene immediately to quash any falsehoods about your company.
- Use social networking to proactively promote your brand.