Beyond damage control: ORM as a growth catalyst for brands

Public Perceptions matter for brands to a monumental degree. Business and financial aspects come later, but it affects the very essence of the relationships with their customers. As per a study, 72% of consumers have showcased trust in online reviews as much as they rely on word of mouth. Negativity spreads faster in the social media age and even something as small as a bad review on the internet to something as nightmarish as a PR crisis can vitiate a brand’s image for a substantial amount of time. Sometimes, they can create an existential dread for them. That’s where you need Online Reputation Management (ORM) exercises not only to do damage control but also to develop a robust and favourable brand image and public perception.

Brands are built on mutual trust, cooperation and delivery on promises made. Basis SPER Market Research, the Global Online Reputation Management Market is poised to reach USD 989.23 million by 2033 with a CAGR of 15.1%. Online Reputation Management is a powerful growth catalyst, ensuring that there is an organic and authentic communication channel between the customers and the brand, free from targeted negativity and bad PR exercises.

Apart from this, through Online Relationship Management (ORM), brands can ensure that positive brand-specific stories, reviews, and testimonials are predominant to build a positive online narrative, fostering credibility and trust. As people say, the first impression is the last impression, prospective buyers always make searches online about a brand, especially if it’s unheard of or relatively new, and then initiate a purchase. If they see a credible online presence and positive reviews, they are influenced to become purchasers and loyal customers; otherwise, they do not. So, ORM becomes instrumental, especially for newer, fresh brands and start-ups, as they still have their fights on to garner public trust and exponential business growth.

Deploying ORM strategies also help sustain a cohesive search engine visibility. Customers, across, the world, read about the brand they invest in. Getting positive reviews and high ratings provide credence to the brand, maintaining transparency and influencing consumers more likely to choose the brand over competitors.

Positive perception-building is definitely an important priority for ORM but it’s not only the single-point agenda. ORM toolkits are also an important for customer retention. Attracting customers is still an easy job compared to retaining them to the brand for a long time. ORM creates solid engagement with the ongoing customers like giving prompt responses & answers to customer queries and quality complaints, which results in customers gaining more trust and respect for the brand they are engaging in.

As there is a floodgate of brands and start-ups in the ecosystem, having an ORM has become an indispensable brand amplification strategy. It creates a unique and fitting identity of the brand that sets them apart from the others which might be working in the same field or horizon. Establishing and cementing a distinct and cherished identity, through pointed ORM strategies, is critical for brand functioning. Nowadays, a strong word-of-mouth also gets germinated and circulated through online searches and listings. Happy customers also endorse the brand strongly, through online reviews, social media postings, and recommendations, accenting the brand’s reach organically through word-of-mouth.

Apart from this, ORM tools and strategies also help decode, understand and cater to customer sentiment. Your ORM team can analyse and provide enlightening insights & feedbacks into acknowledging and copping to customer preferences, which at times, may also lead to product or service refinement. ORM helps in Online Marketing as well as Social Media Marketing. It helps in identifying and chalking out trends which may help brand reach millions of potential customers, by monitoring online chatter and adapting to suitable strategies.

Nonetheless, one can positively affirm that beyond crisis management & damage control, ORM is consequential for building positive perception, brand amplification & identity, and also to take corrective measures at times.